Financial assessment for care and support at home

We will assess your finances to work out how much you may need to pay towards care and support provided while you are living at home. This may include home care, day support, short breaks and direct payments.

We will only ask you to pay what you can afford.

• If you have less than £23,250 in savings and other capital, you may be eligible for help with care costs. However, you may still need to contribute.

• If you have more than £23,250, you will usually need to pay the full cost of your care.

Your main or only home is not included as capital while you live in it. Other property, land or assets may be included.

A Financial Assessment Officer will contact you or your representative to complete the financial assessment.

They will ask for information about:

• Your income (pensions, benefits, etc.)

• Your savings

• Your bills (rent, mortgage, council tax, water, home insurance)

• Your disability related costs

• Your expenditure (regular essential costs)

They will ask for evidence, such as:

• Bank statements (minimum of 2 years)

• Utility bills

• Receipts for expenses

A financial assessment will help us understand your financial circumstances and work out whether you may need to contribute towards the cost of your care and support. If you need care and support, we will only ask you to pay what you can afford.

In some cases, we may already have the necessary information from the Department for Work and Pensions.

If you are completing the application on behalf of someone, we will also need details of your power of attorney, deputy or financial representative. In this case, you will need to provide the following documents:

• Power of Attorney documentation

• Appointee forms

• Court of Protection Order

The council follows the Care Act 2014 and statutory guidance (Care and support statutory guidance - GOV.UK) to calculate your contribution. The assessment is completed as follows:

Your weekly income

Plus

Tariff income (if your savings are above the lower limit)

Less

Minimum Income Guarantee (money you must keep for daily living)

Less

Housing costs (rent, mortgage, council tax, water)

Less

Disability related expenses

Equals

Net Disposable Income (NDI)

You will pay a 100% of your NDI, but never more than the cost of your care.

If your NDI is below £5 per week, you will not be charged.

Your main or only home is not included as an asset if you live in it. However, other property, land or assets may be included. We will treat your capital as follows:

• Below £14,250 – not included within the assessment

• Between £14,250 and £23,250 – we include tariff income (£1 for every £250)

• Over £23,250 – you may be assessed to pay the full cost of your care

These are additional costs you pay due to your disability or medical condition.

You can choose:

• A standard £10 per week, OR

• A full DRE assessment if you think your costs are higher (you will need to provide evidence or receipts)

Examples of disability-related expenses (DRE):

• Extra heating

• Extra laundry

• Special diets

• Disability equipment

• Community alarm

• Transport costs due to disability

• Bedding or clothing needs

• Private care that meets your assessed social care needs

 Payments to family members are not allowed unless there are exceptional reasons.

 Guidance on disability related expenditure on GOV.UK

We will send you a letter confirming your assessed contribution, including a breakdown of how it has been calculated.

The letter will include:

• Details of your assessed weekly charge

• The maximum you may have to pay should your care increase.

• Information on how you pay your assessed contribution

• A Direct Debit mandate

Please read your confirmation letter carefully and check all the information is accurate. If you have any concerns or questions, you can contact us at the details provided below.

We will review your financial assessment on an annual basis. This reassessment considers any changes to pensions and benefits, as well as any expenses you may have. If we require further information to complete this, a member of the reassessment team will contact you.

If you disagree with your charges

Your assessed charge is based on the information you provided during your financial assessment.

You can appeal if you think (including evidence):

• Your assessment has been calculated incorrectly

• Important information was missed

You should write to:

Senior Care Finance Assessment Manager
Care Finance Assessment Team
Exchequer Services
Lancashire County Council
PO Box 100
County Hall
Preston
PR1 0LD

Changes you must tell us about

It's important to tell us as soon as possible when there are any changes to your circumstances. If you do not, this may affect your contributions.

Please tell us if:

• Your savings go above or below £23,250

• Your income changes

• A partner or family member leaves your household 

• You sell your home

• Your financial situation changes for any other reason

We may reassess your charge automatically if your benefit or care changes.

Find out more about how we charge for care and support you receive while living at home:

• Financial implications for non-residential care services

• Large print financial implications for non-residential care services 

• Non-residential care charging policy