nav[aria-label="Primary Navigation"] { padding: 0; & ul { list-style: none; width: 100%; display: flex; flex-direction: row; justify-content: start; align-items: start; gap: 30px; padding: 0; & li { margin: 0; } & ul li { list-style: none; } } }

We want to hear from you: please tell us about your experience of the online community.

Home help stressful

littleruthie123

hi I have been trying too get a small care package .ive seen the social worker etc,never realised it would become so stressful.the whole thing is so confusing .finally getting near the end and they returned the amount I would have too pay .i just can't blooming afford it .i no I'd have too contribute but not so much .seems if I needed full time care ,it would work in my favour .but a smaller package means paying the same almost .anyone else had problems with similar please?.could get smaller hours but starting too get rely fed up of the whole thing.i struggle already sigh

Find more posts tagged with

Comments

Sam_Alumni

Hi @littleruthie123
So have you had a care needs assessment?

We have lots of information here about independent living and social care.

Im sorry you are having such a stressful time, if you'd like to speak to someone, you can try calling the helpline on 0808 800 3333

littleruthie123

Yes I have thanks .and then the fianaces visit from a lady from the council .they counted no disability expenditures.feel like I'm at square one again

Sam_Alumni

@Jean_Scope do you have any information or support that could help?

Jean_OT

Hi @Sam_Scope

Thanks for inviting me to join this conversation, however, I think the Helpline's Social Care Information Specialist @Zoe_Scope is better placed to offer advice than me, so I have copied her in.

Best wishes

Jean

Sam_Alumni

Thanks Jean!

littleruthie123

Thank you I the info I need is what can I put for disability expenditure ,the lady from the council Dident help me in any way .she actually talked me out of including things .so I am speaking again with her tommorow .some amounts that I pay out were incorrect also .dident realise they would be cut throat about it

littleruthie123

Anyone??please?

[Deleted User]

Hello @littleruthie123

Sorry for the delay in responding to you but have just seen your post.

The Care Act Statutory guidance gives the following information about financial charging and disability related expenditure:

See Chapter 8 and Annex C

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/care-act-statutory-guidance/care-and-support-statutory-guidance

Chapter 8:Charging and financial assessment

“8.42 Because a person who receives care and support outside a care home will need to pay their daily living costs such as rent, food and utilities, the charging rules must ensure they have enough money to meet these costs. After charging, a person must be left with the minimum income guarantee (MIG), as set out in the Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulation 2014. In addition, where a person receives benefits to meet their disability needs that do not meet the eligibility criteria for local authority care and support, the charging arrangements should ensure that they keep enough money to cover the cost of meeting these disability-related costs.”

Disability-related expenditure: Annex C

39) Where disability-related benefits are taken into account, the local authority should make an assessment and allow the person to keep enough benefit to pay for necessary disability-related expenditure to meet any needs which are not being met by the local authority.

40) In assessing disability-related expenditure, local authorities should include the following. However, it should also be noted that this list is not intended to be exhaustive and any reasonable additional costs directly related to a person’s disability should be included:

1. (a) payment for any community alarm system

2. (b) costs of any privately arranged care services required, including respite care

3. (c) costs of any specialist items needed to meet the person’s disability needs, for example:

1. (i) Day or night care which is not being arranged by the local authority

2. (ii) specialist washing powders or laundry

3. (iii) additional costs of special dietary needs due to illness or disability (the person may be asked for permission to approach their GP in cases of doubt)

4. (iv) special clothing or footwear, for example, where this needs to be specially made; or additional wear and tear to clothing and footwear caused by disability

5. (v) additional costs of bedding, for example, because of incontinence

6. (vi) any heating costs, or metered costs of water, above the average levels for the area and housing type

7. (vii) occasioned by age, medical condition or disability

8. (viii) reasonable costs of basic garden maintenance, cleaning, or domestic help, if necessitated by the individual’s disability and not met by social services

