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Your care and support plan will cover how you are going to use the money to achieve your goals, live independently and meet your needs.

We'll discuss with you and with the help of a family member or support worker:

• the types of support and services you'd like to buy
• how you want to receive your personal budget

Your care and support plan could include things like:

• how and where you want to live
• what is working well in your life and what needs improving
• what choices are available to meet your care needs
• what assistance you need from other people
• how you will keep safe and well, both physically and mentally
• who you might involve in helping you make important decisions
• how you will manage your support
• how this support will be met from your personal budget

You have choice and control over how you spend your personal budget.

Your options include:

• help with personal care
• support to get involved in community activities
• equipment to help you stay in your home

You also have flexibility over how your personal budget is managed. You can receive direct payments to manage it yourself or have your budget managed by the council.

 

What is a third party top up?

A person who needs care may sometimes choose a place to live that costs more than the amount of their Personal Budget. A personal Budget is the amount of money the Council has assessed will be needed to meet the person's care and support needs. Where someone chooses a place to live that costs more than their Personal Budget an arrangement will need to be agreed put in place for paying the additional cost.

This additional cost is known as a ‘top-up’ payment. It is the difference between the Personal Budget the Council can provide and the actual cost of the care home. When this happens, the local authority must arrange for the person to be housed in the place they have chosen, but only if a third party is willing to meet the additional costs.

Key points to note:

• the top up is an amount paid by a third party in addition to the contribution the person receiving care has been assessed to pay
• the third party must be able to afford and continue payment of the top up
• there is an application form that must be completed and signed by the third party

What you will need for the top up to be agreed

• evidence from the third party to show they can afford the top up from their income or savings
• the third party top up agreement must be signed