When the council arrange social care, they will carry out a financial assessment for the person needing that care and support. If the person is one part of a couple, the local authority cannot include capital or income belonging to the other partner.

During the assessment the council will ask about the person’s income and savings as well as any other assets. They will also ask about any capital that the person may have had in the past but has since disposed of. For example, if that person’s house had been sold to move in with family but they no longer have the capital from the sale or if money has been moved into a family trust. Depending on the circumstances the council may decide it was a deliberate “deprivation of capital”, to avoid paying for future care. In this instance they may decide to include that money in their calculations.

  • If a person has over £23,250 of savings, including assets, they will be considered to be self-funding and will have to pay for all of their own care. The council can still arrange their care and support for them but there will be an arrangement fee on top of the cost of care.
  • Someone with capital of between £14,250 and £23,250, may receive some local authority funding but will be expected to contribute to the cost on a decreasing level as the savings go down.
  • When the savings reach £14,250, you can only be charged a certain amount from your income. In their calculations the council must ensure that you are left with a guaranteed minimum to live on.

If the person receives a disability related benefit like Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment or Attendance Allowance, this will also be taken into account. It will be expected that these benefits will be used towards their care costs.

However, if the council takes these benefits into account they also need to do an assessment that looks at the extra costs that someone has as a result of disability. This is called disability related expenditure. This means that when they work out the amount you will be left to live on, they take into consideration these additional costs.

For more information, go to the Norfolk County Council website.