Residential care

There are lots of places you can look at online to help make a decision about a care home. You can find information here on this website, or on http://www.scswis.com. All care homes are inspected by the SCSWIS, so their website is a good resource for the whole of Scotland

Some care homes also have their own websites.

This kind of research can help you to gather information and answer some of the questions you may want to ask.

If you think a care home is the answer, you do need to contact our Customer Service Centre Network and ask to speak to a trained social worker who will talk to you about the support you may need. This is called an assessment and you can out more on our how to get a social work service pages.

Your Social Worker will provide you with information to help you choose a type of home, these include:

• Care Homes that the Council owns
• Private Care Homes that we contract to provide places to us at a fixed cost
• Independent Care Homes

To find information on individual council care homes in your area you can:

• check the list of Care Homes that the Council owns

Each home should provide information about what they offer, including information about the:

• qualifications and experience of the staff
• number of places available
• most recent inspection report.

Some care homes also have registered nurses. They are for people with an illness or health problem that requires regular medical care. A qualified nurse will be on duty 24 hours a day.

Each care home will provide you with accurate up-to-date information on the fees they set and explain what services are provided and the costs of all services.

How much you pay depends on your financial situation and we will discuss all of this clearly with you and your family at your assessment.

Everyone we assess as needing a care home will also be assessed on their ability to contribute towards the cost of that care. We will speak to you about the financial details we need to carry out this financial assessment.

We take a number of factors into account including ownership of property to pensions, benefits and savings. This assessment allows us to determine the contribution you need to make towards the cost of your care.

As part of that process we make sure you are claiming all the benefits to which you are entitled from the Department for Work and Pensions.

We will give you and your family a clear explanation of how this is calculated and tell you how much you will have to pay before you move into the home.

Will I be entitled to Free Personal Care?

On July 2002 allowances for Free Personal Care were introduced for people aged 65 and over. Free nursing care was also introduced for care homes residents of all ages. The assessment that your social worker carries out will decide whether you need residential or nursing care and this in turn will decide which free personal and nursing care allowances you are entitled to.

Care Homes

If you have assets valued at below £20,250 the contribution you pay will be based on your income. If you have assets valued at between £20,250 - £32,750 the rate will vary and if you have assets of over £32,750 you will have to pay all of the costs of care yourself.

Subject to an assessment, personal care can include:

• Personal hygiene (such as bathing and showering).
• Continence management (such as toileting or changing the bed).
• Food and diet (including help with food preparation).
• Problems of immobility (help to move around).
• Counselling and support.
• Simple medication (like creams or eye drops).
• Personal assistance (such as dressing or going to bed).

You may still need to be financially assessed to contribute towards the cost of the following services:

• Community alarms.
• The cost of your accommodation and food if you are in a care home (a nursing home or a residential home).

From April 2023 a flat rate payment of £233.10 per week for personal care and paying all of their care costs was introduced. For those requiring personal and nursing care, a flat rate of £338.00 applies.

You must ask us to carry out a full assessment of the level of care you need so we can let you know if you are eligible for free personal and nursing care payments. We pay any free personal and nursing care payments directly to your care home.

Fees

We have set levels of fees which it is able to pay for accommodation in private and voluntary care homes. They are currently as follows:

Residential Care - Single Room £TBA (2023/24)

Nursing Care - Single Room £TBA (2023/24)

Please note: rates are reviewed in April every year. These prices are correct as at April 2023. For up-to-date details please phone 01592 583136

Finance Service will help you to claim all the benefits you could be entitled to from the Department for Work and Pensions, which will go towards the cost of your care. For further assistance please call us on 03451 55 11 55 and select option 4.

Please speak to someone at your Local Social Work Office for more information.

All care homes must be registered by the Social Care & Social Work Improvement Scotland. It registers and inspects homes against a set of National Care Standards.  These standards outline the quality of service you have the right to expect and they were developed so that the quality of care provided and received throughout Scotland is consistent.

The Social Care & Social Work Improvement Scotland produces inspection reports for each home once an inspection has taken place.

If you want to find out more about how standards of care homes are guaranteed, visit the http://www.scswis.com website (takes you to an external link) where you will find more information about National Care Standards. If things go wrong, you can refer to the standards to help you raise concerns or make a complaint.

The registration process is there to make sure:

• Buildings are safe and suitable;
• Care Managers are suitably qualified and experience
• There are enough staff to provide the right level of care and support for all residents;
• Facilities and services are of good quality and suitable for the needs of residents

Care homes are issued with a Certificate of Registration by the Social Care & Social Work Improvement Scotland if they meet its standards, and the certificate must be displayed in the home.

The quality of all care homes is also monitored through inspections.  Apart from making sure the conditions of registration are maintained, SCSWIS Officers try to make sure people living in care homes have a good quality of life and receive good quality care.

The main principles behind the National Care Standards are dignity, privacy, choice, safety, realising potential, and equality and diversity.

Dignity

Your right to:

• be treated with dignity and respect at all times; and
• enjoy a full range of social relationships.

Privacy

Your right to:

• have your privacy and property respected; and
• be free from unnecessary intrusion.

Choice

Your right to:

• make informed choices, while recognising the rights of other people to do the same; and
• know about the range of choices.

Safety

Your right to:

• feel safe and secure in all aspects of life, including health and wellbeing;
• enjoy safety but not be over-protected; and
• be free from exploitation and abuse.

Realising Potential

Your right to have the opportunity to:

• achieve all you can;
• make full use of the resources that are available to you; and
• make the most of your life.

Equality and Diversity

Your right to:

• live an independent life, rich in purpose, meaning and personal fulfilment;
• be valued for your ethnic background, language, culture and faith;
• be treated equally and to be cared for in an environment which is free from bullying, harassment and discrimination; and
• is able to complain effectively without fear of victimisation.

NOTE: Registration shows that homes meet certain standards but is not a guarantee of the services available. Homes vary greatly in the services offered and in the charges which they make. For further information and advice please contact:

Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (takes you to an external website).