Your right to a care needs assessment from the council under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, carers' assessments, the weekly maximum charge for care at home, the care home capital limit and complaints.
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Check My Care Rights →Adults in Wales who need help to manage day to day because of illness, disability or age, and the family members or friends who care for them. It covers the right to a care needs assessment from the council, carers' assessments, paying for care and how to complain. The law is the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014.
Under section 19 of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 the council must assess any adult who may need care and support, whatever it thinks about the level of those needs or the person's money.
The assessment must look at the outcomes you want to achieve day to day and whether care and support, preventative services or information and advice could help. The council must involve you and, where it can, any carer you have.
After the assessment the council decides what help, if any, it will provide.
Under section 24 of the Act the council must assess a carer who may need support, whatever it thinks about the level of the carer's needs or the money of the carer or the person cared for.
The carer's assessment looks at whether you are able and willing to carry on caring, and the outcomes you want to achieve.
The council can charge for care and support. To decide how much, it must carry out a financial assessment. You can ask for a review of any charge you think is wrong.
If you get care at home, the most the council can charge you is £100 a week. You may have to pay up to that amount if you have a high disposable income, or savings and investments over £24,000 not counting the value of your home. The council must let you keep a set amount for your daily living costs.
In a care home, if your capital is over £50,000 you may have to pay the full cost. If it is at or below that limit, the council helps pay, and what you pay is worked out from your income, such as pensions and benefits.
When you move permanently into a care home, the value of your home is ignored for the first 12 weeks. After that the council may let you defer what you owe against your home, to be repaid when the home is sold or you leave the care home. This guide does not cover when your home is not counted at all: ask the council.
Complain to the council first, using its social services complaints procedure.
If you are still unhappy, you can go to the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales. This guide does not cover its time limits: ask the Ombudsman.
Your council's social services: to ask for a needs assessment or a carer's assessment.
Public Services Ombudsman for Wales: 0300 790 0203, Monday to Friday 10am to 12:30pm and 1:30pm to 4pm, ombudsman.wales
Citizens Advice (Wales): 0800 702 2020
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