Paying for your own care: benefits worth checking

Attendance Allowance

In England and Wales, people who have reached State Pension age may qualify if a disability or health condition means they need help or supervision. Help is generally needed for at least six months, with special rules for terminal illness. Residence and overlapping-benefit conditions also matter. A person paying all their own care-home costs can claim; council-funded care-home residents usually cannot receive it.

Before applying, make notes about the help needed during the day and night, supervision, risks and how needs vary. Ask the benefits service or an adviser which benefit is appropriate if you have not reached State Pension age or already receive a disability benefit. Do not assume that an existing award can continue unchanged after a move into care.

Pension Credit

Eligibility depends on pension-age, income and household circumstances, including a partner's circumstances where relevant. Savings of £10,000 or less do not affect it; savings above that level are treated as additional weekly income. This is a different assessment from the council's care-funding capital test. Attendance Allowance is not counted as income for Pension Credit.

Check both routes separately

Being above a council care-funding threshold does not, by itself, settle a Pension Credit application. Use the official eligibility guidance and benefit checker, and ask for help if your household circumstances or care arrangements are changing.

Build the budget from confirmed awards

Record each benefit, its payment frequency, the award date and any conditions relevant to a change in care setting. Use the benefits already awarded in your main budget. Keep possible new awards in a separate scenario until a decision confirms the amount and start date.

Example: test an award without relying on it

If a confirmed care quote is £900 a week and your current income is £300, the initial gap is £600. If an adviser identifies another benefit to investigate, leave that £600 gap in the confirmed budget and calculate an alternative only after an actual award. This example illustrates budgeting; it does not estimate a benefit award or a council charge.

Know who makes each decision

A calculator can help organise figures and suggest checks. The benefits authority decides benefit entitlement, and the council decides eligible care and assessed charges. Keep the written decisions together and update your budget when either changes.

Where to start

Official Attendance Allowance eligibility: https://www.gov.uk/attendance-allowance/eligibility . Official Pension Credit eligibility: https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit/eligibility . Care Cost Calculator: https://www.carecostcalculator.co.uk/ . England funding guide: https://www.carecostcalculator.co.uk/post/care-funding-in-england-self-funding-council-contributions-and-your-home-2026-27 . Wales funding guide: https://www.carecostcalculator.co.uk/post/care-funding-in-wales-capital-limits-contributions-and-property-rules-2026-27 .

Sources and responsibility

Supporting sources compared 20 October 2026. Automated factual checks; no independent professional review is recorded. What this means.

• Attendance Allowance: eligibility — Eligibility; care homes
• Pension Credit: eligibility — Partner; income; savings and investments

Source caveats and check record · Read this guide as plain text · Report a factual error