Day Care - who provides and who funds?

[Pricivius]

Hi all

I was wondering if anyone can help me with a query concerning Day Care.

My step-father has Pick's Disease and has been attending a Day Care Centre arranged through social services for the last 4 weeks, two days a week. My mum received a call last week to arrange a means-assessment - this is the first time that it has been suggested that we would need to finance his care. It was suggested by his Consultant last June and took until April to be arranged!

We were unaware that we would need to fund his day care - is this always the case? Is it true that the Mental Health Trust can fund Day Care? Is there any other way of funding this?

We are struggling with a very unhelpful Council - we have no Social Worker or Care Co-ordinator and are passed from pillar to post between various departments and even consultants.

Any help would be greatly appreciated - he loves Day Care but right now we simply can't get our heads around what he is entitled to and what we need to fund ourselves.

Many thanks.

 

[Bristolbelle]

Paying for day care

I'm not sure that everywhere is the same but my Mum goes to one day centre run by Brunelcare which incorporates Dementia Care trust and one that is run by a church group for older people with mental health problems (you don't have to be part of their parish or a churchgoer to use it though). Both charge five pounds but that is supposed to be for the meal they have not the actual day care. mum is supposed to be starting at a social services centre soon and again they charge five pounds but they claim that's for transport. obviously the figure seems fairly standard and there must be some political reason for claiming they money is not directly related to day care but heaven knows what. Mum is on Pension Credit so I don;t know if we will have to pay or if Social services will fund it when she goes to the new centre. Sorry I can't be more help.

 

[jenniferpa]

Unfortunately, I don't think there are set rules for this. There are so many different day cares: run by private organizations, charities or the local authority. I don't think you can assume that simply because they are now saying that they are going to do a means assessment that you will end up having to pay: practically all LA services of this type are means-tested. It will all come down to how much your father has in the way of savings and/or income.

 

[LIZ50]

I think you'll find it depends largely on where you live and what borough council you come under.
Typical example - Mum lives with us full-time and because we have recently sold her flat this has made her self funding which means that any respite care she has to pay in full. However, she goes to a dementia day care once a week which is fully funded by our borough council(even transport and a meal is included).
On the other hand, I attend a carers support group which is mainly made up of carers from another borough council (although many of them live just streets away from me) and even if they are fully funded by the social for respite care, some of them still have to pay for day care.
Not really a yes or no answer for you as you will have to wait for the means-assessed meeting to ask exactly what your step-father is entitled to from your particular social services.
Hope the meeting goes ok.
Love Liz x

 

[surtees123]

hi

my granda goes to a day centre 2 days a week and im sure my nana had someone come in to the house and go through all her finances and worked out from what she had how much if anything she had to pay. its just awful isnt it.

was question is can we pay extra for a few extra days at the day centre?

 

[Sandy]

Hi Pricivius,

As others have said, the situation varies from local authority to local authority.

There is a good fact sheet on the community care assessment process on the main Alzheimer's Society web site:

http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/factsheet/418

There are national guidelines which apply to paying care home fees, but nothing that I know of for community-based services.

Take care,

Sandy