The cost of care – who pays?
If the time comes when you need help with your day-to-day care, your local authority can do a needs assessment to work out what level of care you need.
Needs assessments are free and anyone can have one.
After a needs assessment is carried out your local council might pay for some or all of the cost of your care but it depends on things like:
How much care you need.
How much you have in savings. At the moment you might qualify for help with care costs from your local council if you have £23,250 or less in savings but that’s set to increase to £100,000 in October 2025.
How much you earn, if you’re still working.
How much you can afford.
Local authorities work out if you need to pay money towards your care costs or if they’ll fully fund it, by assessing your financial situation. This is called a financial assessment and is a type of means testing.
You can read more about the financial assessment here and you can find up-to-date information on contributing to the cost of home care on the NHS website.
If it’s decided that you qualify for funding help from your local authority, you’ll usually receive a personal budget that’s paid into your bank account. Some councils pay care costs themselves then send you a bill every month.
Is there other financial help available?
You might be entitled to benefits such as Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment and Attendance Allowance as well as Carer’s Allowance.
Find out more about what benefits you might be entitled to here. There are also grants available – call Age UK on 0800 678 1602 to find out more.
You can also ask for a free home assessment where an occupational therapist comes to your home and looks at recommendations for equipment and adaptions that will help you to live independently and safely.
If these recommendations cost less than £1,000, you’ll get them for free.
What if I don’t qualify for help with care costs?
Those deemed to have too much in the way of savings, income, pensions or assets have to self-fund their care. You can see a rough guide to costs below, depending on the type of care you choose.
It’s also worth noting that some insurance policies cover care costs, so before you pay your own costs check out your policies covering:
Life insurance
Health
Personal income protection
You can speak to an adviser on the Age UK helpline on 0800 678 1602 who can help with care planning and you can use our downloadable Care Planning Toolkit here. We’ve also provided some useful helplines, below.
Speak to an expert
Age UK - 0800 678 1602
Independent Age - 0800 319 6789
Money Helper - 0800 111 3797
The Family Rights Group - 0808 801 0366