Residential care homes
Types of care homes
Residential care helps people who cannot manage, even with a lot of support, to live in their own homes. There are two sorts of care homes:
- Nursing homes where there needs to be constant involvement of, or supervision by, a qualified nurse.
- Residential homes where care is provided all day and all night but there does not need to be a qualified nurse present all the time.
There are different types of care homes to support different needs, depending on things such as people's age or particular disability. All care homes, whether they provide residential or nursing care, have to be registered and regularly inspected by the Care Quality Commission.
Please contact us if you think you might need to move into a care home. We will make sure you are aware of other support which could help you stay in your own home for longer if that would be better.
Receiving financial help with your care home fees from Derby City Council
Your social care needs must be assessed before we can consider providing financial help with the cost of your residential or nursing care.
If your social care needs assessment finds that your needs must be met in a care home, it will be necessary for us to collect details of your finances from you. This is so that a financial assessment can be completed to work out how much you are required to pay for your care.
How much you will need to pay will be calculated under the Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations.
Respite care
For respite care, a set amount is charged for a limited period under the Adult Social Care policy.
Temporary and long-term care
For temporary and long-term care, a financial assessment is completed to work out how much you must pay for your residential or nursing care.
Deferred Payment Agreement when you own a property
If you own a property and the value of this is to be counted when calculating your charges, you may be eligible for the deferred payment scheme.
You can find further details about the charges and the Deferred Payments Scheme in the downloads: Guide for paying for Residential Care and Deferred payments scheme guidance.
We will assess your personal situation and locate a care home which will meet your care needs at a weekly cost we would expect to pay. If you prefer, you can choose an alternative care home as long as that care home meets your assessed needs.
Top-up fees (third-party contribution)
If the care home you have chosen charges more than the fee rate we would expect to pay for your care, there will be a top-up fee. This is the difference between our usual fee rate and the fee rate the care home charges.
The top-up fee, also referred to as a third-party contribution, will usually have to be paid by a third party such as a relative or sometimes a charity.
Further guidance about the top-up fee can be found in the download Guide to third party top-ups with top-up agreement This also includes the agreement a third party will have to sign if you choose a care home which costs more than the usual rate we will pay for your care.
Independent financial advice
Please consider taking independent financial advice when you are moving into a care home.
There are usually charges for this service.
Financial advice
Residential and nursing care can be expensive. For information and advice about what independent financial support is available to you, visit our Independent financial advice page.
If you are currently living in residential or nursing care, paying the full cost of your placement and your circumstances change or your savings and capital drop below the limit of £23,250, contact us and we will carry out a financial assessment and discuss your options with you.
Finding a residential or nursing care home
Even if you are determined to move into a care home, and do not feel you need financial or practical help to do this, it still makes sense to contact us before taking such a big step in your life. That way you can get the best possible information about your choices and any consequences.
We will carry out an assessment to help you decide what your care needs are. If you can no longer be supported at home, we can help you choose a home that meets your needs and explain if you qualify for help towards the cost. The amount of financial support will depend on your personal situation, but we look at all cases on an individual basis to decide how much we can help.
If you have considered all the different alternatives to residential and nursing care and you are still sure that this is the right option for you, you can search for nursing homes and residential homes on the My Care Directory for all the registered care homes in the city. The NHS Choices website and the Care Quality Commission website also have a care home search facility along with user reviews.