faqs

Q: I am living in my own home, but think that I need a bit of extra help so I can cope. How do I arrange this and what do I need to think about?
A:

Assessing your needs
If you need some help in your home to enable you to remain there independently, you should first contact your local social services department to assess your needs. They will take your details and you may have to give them some brief details about your situation, so that they can decide whether they need to come and see you urgently. Social services will arrange for a social worker to visit you in your own home, and you will be asked questions about what sort of things you find difficult, and what you would like support with.

Providing you with support
When the social worker has visited you, they will provide you with a written statement of your needs. This will outline officially what your needs are, and will help social services provide you with support. It may be that your needs cannot be met by the council, either because they do not provide such services, or because you the support you need is not critical. If this is the case, they should provide you with details of other organisations you can approach who will be able to provide this care and support. You will probably have to pay for these services.

If your needs are high enough to be met by the council, the social worker will arrange for the services to be set in place. Social services usually provide home care services if you need help to get washed and dressed. In the past, they used to provide support with shopping and cleaning. However, this now depends on the local council's eligibility criteria as to what type of support they will now provide.

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Q: How are the services paid for?
A:

Council-provided services are not free of charge, and you will be expected to make a contribution towards the cost of any support you receive. In order to ensure that you are charged fairly, you will have a financial assessment from the social worker. Each local council has different charging patterns, but any money you pay towards services should be 'reasonable' and not put you in financial difficulty.

If you have concerns about what you are being charged for services, or are unsure about what services you might need please contact the Advice Service for information.

The above guides refer to England. Please click on the tabs below for information on assessment and services from your local council in [Scotland] or in [Wales].

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Q: My relative has been asked to pay a 'third party top-up' toward the cost of my care home fees. Is this correct?
A:

All council Social Services departments in England have a duty to allow an older person to choose which care home they would like to live in, provided this can meet their needs and provided they meet the appropriate standards of care set by the government.

If you prefer to move to a care home which is more expensive than the one that your local council Social Services has found for you, or which is more expensive than their standard rate, but which has a vacancy and can meet your individual assessed needs in full, you will be asked to find a third party top-up to pay the difference in cost. This means that a relative or friend will need to sign an agreement stating that they will pay the difference between what the care home charges and the council agree to pay. Local councils should not routinely ask for a top up towards the cost of care home fees.

Click on the tabs for information on third party top-ups in Scotland and how they are applied in Wales. Also, click on the following tabs for information on paying for a care home in Scotland and how it is arranged in Wales.

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