Understand your eligibility for funded care

Getting care from the council 

The care needs assessment and financial assessment is the process to find out if you're eligible to get care provided by Kingston Council, and whether you need to pay for that care.

Care that the council pays for

We apply the Care Act 2014 criteria to decide eligibility for our care and support services.

You’ll only receive funded care from the council if:

1. Your needs for care and support are because of a physical or mental health condition.
2. Because of your condition, you're unable to do at least 2 everyday tasks (known as outcomes).
3. Not being able to do these everyday things causes an impact on your wellbeing.
4. You have less than £23,250 in savings and assets.

How we decide eligibility

1. Your physical and mental health

The first part of eligibility is that your needs for care and support are due to a physical or mental health condition.

This includes physical or mental frailty, impairment or disability. You do not always have to be registered as disabled or have a diagnosis.

2. Everyday tasks

We’ll ask about your ability to perform everyday tasks, which we call outcomes. You need to be unable to do at least 2 of these by yourself to be eligible.

The everyday tasks that we consider are:

• shopping for food, preparing a meal, eating a healthy diet, or drinking plenty of fluids
• keeping yourself clean
• getting to and using the toilet
• dressing or undressing or keeping your clothes clean
• moving around inside and outside
• keeping your home clean and tidy
• staying in contact with your friends and family
• working in a job, learning at school or college, or volunteering
• taking part in social activities and using local facilities
• caring for a child that you look after

3. Impact on your wellbeing

The last stage of eligibility criteria is whether there is a significant impact on your wellbeing if you cannot achieve these everyday tasks.

When we consider the impact on your wellbeing, we look at: 

• personal dignity
• control over your day-to-day life
• taking part in education
• work or social activities
• relationships with other people
• having suitable accommodation
• protection from abuse and neglect

4. How much you have in savings and assets

Care provided by the council is means-tested, and most people will have to pay for some or all of their care.

If you're eligible for care based on the criteria above, we'll then look at your finances to work out if you're eligible for any financial support.

If you have savings and assets of:

• More than £23,250: you’ll have to pay for all care services you receive, called self-funding.
• Less than £23,250: you could qualify for help towards the cost of your care.

Find out more about:

• paying for care
• self-funding your care
• estimate what you might pay for care