19 Community care
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2. Where do I start if I think I need help?
3. What kind of help is there?
4. Can I get help if I look after someone?
5. Who pays if I get care in my home?
6. What if I have to go into hospital?
7. What if I need to move into a care home?
8. What if I need ongoing nursing care?
9. Will I have to sell my home?
10. Can I claim any benefits if I am in residential care?
If you are moving permanently into residential care, and the council or NHS is paying your fees, some of the benefits you are already receiving may stop after a time.
If you are paying the fees yourself, you may find that you are entitled to more help than when you were living at home. For example:
The rules are different on the levels of savings you can have – the limits are higher if you are in residential care, so you can keep more of your savings before you have to start paying fees out of them.
If you are paying for yourself, you may be entitled to Attendance Allowance and Disability Living Allowance.
If you have a property to sell, but have a low income, you may be able to get Income Support for a time to help you pay your fees while you’re waiting to sell.
If you are married or in a civil partnership and your partner remains living at home, the council will take account of your share of joint savings in deciding whether you are eligible for benefits. But it won’t take account of other things you own jointly (such as your home).
You can get more information about claiming benefits from:
- your local social security office, Jobcentre or, if you are a pensioner, the Pensions Service;
- the Department for Work and Pensions website: www.dwp.gov.uk; or
- the Community Legal Advice leaflet ‘Welfare Benefits’.
11. What choice of care home do I have?
12. What if I want to move to a care home that costs more than the council will pay?
13. What if my move into a care home is temporary?
14. What rights do I have when I am in a care home?
15. What if I have difficulty getting the care I need?
This leaflet is published by the Legal Services Commission (LSC). It was written in association with Sue Bloomfield, a freelance consumer affairs writer.
Leaflet Version: May 2008