Information about
contributions for
non-residential support
Introduction
This booklet contains information about contributions for non-residential support, how your
contribution is calculated, what Disability Related Expenditure we may allow, how you can pay
your contribution and what to do if you don’t agree with your contribution. At the end of the
booklet there are some frequently asked questions, and details of useful contacts.
Why do I have to make a contribution for
non-residential support?
The government assumes that we’ll raise some of the cost of providing non-residential support
by asking you to contribute towards the cost of your support. If we didn’t raise this money we
wouldn’t have enough income and we’d have to reduce the amount of support we provide.
What non-residential support do I need to
contribute to?
Contributions for non residential support are based on your personal budget which can be
used to purchase the support you want to meet your needs. However, if a personal budget is
used to purchase community equipment or minor adaptations then contributions will not be
payable on this part of the personal budget.
Personal budgets can also be used to purchase short term residential or nursing care, any part
of the personal budget used to purchase this type of support will be subject to our policy on
charging for short term residential care.
The fairer contributions policy
Our fairer contributions policy contains guidelines for assessing non-residential contributions. It
makes sure that you don’t have to contribute more than you can afford towards your care. If
there’s anything you don’t understand about this policy, please contact our Accounts and
Recovery Team Manager on (0114) 273 5591.
Financial assessment
We need to complete a financial assessment to calculate what your contribution will be.
You’ll pay a contribution from the day you start to receive your service.
If you have a financial assessment, an officer from our Financial Assessment Team will visit
you and ask you questions about any income and savings you have. They’ll need to see
information about your income and savings, like pay slips, evidence of Department for Work
and Pensions benefits, details of your bank and building society accounts and any cash you
have. They’ll also need to see evidence of any Disability Related Expenditure (money you
have to spend on things if you have a disability). This expenditure will only be considered if
you receive Attendance Allowance or Disability Living Allowance Care Component.
Everyone will be given an allowance to cover their cost of living, this is 25% more than the
amount the government says someone needs to live on. It is dependant on age, level of
disability, family status and whether someone has caring responsibilities. The table below
shows examples of the amounts allowed for the cost of living for a single person.
Not high Rate DLA
Care
High Rate DLA
Care
18-24
£108.25
£126.75
25-59
£126.69
£145.19
60+
£178.38
£178.38
If you live at home with your partner, we’ll provide both a single assessment (using only your
details) and a couple’s assessment (using your details and your partner’s details) to identify
the best assessment option for your financial circumstances.
If you don’t want to tell us your partner’s financial details, we’ll carry out a single assessment.
You’ll need to provide proof of your expenditure by showing us your fuel bills, Council Tax bills
and details of your rent or mortgage payments.
If you don’t want to tell us your financial details, you’ll be assessed to pay the full contribution
for your non-residential support.
The Financial Assessment Visiting Officer will ask you to provide information and evidence of
your income and savings by showing them pay slips, evidence of Department for Work and
Pensions benefits, bank and building society accounts, national savings or share certificates
and any cash.
Capital
If you have capital over £23,250 you will be required to pay the full cost of your services up to
a maximum £350 per week. If you have a partner you will be required to pay the full cost if
your share of your capital is over £23,250. If you have over £14,250 but less than £23,250,
we will add £1 to your assessed income for every £250 you have above £14,250.
Capital is the savings and investments you have this might include (this list is not exhaustive):

Bank or building society accounts.

ISAs

Post Office Accounts

Stocks or Shares

Properties (that you don’t live in)

Premium Bonds

Cash

Trust Funds
In some circumstances capital may be disregarded, this might include:

