Hi iv recently become a carer for my mum who has alzeimers she went downhill really fast I had to give up my flat to move in with her and iv been told that it’s to late to get power of attorney I’m worried that if they decided she had to go into a care home that they would sell her house to pay for it and I would end up homeless is there anything I could do to get power of atturney and I don’t have any money of my own to pay any court fees.
Hi Trevor … welcome to an extremely quiet forum as I type.
Pleased to see you have identified the problems right from the off.
Internet searches are VERY revealing … mainly silent on the position of a family carer , assuming under 60 , when their caree
( Assuming the sole home owner ) moves into a care home.
( If a social tenant , that dreaded word … SUCCESSION … ? )
Most readers will already know the problem … the carer is at risk … even if a deferred payment scheme is put into place to starve
of the inevitable … trouble is , when the caree dies , the Shylocks want their pound of flesh.
( Say £ 600 - 1,000 per week straight off the market value … week by week ? )
For an expert opinion on the best way forward , I would recommend two :
AGE UK : https://www.ageuk.org.uk/
Dementia UK : https://www.dementiauk.org/
AGE UK … a whole host of information on care homes … from the very basics upto and including the legal angle.
I have assumed that CHC / NHS Continuing Healthcare is NOT a factor here ?
Main thread and relevant section :
DEMENTIA ?
Present day-to-day caring … any areas we can help with ?
Needs and Carer assessments / outside support / benefits m.o.t. ( Assume Council Tax disregard / discount ? ) etc. etc. ?
Any potential game changers in that Green Paper … gathering dust before the House sees it ?
( Even it’s existence … beyond the name … is a matter of speculation. )
Pure speculation at this moment in time.
It’s a real shame you gave up your flat, however, there are lots of things to consider.
To start with, tell us a bit more about yourself and mum to help us to help you.
How old are you, and mum?
How much care does mum currently need?
Do you have any brothers and sisters?
Is mum claiming Attendance Allowance?
Does she have over £23,000 in savings.
I’m 54 and my mums 80 and she’s got over 23k in the bank when it comes to care at the minuet I can manage my self adult services ar trying to sort a carer to come in to help her to have a shower. The main things I do is cook clean I have to show her where the bedroom and bathroom is and make sure she dosent wander out side but she’s also not very good on her feet it was like she forgot things really fast she fell asleep in the living room and when she woke up she was really confused and didn’t know where she was the nurse came and she said she thinks she had a mini stroke.
Once you reach 60, the value of the house will not be considered by Social Services.
Between now and then, you want to do everything possible to stay put, maximising your income and minimising mum’s outgoings.
That’s why I asked If mum was receiving Attendance Allowance?
Exemption from Council Tax?
If mum has only just over £23,000, then it is perfectly fine to spend money on a new carpet, a new bed, that sort of thing, which will then bring her down to just below the threshold for SSD to contribute towards her care. Was this explained to you?
If they are going to arrange carers for mum, they should have done a full Needs Assessment, and you should have been given a WRITTEN copy. Did this happen?
They should also have done a full financial Assessment. Again, you should have been given a copy.
Did they explain that under certain circumstances, mum might be entitled to “Direct Payments”?
She is auite a bit over the 23k mark I and she dose get attendance allowance it isn’t the money I would be quite happy with it all going its just her owning the house and them classing it as having more than 23k and selling it.
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I would be quite happy with it all going its just her owning the house and them classing it as having more than 23k and selling it.
AGE UK / Dementia UK for advice ?
If CHC / NHS Continuing Healthcare was applied for … and granted … problem will disappear.