CaringUK.net

Most people will have to contribute towards their care home fees and by doing a financial assessment your local council will work out how much you should pay.

Your financial assessment

Your local council will do a financial assessment to work out how much you can afford to pay towards your care home fees. This will be based on your income and your capital. Your income is all the money you have coming in each week. Examples of income include:

interest from savings
a private pension
your State Pension
some benefits you may be getting such as the care component of Disability Living Allowance

You should make sure that you are claiming all the benefits that you are entitled to as your contribution will be worked out as if you are getting them. However much your contribution to your care home fees is assessed to be, you must be left with a certain amount of money to spend as you like. This is currently £18.80 each week.

Capital and the value of your home

Capital is savings, investments and any property that you might own. Currently if you have over £20,500 in capital you will be assessed as being able to meet the full cost of your care.

If you own your home then it will usually be counted as capital 12 weeks after you move permanently into a care home. The value of your home will not be counted as capital if one of the following people still live there:

your husband or wife or a partner who lived with you as if you were married
a close relative who is 60 or over, or incapacitated
a close relative who is under 16 and whom you are legally liable to support
your ex-husband, ex-wife or ex-partner if they are a lone parent

Your local council may also ignore the value of your home if you have a carer and they live there, but they do not have to do this.

Your capital will be counted as generating an income according to the following table:

Amount of capital you have
£20,500 or over	You will be expected to meet the full cost of your care
Between £12,500 and £20,500	Capital between these levels will be calculated as providing you with an income of £1 for every £250 of your savings
£12,500 or under	Your capital will be ignored in calculating how much to contribute to the cost of your care

Getting your needs assessed

Usually you will have a needs assessment before a financial assessment. Your local council will be able to tell you how much they usually pay for a care home that will meet your needs.

They can then arrange a care home for you or you can choose one yourself that charges the same sort of price that they usually pay. This is important if you are paying your own fees to start with but think you might need to ask your council for help later on.

What if I want to move into a more expensive care home?

You can choose a care home that is more expensive than your local council usually pays for a person with your assessed needs, but you may need to find a way to pay the difference.

If the council can suggest a place that meets your needs and you still want to move into a more expensive care home then they can ask a third party (usually a relative or friend) to pay the extra. This is called a 'top-up fee'. You are not able to pay this yourself as you have been financially assessed to pay what you can afford.

If your local council cannot suggest a place that meets your needs in your local area then they should be prepared to pay more than their usual amount.

National Health Service-funded nursing care

Some people will have the full cost of their care paid for by the National Health Service (NHS). This is called 'continuing health care'. Each health authority has its own criteria.

People who qualify for this type of care usually need ongoing specialist medical treatment on a regular basis.

Hospital staff, or your local doctor (GP), can help arrange an assessment if you think you qualify. If you disagree with the decision made after your assessment you can appeal. If you are assessed as needing some regular nursing care you may receive a contribution towards your care home fees from the NHS.

Direct payments

Direct payments from your local council are intended to support adults in independent living and are not intended to finance permanent residential care. However, you may be able to use direct payments to secure occasional short periods in residential accommodation, if your local council agrees that is what is needed.

If you are in a care home

In some situations, people who are living in residential care can have temporary access to direct payments. For example, this could enable them to try out independent living arrangements before deciding to move out of residential care.