Checking eligibility for social care funding

People who need social care support must contribute to the cost if their finances allow. Once they provide details of their income and savings, local authorities check this information through a financial assessment and then confirm the amount they need to pay each month.

With demand for social care rising, and the in-house team under pressure, Wirral Council issued a tender for a partner to help complete these financial assessments. They chose NEC.

Cathy Chester had this to say:

“We chose NEC for their proven expertise in this area and very quickly they became part of our team. They cleared a backlog of assessments at the start and then worked alongside us to assess new referrals too.”

Completing accurate financial assessments

We provided between 2 and 3 full-time equivalents (FTEs) over a period of 12 months to help complete the assessments, checking the income declared against real time data from the DWP Searchlight database. Where necessary, we also contacted the customer or their representative to request additional evidence before providing an accurate figure to Wirral’s invoicing team.

Michael Sherwood is NEC’s Service Manager and previously worked in North Yorkshire Council’s Financial Assessment Team. He worked closely with Cathy and her team to ensure everything was set up correctly:

“Every council manages this process differently, so we first scoped out the work and adapted our plans to meet Wirral’s needs. We then took a proactive approach, for example reaching out to clients to request extra evidence or support them through the next steps. Sometimes, we were also able to signpost them to benefits they may be entitled to.”

Leaving the council in good shape

After 12 months, and with the financial assessments completed, the council’s in-house team is now back in control.