Paying for adult social care

This information relates to a financial assessment to determine how much you will need to pay towards care provided in your home or in the community. This is known as non-residential services.

Once your care and support assessment is complete, you or someone acting on your behalf must complete a financial assessment so we can work out how much, if anything, you will have to pay.

Information we need from you

You will need to provide us with accurate information with supporting evidence about;

• your contact details and who, if not yourself, will be acting on your behalf
• your income
• your savings, capital and investments
• your expenditure (such as rent, mortgage and Council Tax)
• disability related expenditure (expenses you incur as a result of your disability or infirmity)
• information to help us check you are in receipt of all the welfare benefits you are entitled to, if you wish

How we calculate the charge

If you are a permanent resident, you will keep a minimum of £28.25 per week, from April 2023.  This amount is reviewed and may change annually.
Expenditure (for example money you spend on rent, mortgage and Council Tax, is then taken off and the outcome is the amount of money we will ask you to pay towards your care and support. 

Your capital

You will have to pay the full cost of your care if your capital is above £23,250. This is called the capital threshold.

If you own property

If you are a temporary resident we will not include the value of the home you live in. However, if you own or co-own any property or land other than the home you live in, the value will be considered.
If you are a permanent resident and your savings are below £23,250 we will ignore the value of the property for the first 12 weeks of permanent care. If eligible, your home will be taken into account from week 13 of your care placement. If you own a second property its value will be considered from the date of admission.  If you chose to move to a care home that is more expensive than Croydon Council agreed to, failure to keep up with the payments can result in a move to a more affordable home.

Disregarding the value of your property
If you are a permanent resident, your main, former home will not be taken into account if it remains occupied by a person who is:

1. aged 60 or over
2. a child of the resident aged under 18
3. a relative who is incapacitated – please see our charging policy, Property Disregards 2.29 (PDF, 500KB)

Help paying care home fees

Once you have chosen your care home, you will need to decide how you are going to pay for your care fees. If you have been assessed to pay full cost for your residential or nursing care, there are 3 options available to you:

1. you can choose to make your own financial arrangements independently of the council
2. you can apply to the deferred payments scheme operated by the council 
3. you pay the full cost and you prefer for Croydon Council to still be involved 

You should speak to your financial assessment officer if you are interested in applying for deferred payments. You should always seek independent financial advice.

Contact us

If you have a question about your financial assessment and paying for your care, speak with your financial assessment officer direct or call 020 8760 5676 or   020 8726 6000 ext 44075.  

You can also email enquiries to ResidentialFA@croydon.gov.uk or if it is about your deferred payment to deferredpayments@croydon.gov.uk.