Residential and nursing care

Some of your benefits may be affected by your stay in residential or nursing care. The Financial Assessment Officer will explain how your benefits could be affected and will offer you a welfare benefits check to ensure you and your partner, if you have one, are claiming all the benefits that you may be entitled to.

If you move into residential or nursing care which is partially funded by us and you are in receipt of either Attendance Allowance (AA), Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Personal Independence Payment (PIP) you should inform the Department for Work and Pensions of your change in circumstances as your benefits may be affected.

If you own a property or land that is taken into account for charging purposes, you can also claim these benefits if you enter into a Deferred Payment Agreement with us. If you are entitled to a 12-week property disregard, you should not claim these benefits for this period, you should only claim from the date your deferred payment is due to start. The Financial Assessment Officer will be able to advise you of this date.

If you have been in hospital or respite care for a period of 28 consecutive days or more prior to your admittance into residential or nursing care, you will need to make the Department for Work and Pensions aware of this.

How will moving affect my welfare benefits?

If you are paying the full cost of your care home fees you may still get some benefits such as: Disability Living Allowance (care) Personal Independence Payment (daily living) or Attendance Allowance. If you are relying on financial assistance, then these benefits will normally be stopped once you have moved.

Even if you have a partner, once you have moved into a care home permanently, you will be treated as a single person for means tested welfare benefits. You should contact the DWP to tell them you have moved because your full entitlement to benefits will be used to work out how much financial assistance you qualify for, whether you claim your benefits or not.

How will moving into permanent residential care affect my spouse’s benefits?

For welfare benefit purposes, the law treats you and your partner as single people after you have moved into a care home permanently. Your partner may therefore qualify for means-tested benefits in their own right after you have moved. Your partner should let the DWP know when you have moved and they will tell them what they need to do.

Pension Credit

Once you have moved into residential or nursing care, you need to inform the Pension Service of your change in circumstances as you may be entitled to claim Pension Credit or there may be a change to your existing claim. This will depend on your own financial circumstances, and they will be able to advise you if you qualify for this benefit. 

If you have been awarded Pension Credit following your spouse moving into residential or nursing care, and you live in social housing or privately rented accommodation, please contact our Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction team as you may qualify for additional benefits.

If you own your own home and your spouse has moved into residential or nursing care and you have been awarded Pension Credit following your change in circumstances, you will need to contact our Council Tax team to inform them as you may be entitled to Council Tax Reduction.

Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction

If you are in receipt of Housing Benefit and or Council Tax Reduction, the Financial Assessment officer will notify the benefits department in the Council that a financial assessment has been completed for residential or nursing care. They will contact you for further information to enable them to make a decision about your claim. If you are in receipt of Universal Credit Housing Costs, you should complete a change of circumstance form. This is found in your online journal.

Universal Credit

If you are in receipt of Universal Credit Housing Costs, you should complete a change of circumstance form. This is found in your online journal.