Discretionary Trusts

Life Assured Investment Bonds

Personal Injury and some other compensation payments.
We will always disregard the value of the property that you live in.
Disability Related Expenditure
Disability Related Expenditure is expenditure that costs you more because you have a
disability. You can only claim for Disability Related Expenditure if you receive a disability
related benefit such as the Disability Living Allowance (care component) or Attendance
Allowance. You can ask the Financial Assessment Visiting Officer for more information about
Disability Related Expenditure.
Standard Disability Related Expenditure includes:
 extra heating costs, such as gas, electricity and oil
 City Wide Alarm payments
 extra water charges (meter users only)
 additional costs to building and contents insurance.
Non-Standard and Exceptional Disability Related Expenditure needs to be described in your
assessment of need before it can be considered. This expenditure includes:
 the cost of eligible care where the council is unable to provide it, and you’re
purchasing the care directly from a provider or employing someone yourself
 privately arranged domestic help where your assessment of need clearly identifies
that you can’t do these tasks independently and there’s no one to help you
 special diet – any food or supplement taken on medical advice
 extra bedding due to incontinence, tearing or heavy usage
 extra clothing due to incontinence, tearing or heavy usage
 laundry, including special washing powder
 extra unavoidable transport costs above the higher level of mobility component of
Disability Living Allowance
 prescription charges due to long-term health conditions
 higher incidences of breakages, damages and redecoration not covered by your
insurance
 damages to household items due to behavioural difficulties
 purchase or rental of a basic mobile telephone if you can’t access a public telephone
and you need to contact people quickly due to your disability. The cost of the
telephone calls is not covered
 the cost of purchase, maintenance and repair of equipment, which is assessed as
being needed but which the council can’t provide
 any financial contribution you’ve made to top up a Disabled Facility Grant in the last
five years
 serious unpredictable health conditions that prevent your take up of service
 the extra cost of planned holidays incurred as a result of your disability.
No allowance will be made for the cost of the following:
 food, clothing or other living expenses
 insurance
 loans (including hire purchase and catalogues)
 debts
 pets
 normal fuel bills, TV license, etc
 non-metered water rates
 transport.
Once you’ve given us information about your expenditure, we can work out the amount of
money you have available to contribute towards your support.
Calculation
Your weekly-assessed contribution is based on two calculations:
1. assessed income
2. contribution amount
The lower of these two calculations will be your assessed contribution, and will be the
amount you’ll be asked to contribute towards your support.
For example:
If your assessed income is £60.00 and your contribution amount is £50.00, you’ll pay the
total amount of your contribution amount (£50.00).
If your assessed income is £20.00 and your contribution amount is £50.00, you’ll only pay
the amount of your assessed income (£20.00).
To calculate your assessed income, we look at the total of all your income (not including your
earnings from employment), and then take away (subtract):
 an amount equal to the value of Income Support/Guarantee Credit, plus a further
25% of this amount
 household costs
 Disability Related Expenditure.
The remaining value is your assessed income.
Your contribution amount is the full cost of your support calculated on a weekly basis.
Please see table on the next page for examples.
The maximum contribution for non residential support is £350 per week.
If you spend some of your personal budget on short term care in a registered residential or
nursing home this will be charged in accordance with our policy for charging for residential
care.
Contributions table from 24th October 2011
Annual
Personal
Maximum Weekly
Budget
Contribution
£1,000
£19.23
£1,500
£28.84
£2,000
£38.46
£2,500
£48.07
£3,000
£3,500
£4,000
£4,500
£5,000
£5,500
£6,000
£6,500
£7,000
£7,500
£8,000
£8,500
£9,000
£9,500
£10,000
£10,500
£11,000
£11,500
£12,000
£12,500
£13,000
£13,500
£14,000
£14,500
£15,000
£15,500
£16,000
£16,500
£17,000
£17,500
£18,000
£18,200
£57.69
£67.30
£76.92
£86.53
£96.15
£105.76
£115.38
£125.00
£134.61
£144.23
£153.84
£163.46
£173.07
£182.69
£192.30
£201.92
£211.53
£221.15
£230.76
£240.38
£250.00
£259.61
£269.23
£278.84
£288.46
£298.07
£307.69
£317.30
£326.92
£336.53
£346.15
£350.00
How do I pay my contribution?
Once we’ve calculated your weekly Assessed Contribution, you’ll receive a letter that
explains how much you’ll have to pay, how it’s been worked out, and how you can make
payments.
You can pay by monthly Direct Debit:
