Paying for Home Care: Your Funding Options Explained

How is home care paid for?

Home care is paid for in one of a few ways, and many families use a mix of them: paying privately, support from the local council after an assessment, NHS funding where needs are mainly health-related, and benefits such as Attendance Allowance. Which of these applies depends on your needs and your finances, not on who provides the care.

It is worth knowing that some care is free. Short-term recovery support after a hospital stay, known as reablement, is usually free for up to about six weeks; our guide to care after hospital explains how that works. For longer-term help, the routes below are the ones to understand, and none of them is as complicated as it first looks.

This guide sits alongside our home care explained overview. Read it end to end, or jump to the route that fits your situation.

Does the council pay for home care?

It can. Your local council can arrange a free care needs assessment for anyone who appears to need support, and if you are found to have eligible needs, a separate financial assessment, often called the means test, works out how much the council contributes. The needs assessment is always free and never depends on your money; only this second step looks at your finances.

The means test looks at your income and savings. People with savings above a set threshold usually pay for their own care, while those below may receive help, often with a contribution towards the cost. For care in your own home, the value of that home is normally not counted, which surprises many families and can matter a great deal. These thresholds change from time to time, so check the current figures with your council or an independent adviser rather than relying on a number you read somewhere.

The starting point for all of this is the free care needs assessment, which you can request from Croydon or Bromley council. If the council does fund part of your care, you usually have a say in how it is arranged, which we come back to below.

What is NHS Continuing Healthcare?

NHS Continuing Healthcare is a package of care arranged and funded by the NHS for people who have significant, ongoing health needs. Where someone qualifies, it covers the full cost of their care, and, importantly, it is not means-tested, so savings and income are not taken into account.

Eligibility is decided by an assessment of a person's health needs, looking at things like how complex, intense and unpredictable those needs are, rather than by a particular diagnosis or label. That means it is always worth asking about where health needs are complex, for example after a serious illness or where nurse-led support is involved. If an assessment does not go your way, you can ask for the decision to be reviewed.

What is Attendance Allowance, and who can claim it?

Attendance Allowance is a benefit for people over State Pension age who need help with personal care or supervision to stay safe, whoever actually provides that help. It is not means-tested, does not depend on your savings or income, and is not affected by most other benefits. In fact, claiming it can sometimes increase other support such as Pension Credit.

It is paid at one of two rates, depending on whether help is needed during the day, at night, or both, and you can spend it on whatever helps most, including home care. It is widely under-claimed, so it is well worth looking into. Other help worth asking about includes Pension Credit, Carer's Allowance for a family member who cares for you, and a possible Council Tax reduction.

What if you pay for care yourself?

Many people fund their own care, either because their savings are above the council threshold or simply because they would rather arrange things privately and quickly. When you self-fund, you only pay for the hours you actually use, which is part of why home care can cost less than a care home for lower levels of support.

With us, visiting care starts from £26 an hour, and you always receive a clear written quote before any care begins, with no hidden fees. Self-funding does not shut you out of the system, either: you can still ask the council for a needs assessment for advice, and it is sensible to get independent financial advice before committing to long-term or live-in care, so you understand how long your funds are likely to last.

What are direct payments and personal budgets?

If the council funds part of your care, the money is usually described as a personal budget: the amount agreed to meet your assessed needs. You can often take that budget as a direct payment, paid to you or to someone you trust, so that you arrange the care yourself and choose your own provider rather than accepting one the council picks.

For many families this is the best of both worlds: council help with the cost, combined with the freedom to choose a carer and an approach you are happy with. You can usually add your own money on top if you want more hours than the budget covers.

Getting help to work it out

The funding system can feel complicated, but you do not have to work it out alone. At your free home visit we explain the routes that apply to your situation in plain English, and point you to the council, the NHS or an independent benefits adviser where that is the right next step. If you are still getting your bearings, our guide to a care needs assessment walks through the council route step by step.