Residential and nursing care

What happens if I do not qualify for assistance?

If you do not qualify for assistance because your income or capital is too high, we will contact you to let you know. We will also notify your care home.

We will send you an invoice for any fees paid on your behalf whilst you were waiting for your financial assessment to be completed.

You must pay your care home directly for any ongoing care fees. We will tell you more about this when we contact you.

What happens if I do qualify for assistance?

If you do qualify for assistance, we will contact you with a breakdown of how your financial assessment has been calculated. The letter explains how much money you have to pay towards the cost of your care home fees and what you need to do.

If you are eligible for any financial assistance towards the cost of your care from us, this will be paid directly to your care home. We will also pay the care home the amount you are required to pay (your assessed charge), and will then invoice you for this amount. You need to repay us this amount.

Financial assistance will remain in place for the duration of your stay in your care home or until you have a change in your circumstances.

You will receive an invoice from us every four weeks. Each four-week period is called a ‘service period’.

We will work out how much you will be asked to contribute based on your income, including any welfare benefits, and any capital you have.

Depending on your financial circumstances part of your accommodation and care costs may be paid by us.

What if my financial circumstances change?

You must report any change in your financial circumstances straightaway as it may affect the level of financial assistance you qualify for. Failure to report a change in circumstances may result in legal proceedings.

What would I be left with for myself?

You will never be charged more than you can reasonably afford to pay and will always be left with an amount of money every week to cover your personal expenses whilst in residential care. This is known as your Personal Expenditure Allowance (PEA) and is an amount determined by the Government each year. For the financial year 2023-24 this is £28.25 a week.

What are Personal expenses?

The personal expenditure allowance is intended to allow residents to have money for their personal use. You must be left with the full value of your personal expenditure allowance and it is up to you to determine how you spend it.

However, the personal expenditure allowance should not be spent on aspects of care and support that have been contracted for by the local authority and/or assessed as necessary to meet your eligible care and support needs by the local authority or the NHS.

Nursing Costs

If you are moving into a registered nursing home, either temporarily or permanently, your nursing care needs will be funded by the NHS through a Funded Nursing Care (FNC) payment which is paid directly to the care home. This is separate from your assessed contribution, which goes towards the cost of the accommodation and care you receive that we have paid.

What will happen if I am admitted to Hospital from Residential or Nursing Care?

If you are admitted to hospital from a long term residential or nursing care home, you will still be expected to pay for your room in the care home for up to and including 14 days as the care provider will be expected to keep the room available for you for when you are ready to be discharged from hospital. 

If you are likely to remain in hospital for longer than 14 days, the Council, in conjunction with you, the care home and any other professionals involved in your ongoing care needs will determine whether your current placement will be kept available for you to return to.

In some cases, you may need a reassessment of your care needs to determine how your care needs can be best met following your discharge from hospital. If the outcome of this assessment is you will be returning to the care home you live in, you will be expected to pay for your room for the duration of your hospital stay.

If it is determined that your current care home can no longer met your needs, we will terminate the contract we have in place with the care home meaning the costs you pay will cease, until a new placement is found that can meet your care needs.