Introduction
The Council will ask you to pay toward the cost of your care or the support services you receive. We use government guidance to help us work out what you can afford to pay. With effect from 1 April 2017, if your savings exceed £23,250, you will be required to find the full costs of your care.
If your savings are below £23,250, you will be asked to complete a financial declaration form, giving full details of your income, savings and any other assets you own. We will use this information to calculate how much you will be required to contribute towards the cost of the care and support you are assessed as needing.
We can help support you to complete this form. You can download or view the financial declaration form guidance to find out what information you will need to provide; you may even want to start filling in the form.
We look at your individual financial situation and make sure you are getting all the benefits and allowances you should. We do not expect your partner to use their money to pay towards your care.
Legal Representative
If you have someone who helps you manage your financial affairs, they will need to be your DWP appointee, Deputy or Power of Attorney if you want the Council to send invoices and financial information to them.
Visit the Independent Age website for more information on managing my affairs if I become ill or call them for free on 0800 319 6789.
Financial assessment
We ask you to complete a financial assessment so we can work out how much you will be required to pay towards the cost of any care the Council funds. The Government pays a variety of state benefits to help people with disabilities and care needs to help pay for care. We look at your individual financial situation and make sure you are getting all the benefits and allowances you may be entitled to. There are different financial assessment arrangements, depending on whether you receive care in your own home or whether you are living in a residential home.
View the Adult Social Care Charging Policies that will take effect from 1 January 2024
Online Financial Assessment
If you would like an indication of how much you will be required to contribute towards the cost of your care then you can complete an Online Financial Assessment. This will use the information you enter to give you an idea of what you may have to pay.
We will also accept this online financial assessment and evidence in place of a paper Financial Declaration form.
You can complete the online financial assessment via the my cost of care website.
Care in a residential home
When we arrange for you to receive support in a care home, you will be asked to pay towards the cost. The amount you have to pay depends on your income, benefits and savings. If you own a property and become a permanent resident in a care home, the value of your property will usually be taken into consideration. The rules around this are complex and will be explained to you during your financial assessment. You will always be left with a personal expense allowance (of a minimum of £25.65 each week as of April 2022).
If you own your property but want the Council to pay for some of your care costs, you can ask us to consider entering into a ‘deferred payment agreement’ with you. This will let you use the value of your home to pay for care. If we are able to agree to your request, the Council will place a ‘Legal Charge’ on your property so that the money can be paid to the Council by you when your home is sold or paid by your executors from your estate. The Council will apply administrative charges and interest to the deferred amount.
Third party top up for residential care
Some care homes charge a fee that is more than the amount Telford & Wrekin Council has decided is reasonable to pay for residential or nursing care. If you choose to go into one of these homes, a friend, relative or other person will need to agree to pay the extra amount to meet the price that the care home charges. You cannot pay this amount from your own income or your savings. This money will need to be paid by your relative or friend in addition to the money you pay to the Council towards the cost of your care.
Complete our online form to apply for a top up
Care in your own home or to support you in the community
The financial assessment will look into your income, benefits and the savings you have in a bank or building society, including any stocks and shares. We will not take into account the value of the home in which you live. We will look at any other property or assets you have when working out how much you have to pay.
If your circumstances change
If the Council helps to fund your care, you are legally required to tell us about any changes to your income, savings or property that you own, as this may affect the amount you have to pay. If you fail to tell us about any changes or try to reduce your assets (such as by selling your home or giving money to others) so that it is not available to pay for care, we may reclaim any monies that you should have paid to the cost of your care.
Independent organisations and advice
There are organisations independent from the Council that can advise you on all financial matters such as Age UK, Society of Later Life Advisers, The Money Advice Service and Citizens Advice Telford and the Wrekin.
You can also ask for advice from our Financial Case Management team, who can give you the contact details of advocacy organisations if you cannot find them.
Alternatively, you can visit the Live Well Telford website to view services that are available in the community that you can approach for help.
Understanding your financial assessment
If you do not understand any part of your financial assessment and would like an explanation, please contact the Financial Case Management team on 01952 383820 or email FinancialCaseManagementTeam@telford.gov.uk.
The Council’s social care charging policies ensure that a consistent approach is applied in all cases to determine a person’s ability to contribute towards their Personal Budget and is consistent with the Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014.
Last updated: 03/01/2024 16:06
Libraries on Facebook
Libraries on Twitter