SOCIAL CARE FUNDING

When planning long-term care and support for a loved one, it is sensible to start thinking about your financing care options as soon as it is practically possible.

At Prestige Nursing & Care, we have helped families up and down the country understand how they can finance care, whether through funding available to them or financing initiatives that can contribute to the cost of care.

If you need care and support for day-to-day tasks and activities that enable you to maintain independence, you may be entitled to social care funding to get the help you need. If you are living with a complex care need and require nurse-led care, it is worth exploring whether you are entitled to any healthcare funding first, as this could considerably contribute to the overall cost of care.

Here we explain all you need to know about your health and social care funding options.

WHAT IS SOCIAL CARE FUNDING IN ENGLAND?

Social care funding is means tested and allocated by your local authority. The level of funding you might be entitled to depends on your financial circumstances and your care and support needs. Social care funding is provided to people to help them with everyday activities and tasks. If you need help with feeding, continence management, washing or dressing, you could be entitled to social care funding if you stay within the financial threshold level in the means test.

WHAT IS SOCIAL CARE FUNDING IN SCOTLAND?

Unlike in England, if you live in Scotland, funding for personal care is available to everyone who is assessed as needing it. Your income, capital assets, marital or civil partner status do not impact your ability to access this funding from your local authority. An assessment for funding in Scotland will look at your needs relating to personal hygiene, continence management, food and diet, problems with mobility, counselling and support and nursing, including clinical interventions required.

If you require daily support with housework, laundry and shopping, activities outside the home, or providing food then these may well be chargeable and will be subject to a means test assessment, which looks at your income when assessing the funding available.

OUR WORK WITH LOCAL AUTHORITIES

At Prestige Nursing & Care, we have developed strong relationships with many social services case managers based on a shared goal of securing the right funded care package for clients so that they get the right care, at the right time, for all of life. We collaborate to ensure that the care and support provided evolve with changing needs. Throughout the process, we engage with our client and their family so everyone is involved in making sure our clients can live a meaningful and fulfilled life with independence whilst their family gets all the support they need.

SOCIAL CARE FUNDING MEANS TESTING

Means testing is how your financial eligibility to receive funding for your care is assessed. The outcome of the means test will determine how much social care funding you are eligible to receive.

Your local authority will look at your income, savings, and property to determine how much you need to contribute to the cost of your care. If you are receiving care in your own home, then the means test will not consider the value of your property. However, if you move permanently into a care home, the means test may include the value of your property, which may reduce the level of funding available to you.

If you are moving into a care home, your home will not be included in the means test if you home remains occupied by:

• Your partner or spouse
• A close relative who is either over the age of sixty or incapacitated
• A relative younger than sixteen whom you are legally obliged to support
• An ex-partner if they are deemed a single parent

Below is an example of how the means test is applied in England.

HOW IS SOCIAL CARE FUNDED IN THE UK?

PERSONAL HEALTH BUDGETS

If you are an adult eligible for social care funding, you will be offered the choice of receiving your funding through a personal health budget (PHB). The purpose of a PHB is to give those living with long-term health conditions and disabilities choice and control over how their funding is spent on their health and well-being needs.

Your local authority provides social care funding and there are options as to how you manage your funding and care arrangements:

Direct payments

Your local authority provides social care funding and there are options as to how you manage your funding and care arrangements:
You or your representative receives the funding directly to procure and manage the care, support and services you need. Whilst there are procedures to follow and guidance governing how it is spent, this gives you more freedom and control to decide what is best for you. You must provide evidence of how the direct payments have been spent.

Third-party personal health budget

An independent organisation, such as a lawyer, will hold the funding on your behalf and arrange and pay for the care and support you need as identified in a plan of care.

Notional personal health budget

Your local authority or your NHS team will manage the funding available to you based on your assessed needs. They will arrange the care and support you need, including choosing the care provider, and pay for the care directly, which means you do not get any funding directly.

If you manage your own personal budget, you will be free to choose the provider you wish to receive care from, whereas if the local authority manages it through your social services team, you will be restricted to using a provider from their preferred supplier list. However, you can be rest assured that the care providers on the social services approved suppliers list will have gone through rigorous checks for safety and compliance.

ACCESSING SOCIAL CARE FUNDING IN ENGLAND

There are a series of steps involved in securing social care funding.

• Firstly, speak to your GP. If they feel you are eligible, they will refer you to your local authority.
• The adult services team at your local authority will then arrange for an assessment of your care needs.
• A report is produced defining your assessed care and health needs.
• A financial assessment (means test) will be conducted to determine your ability to pay the cost of the care you need. All your personal assets, liquid and fixed are considered in the process.
• The results of the means test will determine whether you are eligible for part of full social care funding or whether you will need to self-fund the care you need.

ACCESSING SOCIAL CARE FUNDING IN SCOTLAND

In Scotland, you can access social care funding by taking the following steps:

• The first step is to contact your local authority social services team to arrange an assessment.
• The social services team will then arrange to assess your care needs.
• A report is produced defining your assessed care and health needs.
• If you are assessed as needing personal care or nursing care, this will be funded by the local authority, however, the cost of any other care and support needs may need to be funded by you.

GOVERNMENT FUNDING

You may also find that you are eligible to access the following Government funding.

Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for children

If you have a child under the age of 16 who has complex care needs and requires more support from you than a child without a disability, you may be eligible to claim DLA in England. In Scotland, you can apply for the Child Disability Payment.

Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for adults

in England. In Scotland, you can apply for the Child Disability Payment.Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is replacing DLA for adults over 16 with disabilities or long-term conditions in England. It is available to adults until the state pension age. In Scotland, adults need to apply for the Adult Disability Payment.

Attendance Allowance

The Attendance Allowance benefit is for people of state pension age or older who require care and support or have a disability and need a family member to look after them regularly.

Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)

If you cannot work due to long-term illness or disability, you may be entitled to Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). ESA can help with living costs if you are unable to work and can provide support to help you return to work if you are able.

HOME ADAPTATION FUNDING

You may be entitled to funding if your home requires minor adaptations to make it more suitable for your care. Most local authorities offer up to £1,500 for minor adaptations such as installing lever taps or handrails around the home. This funding is available as long as your local authority has assessed you as qualifying for home adaptations. For major adaptations, Disabled Facilities Grants are available for up to £30,000 in England if you meet the eligibility criteria. However, it is important to note that the Disabled Facilities Grant is not available in Scotland.