9. (ix) purchase, maintenance, and repair of disability-related equipment, including equipment or transport needed to enter or remain in work; this may include IT costs, where necessitated by the disability; reasonable hire costs of equipment may be included, if due to waiting for supply of equipment from the local council

10. (x) personal assistance costs, including any household or other necessary costs arising for the person

11. (xi) internet access for example for blind and partially sighted people

12. (xii) other transport costs necessitated by illness or disability, including costs of transport to day centres, over and above the mobility component of DLA or PIP, if in payment and available for these costs. In some cases, it may be reasonable for a council not to take account of claimed transport costs – if, for example, a suitable, cheaper form of transport, for example, council-provided transport to day centres is available, but has not been used

13. (xiii) in other cases, it may be reasonable for a council not to allow for items where a reasonable alternative is available at lesser cost. For example, a council might adopt a policy not to allow for the private purchase cost of continence pads, where these are available from the NHS

41) The care plan may be a good starting point for considering what is necessary disability-related expenditure. However, flexibility is needed. What is disability-related expenditure should not be limited to what is necessary for care and support. For example, above average heating costs should be considered.

Many local authorities provide an average figure for DRE but this can be increased if you can evidence the extra costs.

Also see guidance from a disabled people’s organisation that gives a clear explanation of how DRE should be treated:

http://www.real.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Reals-guidance-on-disability-related-expenditure-12-April-2017-PDF.pdf

If your local authority refuses to allow any reasonable DRE then you can challenge them by putting in a complaint using the councils complaints process, I have spoken to other people who have successfully challenged their allocated DRE figure.

If you would like to get in touch with me at the helpline by emailing helpline@scope.org.uk I am happy to give you a call for further information.

Kind Regards,

Zoe

Social Care Information Officer

littleruthie123

Thank you so much Zoe .its such a complicated thing .will sit and read before she rings me later.thanks again x

[Deleted User]

No problem, and as I said please get back in touch if you have any issues going forward.

If you have time before she rings also try to look at your councils DRE policy which should be on their website. If its not, ask your social worker for a copy.

whistles

Is this the same as direct payments?

[Deleted User]

Disability related expenditure is an amount of money that should be disregarded from a persons assessed financial contribution towards their personal budget.

So for example if a person is assessed as being able to contribute x amount towards their care costs then the DRE amount should be taken away from that figure.

Local councils should make an assessment of your disability related expenditure and allow you to keep enough benefits to meet any needs not being met by the council.

Financial assessments should generally look like:

Income - housing costs (rent, council tax and mortgage costs) - minimum income guarantee figure- DRE costs= Assessed contribution

littleruthie123

Yes@whistles .they will pay them a certain amount then I pay the rest .which they work out .they Dident include a few things they should of .so going too ask them too look again

littleruthie123

They Dident include heating costs ,underestimated transport costs .and also put my full e.s.a amount before deductions .that come too almost 50.00 a week .also high shopping bills through deliveries ?.also got my council tax payments wrong

littleruthie123

Thrown in the towel in the end .couldent cope with the whole processes.social worker kept changing her mind about hours we agreed .which no included any domestic help .and was expected too pay nearly 60.00 pound a week when I only get low p.i.p .back too the drawing board .feel exhausted and frustrated .thanks for advise though everyone

whistles

What will they offer if you can't top it up? Without meaning to pry, is this sort of manageable?

I realise this could be location dependant, but I got assessed for what they provide. That's it though, anything else I feel I need I would have to pay for.
I had forgotten my dla care was paying the top up, so that stopped so did some of the care.

I don't think people realise how expensive care is.

littleruthie123

I don't no that was an option .

littleruthie123

I'd actually be happy with that .then could find a cleaner myself .trying too get basic details about care seems difficult ..don't no why

littleruthie123

Can be deeming enough saying you need with help for varies things.feel really disappointed with the whole thing .never thought trying too get a bit of help would be so hard .really had enough

whistles

Do you have a social worker? That's who arranged mine. They did the assessment.
But different councils appear to have their own rules.

Maybe ring the helpline.