Funding options for social care
Many people are increasingly concerned with the cost of care, either for themselves or for their loved ones. So, what are your funding options for social care? We look at how care homes and domiciliary care services are funded.
If you are exploring options for your own care, the first thing to check is your financial status. Your local authority will means test your finances to see whether you qualify for specific levels and types of care.
Care home costs
If you are considering the cost of a residential care home, it’s important to make sure you understand how social care funding works. According to Which? the average annual cost of residential care in England equates to over £37,000 per year, and this varies slightly per country. This average cost rises to over £53,000 per year for nursing care.
Calculating your own care costs can be complicated. As finances are means tested by the local authority, you are currently expected to self-fund if you have more than £23,250 in savings and assets. It’s worth noting that where you share a family home, and a spouse or partner continues to live in the property, this won’t be included in your asset value.
Self-funding means you will have to pay for your care costs. There are different thresholds where you can receive some or all of the local authority funding. If your savings and assets are below the lowest threshold of £14,250, you can claim full financial support. If you fall within the lower and higher threshold, you will be eligible for some financial support.
If you want a better choice of care home and you’re limited on funds, you can organise a top-up payment for your care home fees. This extra payment helps to make up the difference between the amount the local authority will pay and the cost of your chosen care home. You cannot pay your own top-up: this would have to be paid by a family member or a friend.
Domiciliary care costs
When it comes to domiciliary care, the above financial thresholds and means testing also apply. Domiciliary care can be self-funded, part-funded or solely funded by the local authority, and some aspects might be provided by the NHS.
Relying on NHS domiciliary care can be very problematic. The NHS is stretched beyond capacity, and people often experience irregular carer visits with different carers each time. Local authority care provisions also face similar issues.
The average yearly cost of daily home care visits compared to residential care homes is likely to be over £20,000 cheaper. So it’s worth creating a personal budget and allocating savings to fund a small level of home care at first, which can then be scalable as needed.
Promedica24 offers a flexible hourly home care service in Blaby and Lutterworth, South Leicestershire. You can tailor our home care to match your care needs and your budget. Choose from 30, 45 or 60-minute visits, right up to 24-hour live-in care.
For more details, please email Lisa Colver: L.Colver@promedica24.co.uk
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