Adult social care charging changes consultation

Proposed community care changes to adult social care charging policy

Consultation closed: Monday, 20 April 2020

rather than making arrangements with the care agency directly, some people choose to ask us to continue to manage these arrangements on their behalf
there is a one-off set up charge for arranging homecare services through our brokerage team for people that pay the full cost of their care (known as self-funders)
after the set-up charge, there are no other charges for this service

the introduction of an annual administrative fee for continuing to manage arrangements on their behalf
the fee proposed for this service is £174 per annum
managing ongoing care and support services creates additional administrative work for us and introducing an annual fee will help cover the costs of this service
people who currently use the service would have the choice as to whether to continue to use this service or not

a direct payment is when we give someone money on a regular basis to choose and pay for their care and support themselves, rather than organising this for them
people who receive direct payments on a regular basis are financially assessed
people who receive one-off direct payments are not financially assessed; a one-off direct payment may be used to buy things like a specialist piece of equipment

there will be no change for people who receive regular direct payments (they will continue to be financially assessed)
we're proposing to financially assess people who receive one-off direct payments
by financially assessing one-off direct payments, it will make the process fairer. Everyone, regardless of whether they receive regular direct payments or one-off direct payments, will be financially assessed. This could mean that some people who have sufficient money, may no longer be eligible for a one-off direct payment, if they are a self-funder

we have a duty of care for a person’s belongings if they go into hospital or to a care home and this includes arranging care for a person’s pet(s)
currently, we don't charge for taking care of a person’s pet(s)

we're proposing to recover the actual cost of this service when it happens
we would always ask whether a member of the family, a friend or a charity would take care of the pet first to avoid incurring costs for the pet’s owner

as part of assessing the customer’s finances, we must protect a minimum level of income for everyone who receives council funded community-based care and support (this is known as the minimum income guarantee)
central government sets the minimum amount; the amount depends on things like a person’s age and whether they have a disability
we have always protected a slightly higher amount of a person’s income than the central government minimum

we're proposing to reduce the minimum income guarantee to the amount set by central government
most of the councils in the region are already using the minimum levels set by central government
amounts will vary depending on different benefits a person may be claiming
people of working age could see their charges increased by between £1.56 and £4.11 per week
people over pension age could see their charges increased by between £12.95 and £16.50 per week

Appendix B provides more information about how this proposal might affect different groups of people.

some customers receive Attendance Allowance and Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
currently, we don't take into account the difference between the higher and middle rate of Attendance Allowance and Disability Living Allowance, unless the person has night-time needs that are being met by us
everyone who receives the middle or higher rate of Attendance Allowance or Disability Living Allowance is financially assessed based on the middle rate
new customers who receive the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) which is replacing DLA are already financially assessed on the higher rate

the Care and Support Statutory Guidance states that councils may take in account most of the benefits people receive when carrying out financial assessments; including the difference between the higher and middle rate Attendance Allowance and Disability Living Allowance
the proposal is to take into account those who receive the higher rate of these benefits as part of the financial assessment calculations
introducing this change could increase the charges for people who currently receive the higher rate of Attendance Allowance or Disability Living Allowance by up to £28.95 per week
as Disability Living Allowance is being phased out, more people will receive PIP; it is fairer if everyone is financially assessed in the same way, regardless of which benefit they receive

disability-related expenditures are any extra costs linked to having a disability (for example requiring extra laundry, or a hairdresser that comes to someone’s home); we have to consider these costs when someone has a financial assessment
currently, disability-related expenditure is considered to a maximum of £15 per week, but there is some flexibility with this amount; additional expenses can sometimes be considered depending on an individual’s care needs as outlined in their support plan

we're proposing to increase the amount of disability-related expenditure for people who receive the higher rate Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance or the enhanced rate of Personal Independence Payment
the new cap would be £29 per week; people with the highest care and support needs could have more expenses allowed within their financial assessment
there would still be some flexibility with this amount, and it could be higher depending on an individual’s care needs as outlined in their support plan

Appendix C gives examples of how much money would be allowed for different things.

Give us a call or email us:

Telephone: 0300 300 8303
Email: consultations@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk