Charging Policy consultation

The Council provides social care services to more than 2,000 adults of all ages with learning disabilities, physical disabilities or illnesses and mental illnesses in Sutton. This helps people to be safe, independent and live the lives that they want to.

Social care is not free at the point of delivery and a financial assessment is carried out to see what someone can afford to pay towards the costs of their care. Financial assessments are where we identify all the benefits a person can receive and work out how much they can pay for their care.

Like councils all over the country, Sutton Council has to try to save money as more people need our social care services while the cost of providing this care has increased. 
 
One way we can save money is by making some changes to our adult social care Charging Policy. Our adult social care Charging Policy is about how we decide what people are able to pay for social care and the different costs of care. 

We  identified some changes that could be made to the Charging Policy and asked for your views.

Throughout the 13-week consultation period, the Council received feedback in the following ways:

• 310 people via the online survey,
• 86 people at our events,
• 17 people at focus groups,
• 77 phone calls,
• 3 hard copy surveys received by post,
• More than 30 emails.

The Council received a very high number of responses to the consultation, particularly when compared with similar consultations of other local authorities. The Council also heard from a range of residents, including some who may be affected by the proposed changes, unpaid carers of people receiving care and support from the Council, members of local groups along with interested members of the public.

Key themes across all types of engagement and how the Council responded. The People Committee Report can be viewed on the Council website.

Clarity of information

Early on in the consultation, the Council recognised the need for clarification, particularly of proposal 2 and its impact on Personal Independence Payments benefit (PIP). The relationship between night care and PIP was a consistent theme, which the Council clarified through additional information and events.

Reviewing feedback across the extended consultation period demonstrated that improved clarity and understanding were achieved, and people attending events appreciated the opportunity to have the proposals explained.

Understanding of Disability Related Expenditure (DREs) as well as the clarity of information was a theme, especially for proposals 2 and 3. If these proposals are adopted, resources to explain them to residents as well as social workers will be co-produced as outlined in the implementation plan (see 3.42 - 3.49 of the People Committee Report).

Impact on unpaid carers

The impact of the proposals on the wellbeing of unpaid carers was a key theme of the events and the feedback received through the survey.

The Council responded by:

• organising focus groups with carers,
• updating the financial assessment form, 
• providing clearer information on DREs, which can support the additional costs faced through disability, and
• comparing the charging policies of neighbouring councils (see Appendix A of the People Committee Report) and looking at potential mitigation measures.

The Council spent a significant amount of time considering different mitigation measures, and has recommended that proposal 2 be amended as outlined in the People Committee Report. 

Affordability

There was some understanding that the government provides enhanced and higher rates of benefits to help people to pay towards the cost of their care, but overall there was concern about the financial impact on residents and the risk that residents may be more socially excluded as they look to reduce expenses.

To address this point, the Council has developed a comprehensive implementation plan as set out in the People Committee report (see paragraphs 3.42 - 3.49). This involves providing clearer information on DREs as well as working with each person affected by the proposals to maximise their benefit income and ensure they are only charged what they are able to pay.

Respondents asked about what other steps the Council was taking to manage the resource pressures councils are facing. The Council is delivering savings programmes in many areas, including a wide-ranging savings and transformation plan for Adult Social Care which seeks to manage increased cost pressures and demand.

The Council also collaborates with other councils through which the cost of services such as Legal, Human Resources and Information Technology can be shared and reduced. 

Implementation

In relation to proposal 2, there was some concern that some benefits were temporary and any assessment of an ability to pay increased contributions would need to be reviewed in a timely way. The implementation of the proposals and the speed with which financial assessments and social care assessments could be completed was a concern.

This feedback has been carefully considered by the Council when developing its implementation plan, highlights of which are included in paragraphs 3.42 - 3.49 of the People Committee report. This outlines the approach the Council is proposing to take to inform residents of any changes in charging for care, the support that would be provided to residents to help them to maximise their income through DREs and benefits, as well the offer of carers assessments.

Carers assessments are an important way in which the Council can support unpaid carers. This is an area of focus for the Council and is likely to be reflected in the Carers Strategy, which is being developed together with Sutton Carers Centre, local partners and local residents.

In addition, the Council has been improving its internal processes to make assessments more efficient, and the Financial Assessment Team and Adult Social Care are continuing to more closely work together to consider DRE claims.

Disproportionate impact on severely disabled people and legality

Some residents were concerned with the legality of the proposals; specifically in relation to the Council’s Public Sector Equality Duty.

Legal advice has confirmed that the proposals are legal, as set out in the People Committee report (Section 6). 

Councillors met on 5 December 2024 and resolved that:

 The Charging Policy recommendations set out in the report be implemented:

• To introduce a weekly charge of £8.57 for assistive technology (tech-enabled care) and a one-off connection fee charge of £33.95.
• To include the full amount of higher or enhanced disability benefits in charge calculations but to disregard £10 per week where the Council does not provide or pay for care at night.
• To introduce an annual management charge to cover the costs of the Council’s Appointeeship Service.