Considering a care home for Gran

[NikNew]

Hello,
My 96 year old gran has had Alzheimer’s for around 10 years now, and we are at the point where we think a care home is the next step. She currently has carers twice a day, and my Mum and Aunty visit for around 2 hours a day, and I visit too around the kids. They have power of attorney for Gran so are responsible for her finances and health decisions.

Gran has really dipped lately, and can no longer make herself any food or drink, can no longer use the phone/TV, can’t wash herself and doesn’t dress herself. She also takes herself off to bed most the time when she has no visitors, and we think is up in the middle of the night. I can also see the strain on my Mum and Aunty who also both work and are run ragged. They have done amazingly to keep her in her own home this long, but Gran doesn’t know where she is anymore so the benefit isn’t there any more.

Ive taken the role of looking into next steps, but I’m very confused about funding. She owns her own house, but meets the three criteria needed for the local authority to consider funding care. I want to be as informed as I can before we arrange an assessment to ensure we know what’s fair. My mum and Aunty have heard horror stories and are nervous about what happens next, so I want to be the well informed daughter/granddaughter to fight their corner!

Aside from her dementia she has scoliosis, very poor eyesight, and struggles with hearing. She also struggles with constipation and UTIs quite regularly, but my mum is a nurse so she takes the lead on helping her with that side of things!

Any advice would be appreciated. I want to present it all as clearly to my Mum and Aunty as possible to try and take the pressure off a bit.

Thank you.

 

[Sarasa]

Welcome to Dementia Support Forum @nikkinewland. This is a very friendly and supportive place, so I’m glad you’ve found us.
If your grandmother has assets of over £23,500 including her house then my understanding is she would be self-funding. Others who know more about social services and funding I’m sure will be along shortly with their experiences of trying to get SS funding.
As for care homes, a site such as www.carehome.co.uk is a useful place to see what is available in your area. Make a short list and go and look at a few. What suits one person won’t another , and not all homes are alike. Yes there are bad homes out there, but a lot of very good ones so I’m sure you will find one that will suit your grandmother.

 

[My Mum's Daughter]

Welcome to the forum @nikkinewland.

I can confirm what you've been told by Sarasa, you Gran's house would be included in her assets so she would be self-funded. If there's insufficient available cash to cover the fees, the Local Authority will pay but this would be a loan and it would need to be repaid once the house is sold.

I think you're confusing Local Authority funding with CHC. CHC is when all fees are covered by the NHS however it is extremely difficult to get. Gran would need to be assessed for CHC but this wouldn't be done until Gran had settled in her new environment.

Sorry that I can't give you more positive news.

 

[northumbrian_k]

Hi @nikkinewland and welcome to the Forum. It does rather sound as though a care home may be what is needed to meet your Gran's growing needs. If she has assets of more than £23,250 then she will be considered to be self-funding. There's some useful information below:

Care homes: When is the right time and who decides?

Advice and practical tips for carers on when is the right time for a person to be moved to a care home.

www.alzheimers.org.uk

Paying for dementia care in England

Dementia care isn't free, and you may need to pay for some of the care you or someone you know needs. We help you understand the different ways to pay for care, and the amount you might be expected to pay.

www.alzheimers.org.uk

 

[Izzy]

Welcome from me too @nikkinewland.

You might find this link useful. It has some pointers regarding questions to ask -

How to choose the right care home | Age UK

Choosing a care home is a big decision. Use Age UK's care home checklist to make sure you know exactly what to look for when visiting potential homes.

www.ageuk.org.uk

 

[NikNew]

Ah thank you so much! Really helpful information. It’s very confusing to figure the process out.

Most of Gran’s money is in her house, so would we need to sell before moving her? We don’t think she can do another winter there so trying to figure out a timeline on what we need to do first.

 

[My Mum's Daughter]

@nikkinewland please don't try to sell the house with your Gran living in it but you will probably need a valuation by an estate agent. You may need to tell a few fibs here as you don't want to upset Gran.

Please speak to her social worker and explain that her family can not continue to provide care and the time has come for her to enter care. Tell them that your Gran has the house but insufficient available funds to cover the fees and they should then arrange for a financial assessment. She may be eligible for a short period of disregard which means that her house is not included in her assets for a short period i.e. the local authority pay for 4-6 weeks care.