Money and legal advice

Adult Social Care is not free for everyone. Depending on your situation, you may need to pay for some of your care. To determine if you will have to pay towards your care you will need to provide income and expenditure details, such as details about your pension, rent and council tax.

You will need to complete a financial assessment so that the council can work out how much of your care cost we can cover, and how much you may need to pay. The amount you pay is called your financial contribution.

What do I need to pay?

If we help to arrange any of your care services, you will need to complete a financial assessment to see how much you can afford to pay.

The financial assessment will look at:

• your income from employment
• any savings and investments
• what benefits you get
• any property that you own or part own - where applicable
• any other regular income that you receive.

As a result of the assessment we will work out how much you will need to contribute towards your care. This may be none, some or all of the cost of the care, depending on the amount of income, savings and assets you have.

Non-residential care

If your plan includes, non-residential care, your contribution will be based on government regulations. In some cases you will not have to pay anything towards your care.

Residential or Nursing Care

If your plan includes residential or nursing care, you will always have to make a contribution towards the cost of your care fees, however there are some exceptions.

Your contribution with be in line with the Care Act regulations set out by the Department of Health. You will make a contribution based on your income from state pension, benefits or other income, plus any capital or savings you have over £14,250.

You are entitled to retain an amount towards any personal items you need, such as toiletries and newspapers. This amount is currently £24.90 per week.

If you choose a care home that is more expensive than the maximum weekly council contribution, you will have to make arrangements for someone else to pay the difference. This is called a third party top up. You cannot pay this amount from your own income or capital.

Use our online form to contact us about an assessment. Select the Adult Social Care option that reflects your role.

Housing benefits

If you are on a low income, you may be entitled to housing benefits.

Older people’s benefits

You can get a range of benefits if you're over state pension age. The extra money can help with the cost of your care.

The AgeUK website has information on help that is available to you.

People with a disability

If you have an illness or disability, you may be entitled to apply for a grant to adapt your home to meet your needs.

You are not alone and there is lots of support available:

• Apply for ‘breathing space’: temporary protection from your creditors while you get debt advice and make a plan.
• Get free local advice and support: our Money and Debt directory lists local organisations that can provide free advice and support to help you deal with your debt or money problems.
• Join your local credit union: this is a savings and loans co-operative that operate locally and can provide loans at low rates of interest. Their aim is to promote saving, careful money management and help those dealing with debt.

Sometimes it helps to have someone else who can speak on your behalf, express your views and wishes and represent your interests.  

A person who speaks on your behalf in this way is called an 'advocate'. They can be helpful in formal situations or when you don't feel very confident.

An advocate will:

• share your views on what is important to you – such as your care, medical treatment or finances
• speak up for your rights
• represent what's best for you.

They can also help you to:

• understand the care and support process
• talk about how you feel about your care
• make decisions
• challenge decisions about your care and support if you do not agree with them
• stand up for your rights
• write letters and attend meetings with you.

Independent advocates

You can ask a friend, family member, health worker or care manager to help you but sometimes it is easier to speak to someone that is neutral.

An advocate should act only in the interests of the person for whom they speak. They do not take their own view of what's best, or try to influence the person to make a different choice.

VoiceAbility is an independent advocacy service that supports young people and adults in Brent who need help to become more aware of their own rights, to exercise those rights and be involved in decisions made about their lives.

The Brent Gateway Partnership also helps people to understand their rights and the choices they have. They can help you to understand the:

• Care Act Advocacy
• Independent Mental Capacity Act
• Advocacy and Independent Mental Health Act Advocacy.

If you are a child or young person who is unhappy about decisions being made about you, and you need someone to talk to who is not your social worker or key worker, you can speak to an independent advocate.

The Coram website has more information on this.

If someone is no longer able to manage their finances and has not made arrangements in advance, another person can apply to become a deputy or an appointee. If successful, they will take responsibility for that persons financial affairs.

Appointeeship

If the person has a low level of financial assets, is in receipt of benefits and doesn't have any other sources of income it may be more appropriate to apply to the Department for Work and Pensions to become an appointee.

The appointee is responsible for managing a person's benefits, and also for paying bills and managing a small and limited amount of savings in case of unforeseen circumstances.

The GOV.uk website explains more about appointeeship and about how to apply.

Deputyship

If a person's financial affairs are more complicated (for example if they have significant savings or other forms of income), then a Deputyship may be a better option.

A deputy is responsibility for the management of all of a person's financial affairs if they become incapable of doing so themselves. This includes savings, pensions, any additional form of income and assets such as property.

How to become a deputy

You must apply to the Court of Protection to become a Deputy. If you’re appointed, you’ll get a court order saying what you can and cannot do.

Find more information about what is involved in becoming a Deputy

There can come a time when a person close to you can no longer make decisions about their finances, care or other personal matters.

In this situation, if they have the mental capacity to do so, they can appoint someone to look after their affairs. This is called a power of attorney.

A power of attorney is a legal document that allows someone to make decisions for you, or act on your behalf, if you're no longer able to or if you no longer want to make your own decisions.

You can visit the AgeUK website for more information on power of attorney’s and how to set one up.

If you care for someone and you need to consider managing their affairs, the Citizens Advice website has lots of information on managing affairs for someone else.