Who should actually be paying for this care?
Independent guidance on how care is paid for in England — the local authority means test, NHS funding, benefits you may not have claimed, and the choices that quietly cost families the most. A written summary of what you may be entitled to, for a fixed £575 inc. VAT.
Care funding is complicated on purpose, and nobody explains it
Understanding how care is paid for — and what somebody may be entitled to — is the part families find most stressful and most frightening. The rules sit across the NHS, local authorities and the benefits system, they use different language in each, and nobody is responsible for making sure you understand them.
The practical consequence is that families routinely start paying privately when they did not have to, miss benefits they were always entitled to, agree to top-up payments they were never obliged to make, or accept a funding decision without being told there was a right to challenge it.
What our Funding Support does
We review the situation, identify every funding route that realistically applies, explain in plain English how each one works and what it would mean, and put it in writing with clear next steps. Where there is an entitlement that has been missed, we say so. Where there is not, we say that too — that is usually worth £575 inc. VAT on its own.
What we are not
We do not provide FCA-regulated financial advice, we do not sell care annuities, equity release or investment products, and we do not take commission from anybody who does. Where regulated advice is genuinely needed — typically around property, care fee plans or estate planning — we will tell you and introduce you to a regulated professional.
- You are unsure whether your relative qualifies for NHS Continuing Healthcare
- You are facing a local authority financial assessment and do not know what to expect
- You believe somebody has been wrongly assessed or unfairly refused funding
- You want to understand the difference between self-funding and funded care
- Care is being arranged and you need to understand the options before committing
- You have been asked for a third-party top-up and are not sure it is required
- You want independent advice before a formal NHS or local authority assessment
- You suspect benefits such as Attendance Allowance have never been claimed
What you get for £575 inc. VAT · Care Plan Call
Funding review
A structured review of the situation to identify every relevant route — NHS, local authority, benefits and self-funding.
Written summary
A plain-language account of the funding landscape for your circumstances, with clear next steps and who to approach.
Entitlement check
Benefits and allowances that may not have been claimed, and what evidence tends to be needed to claim them successfully.
Preparation and follow-up
Help preparing for assessments, understanding the outcome, and challenging a decision where there are grounds.
Written summary of what you may be entitled to
The main funding routes, in plain English
Most families are told about one of these. Usually it is the most expensive one.
NHS Continuing Healthcare
Where somebody needs care primarily because of a health need, the NHS may fund the whole package, including the full cost of a nursing home. It is assessed on the nature, intensity, complexity and unpredictability of need — not on savings or property. It is not means-tested at all, and a person with substantial assets can qualify while a person with none may not. This is the route most often missed entirely, and it has its own page: NHS Continuing Healthcare.
NHS-funded Nursing Care
Where somebody in a nursing home does not qualify for full Continuing Healthcare but does need care from a registered nurse, the NHS pays a contribution towards the nursing element of the fee, paid directly to the home. It is not means-tested. Families are frequently unaware it exists, or unaware it should already be in place.
Local authority funding and the means test
If Continuing Healthcare does not apply, the local authority assesses both the need for care and the ability to pay. The financial assessment looks at capital and income, with upper and lower capital thresholds that determine whether the authority contributes. Thresholds are set nationally, change from time to time, and are applied with a number of important exceptions — so the figure that matters is the one that applies on the day you are assessed. We confirm the current position as part of the check.
Property, disregards and deferred payments
Whether the home counts in the means test depends on who else lives there and on the type of care. There is also a period at the start of a permanent care home stay during which the property is disregarded, and a scheme allowing fees to be deferred against the value of the property rather than forcing a sale. These rules are where the largest sums are won and lost, and they are frequently explained badly or not at all.
Benefits and allowances
Attendance Allowance is not means-tested and is claimed on the basis of care needs rather than diagnosis. Depending on circumstances, Pension Credit, Carer Allowance, Council Tax reductions and disability premiums may also apply. Claim forms are long and are frequently completed in a way that understates need, which is the single most common reason a claim fails.
Self-funding, and doing it properly
Even where somebody pays for their own care, there are decisions worth getting right: whether the local authority has been asked for an assessment anyway, whether a top-up is genuinely required, what happens if capital falls below the threshold, and how fee increases will be handled. Self-funding is not a reason to skip the process — it is a reason to document it.
Who is likely to pay for this?
Five questions. No email, nothing stored. The result lists the routes worth checking, free ones first, and who to ask.
From first conversation to written summary
Tell us the situation
Who the person is, what care is needed or already in place, and what has been said so far about paying for it.
We review
Every route that realistically applies, including anything that should have been offered and was not.
Written summary
A plain-English document setting out the position, the entitlements worth pursuing and the order to pursue them in.
Next steps
Support preparing for assessments, and honest advice on whether a challenge is worth making.
Common problems we are asked to unpick
Being told to self-fund without any assessment of health needs. A Continuing Healthcare checklist that was never completed, or completed and never explained. A top-up demanded from a family who was under no obligation to pay it. A property counted in the means test when a disregard should have applied. Attendance Allowance never claimed because somebody assumed savings ruled it out. A funding decision accepted because nobody mentioned there was a right to ask for it to be reviewed.
Care funding: your questions
What is NHS Continuing Healthcare and how do we apply?
It is a package of care funded entirely by the NHS for adults whose need is primarily a health need. It starts with a screening checklist, which can be requested by you, a professional or the care setting. Our CHC page explains the full process and where families usually lose ground.
Is care funding means-tested?
Local authority funding is. NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care are not, and neither is Attendance Allowance. Which route you are on therefore matters enormously.
What are the capital thresholds?
England operates upper and lower capital limits that determine whether the local authority contributes. The figures are set nationally and change periodically, so we confirm the current thresholds and how they apply to your situation as part of the check rather than quoting a number that may have moved.
Will my relative have to sell their home?
Not necessarily. Whether the property counts depends on who else lives there and on the type of care, there is an initial disregard period for permanent care home stays, and deferred payment arrangements can allow fees to be paid later against the property instead of forcing a sale.
What is a third-party top-up, and do we have to pay it?
It is an additional payment, usually from a relative, to secure a placement costing more than the local authority rate. It is not automatically required: the authority must be able to offer at least one suitable placement at its rate. If you are being told a top-up is compulsory, that is worth checking.
What happens if we disagree with the funding assessment?
There are routes to challenge both local authority and NHS decisions. What matters is the evidence and the argument, not persistence. We review what was decided, tell you honestly whether there are grounds, and help you put the case properly.
Can you help if a relative is already in a care home?
Yes, and this is very common. It is harder to unpick a decision than to question it at the time, but it is far from impossible — particularly where a Continuing Healthcare checklist was never done or a benefit was never claimed.
Do you charge a percentage of what we recover?
No. Our fee is fixed at £575 inc. VAT for the Funding Entitlement Check, regardless of outcome. We are not a claims company.
Can you guarantee we will get funding?
No, and nobody honestly can. Decisions are made by the NHS or the local authority. What we can do is make sure the right routes are pursued, in the right order, with the evidence properly presented.
Do you give financial advice about paying for care?
We do not provide FCA-regulated financial advice and we do not sell financial products. Where regulated advice is needed we will say so and introduce you to somebody appropriate.
Related pages
NHS Continuing Healthcare
The route most families are never told about, and how the assessment really works.
Care Needs Assessment
Independent written evidence of need — often the foundation of a funding case.
Free guides & tools
Including the guide to who pays for care, and the free CHC checklist.
You don’t need to know which service you need.
Just tell us what’s happening.
No pressure. No care-provider commissions. Just a conversation about what may help.