Nursing Homes and Residential Care

As part of the process of finding you a placement in a residential or nursing home, we need to work out how much you should contribute towards your care.

If your capital (excluding the value of your home) is over £22,250, you will need to pay the full cost of your placement. In this case it will be better for you to make your own arrangements. You will be advised and supported by a social worker to do this as a private client. We can provide a list of homes for you to consider.

If you have less than £22,250 of capital or own a property that you have not sold, your social worker will assess you to confirm that you need residential care. They will then help you to find a placement.

You will be asked for details of your financial situation to assess how much you will contribute towards your care. The charge you must pay depends on your income, the value of your savings, and in some circumstances your property.

We will re-assess the amount you have to pay every year, to make sure we continue to charge you the right amount, but you should notify us of any changes to your financial circumstances. If the local authority takes responsibility for placing you and pays the charge, you will be asked to contribute.

How will my care be paid for?

If your care assessment shows you need accommodation in either a residential care home or nursing home and you have less than £22,250 capital, the Council may pay a proportion of the home's fees for the cost of caring for you. We will work out how much you must contribute towards the home's fees. The assessment will take into account most of the social security benefits, savings and any capital assets (i.e. property) you may have.

You will be advised of the amount you need to pay and we will invoice you every four weeks. You can either pay by cheque, cash or direct debit.

Where to go for more information

If you would like more information about the Charging Policy you can speak to the Income Assessment Team. Please contact the Customer Services Centre on:

Phone: 020 8379 1000
Typetalk: 020 8379 6551 (from your Textphone)
Fax: 020 8379 6458

Alternatively you can write to:

Income Assessment Team
Health and Adult Social Care
Swann Annexe
219-221 High Street
Enfield EN3 4DX

A leaflet about the Charging Policy is available from all Adult Social Services offices, libraries and the Civic Centre. To have a copy sent to you by post, please contact the Customer Services Centre, Enfield Council on any of the numbers above.

Alternatively, you can also view and download a copy by clicking on the link below.

Nursing Homes and Residential Care Charging Policy – April 2008 to March 2009

This document was last updated on 2008-05-20 14:36:28 published by the Strategy & Perfomance team. Document Reference:LBE_117713