We’ll send you a direct debit mandate to complete. This will authorise Sheffield City Council to
collect your contribution directly from your bank account every month. You’ll receive
information from us each month telling you the amount that will be taken from your account.
You can pay on receipt of an invoice:
If you choose this method of payment you'll receive an invoice every month.
Payments can be made at any post office or pay point (including those outside Sheffield) by
cash, cheque or debit card. You’ll need to take the invoice with you. A receipt will be issued
with each payment.
You must make sure you make payments on time and in full, as we’ll take action to collect
unpaid contributions. However, we’re very keen to avoid this. Please contact us immediately
for help if you’re having problems with paying.
You can make payments by debit/credit card by calling the Accounts and Recovery Team, or if
you have any problems with paying, please contact Accounts and Recovery on
(0114) 273 6716 / 273 6717.
If you receive Direct Payments:
If you receive your support via Direct Payments your contribution will usually be deducted from
the payment you receive before it is paid. You may however receive an invoice for an initial
period before a financial assessment is complete or for a one off payment.
What if I don’t agree with the amount I’m
asked to pay?
If you don't agree with the calculation of your assessed contribution, you can appeal.
You’ll first need to contact our Financial Assessment Team on (0114) 273 4825/ 4613 / 4440
to ask them to look at your assessment. You’ll need to say why you think the assessment of
your contribution is incorrect.
After this, if you’re still not happy with their decision, you can ask our Financial Assessment
Team to pass your case on to the team manager or the revisit and review panel for a further
review. This panel meets every month and is made up of senior managers of the council,
who’ll thoroughly examine your case before reaching a decision.
Frequently asked questions
What should I do if my income or savings change?
You should let our Financial Assessment Team know. They’ll check to make sure that your
assessed contribution is correct.
What Happens if I am paid Disability Living Allowance (Care Component) or Attendance
Allowance at the higher rate?
The higher rate of these benefits is paid to those with 24 hour care needs, if the council is
providing night care then the full value of the benefit will be included in your financial
assessment. If you are not in receipt of night time care from the council then the night time
component of the benefit will be not be included in your income for the purpose of calculating
your financial assessment. In general this will be the difference between the medium and the
high bands of the benefit however if the benefit is paid in the main for night time care please
notify the financial assessment officer carrying out your assessment and provide evidence so
that a higher allowance can be considered.
Will my contribution for my non-residential support be the same if I go into short-term
residential care?
If you let our Accounts and Recovery Team know when you go in to respite or short-term care,
they can tell you if you need to continue paying for your non-residential support.
If I go into permanent residential or nursing care and continue to attend my day service,
will my contribution to my day service and transport be the same?
You’ll not be asked to make any contributions towards your non-residential support if you’re in
permanent care.
If I don’t use my whole personal budget will I receive a refund?
If you don’t use your whole personal budget we’ll review your contributions at the end of the
year, in some circumstances this may lead to a refund in the contributions you have made.
If I have a planned or unplanned hospital stay will I still make payments for my
services?
If Sheffield City Council continues to make payments to your service provider (this will usually
happen for three weeks after a hospital admission) or continues to make direct payments to
you during a hospital admission you will still be required to make a contribution. In any case if
a hospital admission means that you don’t receive your full personal budget for the year we’ll
review your contributions which may lead to a refund.
If you continue to receive direct payments during a hospital admission and your stay exceeds
four weeks it is advisable to request a financial reassessment as your disability benefits may
stop.
What if my carer doesn’t turn up at all?
If this happens then you need to tell your social worker (or specified contact if you don’t have a
current social worker). The social worker will investigate why this happened and where
necessary ensure that no funds are taken from your personal budget regarding the missed
service. This may lead to a refund at the end of the year.
If I’d like to go on holiday, will I still be asked to make my assessed contribution?
