Leaflet: What you will need to pay

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Summary

April 2026

This leaflet explains how we work out what you pay towards the cost of your care and support.

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Finding out what support you need

If you have care and support needs, you can ask for a free Care Act needs assessment. This looks at how you manage everyday tasks.

For more information on what happens in a Care Act needs assessment, see our factsheet Who qualifies for our support.

If you qualify for support, we will contact you to offer you a financial assessment, or you can ask for one.

Do I have to pay?

Social care is not free. If you qualify for support from us, you usually need to either:

pay a regular amount towards it, or
pay the full cost

We will look at your finances to work out how much you can afford to pay towards your care.

You can use our online financial checker to find out if you are likely to pay for your care.

When you pay

You will need to pay from the date your care starts. You pay your contribution first and then the Council pays the remaining costs.

If your care has already started, we will arrange your financial assessment promptly so that charges are not backdated for long periods of time.

Free information and advice

You can contact us for free information and advice about social care. There is also lots of useful information in our leaflets and factsheets and on our website.

Who pays the full cost?

You will have to pay the full cost of your care if:

you have more than £23,250 in savings and investments (capital). How this is worked out depends on the type of care you receive, or
you do not wish to tell us about your finances

Arranging your financial assessment

Sometimes, we can do your financial assessment without needing to contact you. It depends on the type of support you need.

We may phone you to ask if you’d like someone to help you with your financial assessment.

You can do a financial assessment online. We will email you with a link to our online financial calculator. You can use this to complete your assessment and submit your supporting documents.

After your financial assessment, we will write to you to confirm how much you need to pay towards your care. We call this your ‘contribution’.

How we work out how much you will pay

Where possible, we will use data shared by the Department for Work and Pensions and HM Revenue & Customs.

If we need more information, we will ask you about:

your money, investments and assets
your income
some housing related costs, like your mortgage, rent or council tax
any extra expenses you have because of a disability or health condition. We call this ‘disability-related expenses’.

Money, investments and assets

We will look at the value of:

cash
money held in savings or current accounts
land, buildings, and property (that you do not live in)
Premium Bonds
stocks, shares and investment bonds
investments
trust funds

We call this ‘capital’.

If you have more than £23,250, you cannot get financial help from us. You will have to pay the full cost of your support.
If you have less than £23,250, we will work out how much you need to pay towards your care and support.

If your capital is likely to fall to £23,250 in the next six months, you can ask us to review the amount you pay.

You can use our online capital depletion checker to find out when you may need to ask us for financial help.

You can find more information about this in our factsheet Financial assessments if you have been fully funding your care

Property and land

If you own your home, we do not include the value:

while you are living in it and receiving care at home, or
if you are going into a care home for a short time

If you permanently move into a care home, we will include your home unless it is occupied by a:

spouse or partner
former partner (who is a lone parent)
relative who is incapacitated or aged over 60

We will include any other property or land you own, like a second home.

We will give you more information about this during your financial assessment.

Income

We include:

most state benefits
state, private and workplace pensions
money from investments and trust funds
annuities

What you will need to provide

You usually need to provide supporting documents, such as bank and pension statements.

If you do not share these documents, you may need to pay the full cost of your care until we can finish your assessment.

Once we have looked at your finances, we will explain:

your ‘contribution’, the amount per week you need to pay towards your care and support
how we worked this out
the different ways you can pay your contribution for care and support

We will also let you know how to apply for any benefits you might be entitled to.

Read more about financial assessments in our factsheets:

Financial assessments for care and support outside a care home

Financial assessments for residential care

Other care you need to pay for

Charges in day centres

When you attend a day service, you will pay for:

meals
transport to and from your home

These charges are on top of the contribution you pay to attend the day service. We will add these to your invoice.

Meals in the community

We charge for our delivered meals service. Your financial assessment will determine if you need to pay. If you pay a contribution, we will invoice you.

You will also need to pay for the cost of the meal itself – the provider you have chosen will invoice you directly.

Charges for arranging support

If you pay the full cost of your care (not in a care home), the Council can help arrange it for you. There are two extra costs for this – a one-time set up fee and an ongoing charge each time you get a bill.

These charges only cover the Council’s costs for organising care and sending invoices. We do not make any profit from this. You’ll also pay for your care, on top of these charges. The charges only apply to:

people who pay the full cost of their care, which is arranged by the Council
people who choose not to have a financial assessment and ask the Council to arrange their care

If you go into permanent residential and nursing care

We will not include the value of your home for the first 12 weeks if:

you own your home and will use its value to fund your care home fees
you lived there directly before moving into a care home

This is called a ‘12-week property disregard’. It gives you time to decide what to do with your home.

After 12 weeks, we may include the value of your home in your financial assessment. This usually means you have over £23,250, so you need to pay the full cost of your care.

If you have to pay the full cost of your care, we can talk you through your options.

For more information, read our factsheet Financial assessments for residential care.

Backdating charges

Residential care

You will pay a set amount if you go into a care home before we complete your financial assessment.

When we finish your assessment, we will:

confirm the actual amount you need to pay (your contribution)
backdate your contribution to the date you moved into the care home
ask you to pay the difference between the set amount and your contribution, or refund you if you paid too much

Support at home or in the community

If your care has already started, we will arrange your financial assessment promptly. Your contribution will be backdated to the date your care started.

When you pay

You will need to pay from the date your care starts. You pay your contribution first and then the Council pays the remaining costs.

You will pay for your care after you receive it. You must put the money aside so that you can pay your invoice later.

If you do not agree with our decision

If you think we have made a mistake or the amount you are being asked to pay is unreasonable, you can appeal.

We will give you more information on this when you have your financial assessment.

How to pay us

It’s easy to pay your contribution by Direct Debit. Many people choose this option because it helps them to avoid missing payments.

We will include a Direct Debit form when we write to you to confirm your contribution. You will need to complete this form and return it to us.

For more information, see: How to pay our invoices when we arrange your support

Having trouble paying?

If you cannot afford to pay your contribution, please contact us immediately. We do not want you to get into debt or worry.

You can get free financial advice and support from:

Citizen’s Advice

Phone: 0800 240 4420

Website: Citizens Advice

Money Helper

Phone: 0800 011 3797

Website: Money Helper

Money worries can affect your mental health and it’s important to seek help. You can find services that help with debt on our mental health directory.

Getting involved in shaping our services

Want to use your experience of social care services to make a difference? Join the People Bank.

The People Bank is a group of volunteers who get involved with Adult Social Care work. We use their views and feedback to help improve and develop our services.

We’ll match you with activities that suit you. You could review a leaflet, test a survey, or help create a new strategy. For more information: