Local-authority & NHS funding3 min
Pension Credit and Council Tax while a relative is in care: what changes
Benefits do not simply stop when someone moves into a care home — but several do change. Here is what to check and when.
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Editorial guides
Guides for families who need clearer choices, costs and next steps
Practical articles, checklists and explanations built around Italian care homes, urgent placement, waiting lists and home-care decisions.
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Care guide9 min
"Someone is taking her money": spotting and stopping financial abuse
In most cases it is not a stranger on the phone — it is someone close. The signs, the mistake to avoid when you raise it with her, and the steps that actually stop the money leaving.
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28 articles
Local-authority & NHS funding3 min
Deprivation of assets: what the rules actually say
Giving away savings or a property before a financial assessment can backfire. Here is what local authorities are actually allowed to do about it.
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Local-authority & NHS funding3 min
The 12-week property disregard: what it means if you own a home
Moving into permanent care does not always mean selling the house immediately. Here is the rule that buys families time.
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Local-authority & NHS funding5 min
From self-funder to council-funded: what to do before savings drop below the threshold
Self-funders often pay full care-home fees until their savings nearly vanish — then scramble. Plan the handover to council funding early and you protect choice, avoid a forced move, and get the council contributing sooner than most families expect.
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Local-authority & NHS funding5 min
Deferred Payment Agreements: how to fund a care home without selling the house now
If most of your wealth is in your home, a Deferred Payment Agreement lets the council pay the care-home fees and reclaim the money later from your estate — so you are not forced into a rushed sale. Here is how it works, what it costs, and who qualifies.
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Local-authority & NHS funding3 min
NHS Continuing Healthcare: what it is and how to apply
The fully funded NHS care package many families never ask about — eligibility, the assessment process and appeals.
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Local-authority & NHS funding3 min
Attendance Allowance: an extra weekly benefit most families miss
A non-means-tested benefit that can help cover care costs for people over State Pension age — how to check eligibility and apply.
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Local-authority & NHS funding3 min
What does the local authority do, and how can it help?
A free local resource most families overlook — how your council’s adult social care team can help with assessments, funding and options.
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Local-authority & NHS funding3 min
The local-authority financial assessment (means test), explained
Capital thresholds, the property disregard, and how the council works out what you pay towards care.
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Most read
- "Someone is taking her money": spotting and stopping financial abuse
In most cases it is not a stranger on the phone — it is someone close. The signs, the mistake to avoid when you raise it with her, and the steps that actually stop the money leaving.
- Caring from a distance: how to organise it when you live far away
From 400 miles or another country you cannot tour ten homes or drop in daily. The local network to build before the crisis, the paperwork to hold, and how to use the visits you do make.
- Keeping her at home longer: the changes that actually work (and the ones that do not)
Almost nobody moves into a care home by decision — they move after a fall. The changes in order of effect, what the council pays for, and the signs home is no longer enough.
- What to pack for a care home: the first-day checklist (and what to leave at home)
Clothes that survive an industrial laundry, the paperwork that actually matters, and the one page about her life that is worth more than everything else. Plus the classic first-day mistakes.