Care home fees parent reaching lower threshold for self funding

Flakie

My MIL is in a care home with dementia and self funds. Over the next few months her finances will get to the lower threshold and we will have to see about applying for assistance so she can stay there. Has anyone recently been through this process that I could engage with please? I have several questions about the process. Thanks. 

elsien

Your starting point would be to contact the local authority and make a referral for an assessment, stressing the timescales. They have long waiting lists so the sooner she is on there the better. Did they not become involved when she hit the 23 1/2 K threshold?
It’s not a process I’ve been through myself, but do come across it in my line of work so might be able to help with some questions. 

Gavin83

Flakie said:

My MIL is in a care home with dementia and self funds. Over the next few months her finances will get to the lower threshold and we will have to see about applying for assistance so she can stay there. Has anyone recently been through this process that I could engage with please? I have several questions about the process. Thanks. 

Are you able to just ask your questions on here? There are a number of people who might be able to advise, including myself, but it'll be a lot easier if the questions are readily available.

Flakie

Thank you. She hasn’t got to the lower threshold yet. It’s really a question about third party top up funding. There are three ‘children’ involved all of whom might be able to assist financially if it comes to it, but I really want to know at what stage questions about this might be asked. From what I understand firstly there is an assessment to determine that she is receiving the correct care and then a conversation will be had with the care home and the local authority to decide if they are happy to continue the care with the level of funding the LA are able to offer. If they can’t then the family will,be approached to see if there is any top up available. Obviously the ideal scenario would be that the care is happy with this and none of the family would be required to pay anything (if they are in a financial position to do so). Have I got this right? Thanks. 
 

elsien

Yes, that’s correct.
It’s not unusual for a care home to lower the fee slightly if the local authority will meet in the middle to allow a previous self-funder to stay there. Although you might find that they go straight to the top-up suggestion, so keeping the possibility under wraps to start might be advisable. 

Flakie

A further question on this. The whole process is triggered when the recipient reaches that lower threshold but after that they generally continue to receive income so the balance they have in the bank will go up again. MIL receives state pension plus attendance allowance and a proportion of her late husbands military pension as well as the various cost of living payments and winter fuel allowance. How does that work?

tooldle

Flakie said:

A further question on this. The whole process is triggered when the recipient reaches that lower threshold but after that they generally continue to receive income so the balance they have in the bank will go up again. MIL receives state pension plus attendance allowance and a proportion of her late husbands military pension as well as the various cost of living payments and winter fuel allowance. How does that work?

As I understand it, state pension and the private pension will go towards costs and the recipient is left with a small weekly amount of pocket money. Attendance allowance is only paid to self funders. 

Mojisola

Flakie said:

A further question on this. The whole process is triggered when the recipient reaches that lower threshold

But you need to start the process well before that stage is reached otherwise someone will have to find the funds to pay the care home until the council gets everything settled.

elsien

I am confused by your reference to  having reached the lower limit. Because as  soon as she got below the 23K limit,  the council should already have been involved in part funding the place? Has that not happened?

Full information here, but once your mother stops self funding  as above all her income bar the £28 per week personal allowance would normally go towards the cost of the fees. And attendance allowance would no longer be payable.

https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/care/paying-for-care/paying-for-a-care-home/

Flakie

We have about a year before we get to the £23k level. We will be speaking to the authorities well,before that. What I meant was that after the funding has been sorted out in whatever way her balance will rise in her account to above that lower figure so effectively she will have more than the allowance in her bank. Do they keep reassessing to make sure she doesn’t have too much money to qualify for the funding? That’s the best way I can explain it. 

elsien

She/Her power-of-attorney should inform the local authority at that point. But once you take into account hairdresser, chiropody, clothes etc, the personal allowance may not  go far so there is less chance of it going back up to the fully self funding point again.