People arrange their own social care for different reasons
If you are paying the full cost of your care, you are known as a self-funder.
This means that either:
- you have chosen not to approach adult social care for help
- you have had a social care needs assessment but you do not meet the criteria for council-funded care and support
- your savings are above £23,250
If you are paying for all of your own support we can still give you advice and help you to organise your care.
If you have to pay for the full cost of your care and ask us to arrange your home and community care for you, we will charge an annual, recurring arrangement fee to organise this on your behalf. The fee for this service in 2026/27 is £579.13 and is subject to change each year. Please refer to the Fees and charges section of the council website for latest rates.
You can search for and arrange your own care by contacting care providers directly.
To find out more about arranging your own care and find a list of local care providers please see the Care Choices Guide to Independent Living or if you prefer a printed copy, please contact us so we can arrange for one to be sent to you in the post.
For more information on types of care, things to consider and some tips on what questions to ask providers see our Organising care and support page or Staying independent pages.
A Deferred Payment Agreement is designed for people who own their own home, but either do not wish to or cannot sell it immediately and cannot meet the full cost of their care home fees from their other income or capital.
More information is on our deferred payments page.
If you are paying for the full costs of your care because your capital is over the funding threshold limit of £23,250, over time your capital may reduce. You must tell us as soon as possible if the amount of your income or capital decreases significantly during the year. If your capital is likely to reduce to £23,250, you must let us know well in advance.
We recommend contacting us when your capital is approximately £28,000.
Contact us about approaching funding threshold - online form
Telephone: : 0345 045 5202
9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday
We will arrange to assess your care and support needs and carry out a financial assessment.
The financial assessment will determine the date any funding from the council can start from and the contribution you will need to pay towards your care.
If you have given away money or property in order to avoid paying for your care, we will need to consider whether you, or the person who received the gift, is liable for some or all of the costs.
Find more information about paying for care in your own home and paying for residential care.
It's important to have sound financial advice in order to make carefully considered plans for later life, or to help with care costs.
Such advice should be independent, so you feel confident that you're getting the best advice possible. A suitably qualified financial adviser will be able to provide impartial advice and help you navigate through the complexities of care funding.
Local authorities are required to help signpost people to independent financial advice about care and support.
We cannot make a recommendation to use one particular financial adviser, but we can signpost you to sources of help. We suggest you make your own choice by selecting one of the members of the Society of Later Life Advisers (SOLLA).
Cost of financial advice
Most advisers will offer an initial consultation at no cost to you and without obligation.
The financial advisor must explain to you how much their advice will cost and set out charges in a clear way, ensuring you understand how much you are paying and what you are paying for.
There may be extra charges for looking after your investments or providing advice on a regular basis. If you're getting investment advice, ask your advisor if the costs include a review of your investments from time to time or if you must pay for that service separately.
