Is there a charge for services?

We do not charge for:

• assessments
• services we provide for young people and children aged under 18
• services we provide for carers.

A charge may be made for services we provide to the person you are caring for; depending on their financial circumstances. Charges are made in line with the Government's fairer charging policies.

Following a financial assessment, we will give a clear idea of what charges are expected and how they are calculated.

Find out more about care charges.

Direct payments

If someone is eligible for services, direct payments is a way to provide finance so they can purchase the services themselves. They can be used as part of self directed support. 

Find out more about self directed support or telephone the self directed support team at 01865 374430.

Intermediate care

If care is arranged as part of a package of rehabilitation or ‘intermediate care’, where you are having short-term therapy or treatment, either following some time in hospital or to avoid having to go into hospital, it will be free for the first six weeks.

Residential and care home charges

Most people have to pay something towards the cost of their care in a care home. The amount you pay depends on how much money you have and will normally come from your income – for example, a private or state pension and some benefits such as pension credit – and any capital over a certain amount.

• Find out more about residential care.
• Contact Oxfordshire County Council's Financial Assessments team on 01865 797530.

NHS continuing health care in a care home

The NHS is responsible for meeting the full cost of care in a care home for residents whose ‘primary need’ for being in care is health based. This is called NHS continuing healthcare and is often described as ‘fully funded care’.

Care provided by registered nurses in care homes

The NHS is responsible for meeting the registered nursing costs of all residents in care homes that provide nursing care.

Nursing care is the care given by a registered nurse in providing, planning and supervising your care in a nursing home. It does not include time spent by any other staff involved in your care. Responsibility for meeting the cost of your nursing care lies with your primary care trust (PCT). If you move to a home in a different PCT area, you will become the responsibility of that PCT when you register with a GP there.

In March 2010, the Department of Health announced that the single rate for provision of NHS-funded nursing care for the financial year 2010/11 is £108.70. The higher rate payment for certain residents who were already in a care home on 1 October 2007 is £149.60 per week.

Continence services

The NHS is responsible for providing continence services to residents in homes providing nursing care and for meeting the cost of any continence supplies (such as continence pads) that those residents are assessed as requiring, including any equipment needed.

Community health services such as continence supplies and district nursing should be provided to residents of care homes that do not provide nursing care using the same criteria as for people living in their own homes.

Buying care services

You can get in touch with care providers privately to organise caring services you wish to pay for.

It is sometimes possible to obtain services, or the funding for them, from other sources, for example the Social Fund. 

• Information about the Social Fund on the Citizens Advice Bureau website.
• Also, contact the Department for Work and Pensions or charities such as the Family Fund - 0845 130 4542.

Other local contacts

Age UK 
Oxfordshire, city and county
Tel: 01235 849400

Age UK 
Chipping Norton
Tel: 01608 643458

The Oxfordshire Continence Advisory Service
Witney Community Hospital
Tel: 01993 209434

National contacts

Age UK
Tel: 0800 169 6565

Citizens Advice Oxfordshire

The Citizens Advice service helps people resolve their legal, money and other problems by providing free, independent and confidential advice. Visit Citizens Advice Oxfordshire to find your local office.