The cost of care
With an ageing population, many of us find ourselves worrying about what will happen if we need to go into care later in life. We are told that the average cost is usually between £800-£1,400/week and we wonder how on earth we (and our relatives) will afford this.
Income
All of your income will be used to pay for the cost of your care. However, you can take away a “Personal Expenses Allowance” of £24.90/week which is yours to spend on things such as toiletries, clothes, trips out etc.
Capital
If your capital (your savings, house, investments) is:
- over £23,250 (the upper threshold) – you pay all the costs of your care
- between £14,250 – £23,250 – you pay £1/week for every £250 you have above £14,250
- less than £14,250 (the lower threshold) – none of your capital is used to pay your care
Practical Example
So if we take three residents in the same care home which costs £1,400/week, all with identical income of £424.90/week but with different amounts of capital:
Each receives a personal allowance of £24.90/week and each then uses their remaining £400 of income to pay the care costs (leaving a balance of £1,000).
How is the remainder paid?
| Resident | Savings (capital) of | Resident pays from capital | Local Authority pays |
| Joan | £250,000 | £1,000/week
| Nothing |
| Mary | £20,250 | £24/week (£1/week for every £250 over the lower threshold (£6,000 / 250 = 24) | £976/week |
| Bob
| £10,250 | Nothing | £1,000/week |
There are many factors which affect both how much you have to pay and what support you can get and we are here to help. If you have any concerns regarding care, costs or anything else, please contact us.
Rebecca McCarthy is a trainee solicitor in the Private Client team at Barker Gotelee.
Solicitors in Suffolk – for more information on our range of legal services, please call the team on 01473 611211 or email [email protected]
