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Fairer charging policies for home care and other non-residential social services: guidance for Councils with Social Services Responsibilities (September 2003)

This guidance is issued under section 7 of the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970.

Executive summary

1. Councils are expected to implement this guidance under section 7 of the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970 (Section I) at the latest by the dates set out below (Section XX).

2. This guidance does not make any presumption that councils will charge for non-residential social services, nor does it introduce any requirement to charge. Councils have had discretionary powers to charge for many years, subject to a general requirement of reasonableness. (Section I)

3. The guidance aims to help local councils, who decide to charge for any nonresidential services, to design reasonable and fair charging policies. It seeks to ensure greater consistency in charging policies. It provides that:

  • deciding whether to charge for non-residential social services continues to be a matter for councils' discretion. (Section I)
  • charges for different types of non-residential social service, and allied services, and how they affect individuals should be considered together, not in isolation. (Section III)
  • where councils charge for these services, flat-rate charges are acceptable only in limited circumstances. (Sections III, IV, and XIII)
  • regard should be paid to the effect of any charge on a user's net income; net incomes should not be reduced below defined basic levels of Income Support or the Guarantee Credit of Pension Credit of Pension Credit, plus 25%. Charging policies, which reduce users' net incomes below these defined basic levels, are not acceptable and undermine policies for social inclusion and the promotion of independence. (Sections IV, V, VI, XIII, and XIV)
  • councils should consider and specifically consult on the need to set a maximum charge. (Sections IV, V, and XIII)
  • where disability benefits are taken into account as income in assessing ability to pay a charge, councils should assess the individual user's disability-related expenditure; councils should specifically consult on the need to assess disability-related expenditure for other users. It is not acceptable to make a charge on disability benefits without assessing the reasonableness of doing so for each user. (Sections VI, XIII, and XIV)
  • ouncils should ensure that comprehensive benefits advice is provided to all users at the time of a charge assessment. Councils have a responsibility to seek to maximise the incomes of users, where they would be entitled to benefits, particularly where the user is asked to pay a charge. (Sections VI and VII)
  • as a minimum, the same savings limits as for residential care charges should be applied. Councils are free to operate more generous rules, as with other parts of the guidance. (Section VIII)
  • guidance is included on the treatment of partners' resources. (Section IX)
  • to ensure that disabled people and their carers, who wish to do so, are able to enter and progress in work, the guidance expects that earnings will be disregarded in charge assessments. (Section X)
  • where carers receive services in their own right under the Carers and Disabled Children Act, 2000, the guidance includes specific advice on ensuring the fairness of any charges. (Section XIV)
  • good management by councils of charging policies continues to be important.
  • councils need to monitor the impact of charging policies on users and need to know how much it costs to administer their system. As with other services, the user's and carer's needs, including their need for good information, should be put first. (Section XIX)

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