Problems with Self Directed Payments for care from local council (Northamptonshire County Council)

DrDeejUK

I recieved two seperate care packages - one in 2016 which was a one-off payment for a gym membership and one in 2017 which was to pay for me to attend a day care facility for people with mental health issues. With the 2016 package it was agreed that any money not used would be paid back to the council. I only went twice so most of the money would have to go back to them (something in the region of £280). I was also asked to send any receipts as proof that I had used the money appropriately as per my care plan. In 2017 I had the second care plan agreed by the council for day care that was for something in the region of £3,700. Did the full assessment and it was agreed because of my financial situation I had to pay nothing towards my care. All the paper work was signed and dated April 2017.

I was going to the facility but didn't see any money until the end of September 2017. At that point I should have handed the money over to the care facility but due to other circumstances and the fact the council wanted to do another financial review I held onto the money. The end of October 2017 I recieved a letter from the council saying they had reviewed what contributions I should be making and decided that I should be paying £63 a week out of the £73 I was getting for the care I was getting. I was in a complete black hole mentally at the time and couldn't deal with any of this so I spoke to social services and told them to stop the payments. They told me they wouldn't be able to stop the payments straight away. The payments stopped in December 2017.

Because I was on the cusp of a breakdown I spoke with social services as the council wanted to start seeing paper work. I sent any receipts of anything I spent to social services and they filed it for me. They have a department that helps clients with the financial aspect of their care. I decided to send the money back because I hadn't spent it and couldn't really deal with the stress of paper work. We asked them to invoice me the amount they wanted back. It took them 2 and half years to get back to me. I did get in touch in that time to find out what was going on but everytime somebody told me they were aware of the situation and would get back in touch.

Summer of 2020 I get a letter saying that I owe the council money back. My mental health was still really bad and I had suffered some really bad physical health issues at the time and was really struggling so they invoiced me and I paid them what they asked for. However, it turned out it was not the full amount. I did ask them if I was paying them back the full amount and they said yes. This was all of it. I paid them back about £2,500 and that was it until 2021. Then they start bugging me for another £600. I asked them why this wasn't brought to my attention at the time. They just gave me a load of spiel about something or other and started saying I hadn't filed paperwork with them even though social services had already filed paperwork for them. I did put a complaint in but the figures they gave didn't quite add up. However, they left me alone for a while and I didn't hear anything again from them until last week. Teh same thing again - demanding the £600 and saying I haven't filed paper work with them. I have gone back through my agreement with them and it turns out I needn't have left the day care facility I was at in 2017 because they had screwed up the paperwork. I think they had me down for contribution-based ESA when I am on Income-based ESA. Also, since this care package closed in 2017 our local council has gone bankrupt and a new unitary authority has taken over.

My question is this. What do I do next because I am unsure. I am not alone in this. NCC has managed to pretty much mess up most peoples care packages. A number of other people who I was at the daycare facility with also left the same time I did because the council said they need to be contributing more even though they didn't. Every single person I know that had a care package with NCC allegedly owes money back to them (or it's successor WNC). One of my acquaintances at the day care facility kept getting paid for 9 months after leaving despite cancelling the payments. We've all recieved threatening letters from the council. Just to show how inept our former council was they paid one person £60,000 and gave them a list of people the money had to go to breaking all kinds of data laws in the process

If anybody can help with this matter or point me in the right direction I'd be grateful. This has caused me and my family a great deal of stress for a long time and I just want it to be over.

DrDeejUK

Can nobody help?

Cyclamen

Hello 

DP (direct payments) are quite a niche system so there may not be that many around here who understand the process. 

There is an excellent facebook group for 'direct paymet and personal health budget employers'.. if you use facebook

Usually any DP money (apart from some one offs) has to be paid into a dedicated bank account.. so do you ahve any bank statements and records of your account if it was in your name.. or was it a 'managed account' and held by another company in your name..if so you need to talk to them. 

If it were me .. and I use DPs to employ my PA/Carers I would ask for a full breakdown of the info social services / council hold on me.  I would ask for contact details of The Direct Payment Finance team and a named person to discuss this with.  Then work out what is going on. 

If they are reclaiming money you spent on items stated in your DP agreement that is wrong, but they do need evidence that it was spent in the right way.. you could ask the daycenter if they could send you any record of attendance and paying etc.. 

Hang in there its a mess and doesnt sound like they are doing things right at all 

williewonder

If you been on a section 3 in hospital you may not have too pay care costs, its called section 117 aftercare.