Who pays for social care ?

50Twuncle wrote: »

If an elderly relative were to move in with us - after the death of a spouse ?
Do they base the amount of social care on the savings that the OAP has or do they base it on our savings or a combination thereof ?

Maybe you should specify just what social care you envisage the elderly relative will need. Your enquiry is very vague.

'They' - who are 'they'?

Moving in with relatives is not necessarily a trigger for social care.

Attendance Allowance assessed on need, carer's allowance (not available for carers who are already state pensioners I believe). Some help may be available from the local authority (I stress some as they are very overstretched). But should be based on their income. With AA any income is irrelevant it is just needs based.

50Twuncle wrote: »

Just THEIR income - not their savings or our savings then ?
We are saving the authorities thousands from residential care costs !!

But she's your family. My understanding of social care is as a safety net when people cannot afford to pay for what they require.

50Twuncle wrote: »

by THEY I mean DWP
and the OAP will require home help - washing etc

Isn't that what you will be providing?

Speak to Adult Care at your council. They will do an assessment of his income, savings etc and necessary outgoings and calculate how much they will contribute toward home care, which they can arrange for you via a registered healthcare company. Well at least that's how it went for my Mum. They sent her a bill every month for the excess payment over and above their contribution.

You can also get equipment that would help your elderly relative. Mum had a stool for in her shower and another for in front of her basin. Also a frame to fit over the toilet seat to make it higher and provide grip handles so she could sit down and stand up more easily. We bought these from a mobility shop. We also got her one of those alert pendants that she wore round her neck. If she had a fall or felt ill when we weren't there, she pressed the button and help would arrive.

During her last few months we arranged meals on wheels for lunchtimes, worked out about £5 a day for 2 courses and Mum was billed monthly.

We were very satisfied with the support we received and were happy to pay for these things. In my opinion there is no way any council can afford to provide that complete service to everyone that needs it without charging for it.