You can apply to the Accounts and Recovery Team for refunds of your contribution for
planned holidays up to 4 weeks per year (pro-rata). If you receive your support via direct
payments then no refund will be given unless the payments for this period are stopped or
returned to the council. This is because direct payments can be used flexibly, for example to
purchase support whilst on holiday or to purchase support for another period. If you wish to
apply for refunds for planned holidays in excess of 4 weeks this must be done to the Re-visit
and Review Panel.
You can also apply for additional Disability Related Expenditure if you have to pay extra for
planned holidays because of your disability.
What if my carer doesn’t stay for the full time that is shown on my assessed care plan?
If this happens you need to tell your social worker (or specified contact if you don’t have a
current social worker). They’ll complete the necessary forms to be forwarded to our Contracts
Section who deal with monitoring the care your provider delivers.
What if I can’t attend my day service due to a bank holiday or staff training days?
You’ll be asked to continue to pay your original contribution amount as your contribution is
based on the value of your personal budget.
What if I have a temporary increase or decrease to my support? Will my contribution
remain the same?
Contributions will only be increased or decreased if the total planned personal budget for the
year is amended. Personal budgets allow flexibility to vary your support from week to week
providing you remain within this personal budget.
What is classed as community equipment or a minor adaptation?
Community equipment is equipment that aids your daily living and helps you to live
independently at home reducing your need for support. We’ll not request a contribution for any
part of a personal budget spent on community equipment.
If equipment does not assist in daily living or reduce the need for support we’ll request
contributions for parts of the personal budget spent on these.
A minor adaptation is one costing under £1,000 we’ll not request contributions for any part of a
personal budget used to buy adaptations costing less than £1,000 each. If an adaptation costs
over £1,000 we’ll request contributions for parts of the personal budget spent on these.
If I have more than one care worker who provides my home care service will I have to
pay more?
Your charge is calculated according to the size of your personal budget not how this budget is
spent. However, if you require more than one carer because of an issue with your care
provider your contribution may be reduced in some circumstances.
I have been advised to give away some of my money to reduce my contributions, am I
allowed to do this?
No, if you give away your money for the purposes of reducing your contribution we will still
treat you as having this money. You can of course still make reasonable gifts for special
occasions Christmas, birthdays, weddings etc.
What if there’s a delay in receiving my first invoice and I haven’t set aside enough
money to pay my contribution. What should I do?
We’ll always try to complete your financial assessment as soon as possible after your service
has started. Your Care Assessor starts off the financial assessment at the same time as they
assess your needs and decide what help you’re eligible for. The Care Assessor will give you
an indication of the amount of charge you’re likely to pay. Usually this will be more than the
amount you’ll actually pay because the Care Assessor doesn’t look in detail at your finances.
Therefore it’s more than likely that you’ll have set aside more money than you’ll actually have
to contribute. If for some reason this isn’t the case and the first invoice is more than you can
afford to pay in one go please let the Accounts and Recovery Team know straight away by
telephoning them on (0114) 273 6716 / 6717 / 5364. They will normally agree a repayment
plan that you can afford to pay.
Contact details
The Financial Assessment Team can be contacted by:
Telephone: (0114) 273 4825/ 4613 / 4440
Email: financial.assessments@sheffield.gov.uk
The Accounts and Recovery Team can be contacted by:
Telephone: (0114) 273 6716 / 6717 / 5364
Email: accounts.recovery@sheffield.gov.uk
The Citizen’s Advice Bureau can be contacted by:
Telephone: (0114) 247 7494
Email: SESCAB@southeastsheffield.freeserve.co.uk
The Revisit and Review Panel can be contacted by writing to:
The Accounts and Recovery Team, Floor 11, Redvers House, Union Street, Sheffield, S1 2JQ.
Email: accounts.recovery@sheffield.gov.uk
Tell us what you think
You can make a compliment, comment or complaint about any service you get from Sheffield
City Council.
Contact our Complaints Team on (0114) 273 5000 and ask for a copy of our ‘Tell Us What You
Think’ leaflet.
This document can be supplied in alternative formats.
Please contact (0114) 273 4825/ 4613 / 4440
Sheffield City Council
www.sheffield.gov.uk
Feb 2012