Charges and your contribution

The council charges for care and support services where legally allowed but must consider what you can afford. We will complete a financial assessment with you to work out your contribution and may need evidence of your income, capital and expenses. We also charge flat rates for some services, such as laundry, day centre meals, alarms and telecare sensors. These are payable in addition to your assessed contribution.

To work out your contribution, you will need to complete a Statement of Financial Circumstances and provide evidence of your income, savings and spending. The Financial Assessment Team can help you complete this, and a Financial Assessment Officer may visit if needed. Once we have the information, we will calculate what, if anything, you need to pay towards your support.

• Charging and Financial Assessment Charging Policy
• Financial Assessment and Charging for Care and Support leaflet

Financial Assessment Rules

The Government sets the rules for financial assessments, which all councils must follow. How much you pay depends on whether you receive care at home or live in a care home, as well as the amount of savings and assets you have. There are upper and lower limits for your capital. 

As a general guide:

What is a 'Top Up'? 

If you receive Adult Social Care funded support and it has been decided that your care and support needs will be best met in a care home, you can choose more expensive accommodation than the amount that Adult Social Care has agreed to pay.

The additional cost is known as a  “Top-Up” payment and it can be paid by:

• you (“first party top ups”) in limited circumstances and subject to legal restrictions
• a family member or friend (" third party top ups")

The decision to make Top Up payments is completely optional.  It's important that anyone who agrees to a Top Up arrangement understands what this involves and is certain that, if care and support costs increase, they can continue to pay the Top Up amount for as long as it is needed.  In all cases the person paying the Top Up must apply to the Council for agreement to do this and sign a written legal arrangement with the Council.

What is a Deferred Payment Arrangement?

A Deferred Payment Arrangement is an agreement with the council that enables people who own their own home, but have little in the way of savings, to use the value of their home to pay for care home costs.

To be eligible you must meet certain criteria, broadly they are:

a)  you are "ordinarily resident" in the local authority area and the local authority has agreed it will or would meet your care needs under section 19 of the Care Act if asked to do so *
b)  you have needs which the local authority considers should be met through a care home placement *
c)  you have less than, or equal to £23,250 in assets excluding the value of your main or only home *
d)  your home is not "disregarded"  based on the regulations on charging for care and support *
*These statements are based on the statutory guidance but are not an exact statement of the law

If you are eligible;

• The council will help to pay your care home bills on your behalf.
• You can delay repayment of these charges until you choose to sell your home, or until after your death.
• The council will charge interest on the amount owed, and there is also a fee for setting this arrangement up. These have been set to cover the council’s costs and not to make a profit.

This is described in more detail in our Deferred Payment Arrangements section.

Getting an estimate of what you may have to contribute

We have a Financial Contribution indicator built in to our online form this will give you an estimate of what you might need to contribute to your care.

Independent legal and financial advice

You are advised to get independent legal and financial advice including welfare benefits advice in order to understand how financial assessment and charging may affect you.