Scotland provides free personal care regardless of age, but that covers less than most families assume. Planning early means decisions about care get made calmly, with money and paperwork already sorted, rather than in the middle of a crisis.
We explain what's free, what isn't, and what that means for your own situation, then help you plan around it before a decision has to be made quickly.
Book a free consultation →Care planning conversations tend to start later than anyone would like, often after a diagnosis or a fall. We can move quickly when a client needs Power of Attorney and a care cost plan sorted at the same time.
Discuss a referral →Since Frank's Law extended free personal care to adults of any age in 2019, Scotland has offered something England doesn't: help with washing, dressing, meals, medication and mobility, free at the point of use, regardless of age or how much you have in savings. What it doesn't cover, in most cases, is the accommodation side of a care home place: the rent, food and running costs, which are usually still assessed against your savings and the value of any property you own.
Whether your home counts toward that assessment depends heavily on your circumstances: a spouse or partner still living there changes things considerably, and there are other disregards that apply in specific situations. This is where most families either overestimate what they'll lose or underestimate it, and both mistakes lead to bad decisions made under pressure. We work through your actual position rather than a general rule of thumb.
"Mrs F's family assumed that because personal care is free in Scotland, a care home place would be too. When she needed to move into residential care, they found out otherwise at exactly the wrong moment, and had no Power of Attorney in place to manage her finances while they worked it out. We helped them get the paperwork sorted quickly and plan the accommodation costs properly, and made sure it wouldn't catch the rest of the family off guard again."
Personal care, help with washing, dressing, meals, medication and mobility, is free regardless of age or income once you're assessed as needing it. Accommodation costs in a care home, the rent, food and running costs, are usually still means-tested against your savings and property. Free personal care doesn't mean a completely free care home place, and a lot of families assume it does until they're planning for it.
Ideally well before it is needed, while you still have full control over your finances and, if it comes to it, while Power of Attorney can still be set up. Waiting until a crisis makes every option more limited and more expensive.
Not always. It depends on your circumstances, particularly whether a spouse or partner still lives there. It's exactly the kind of question worth working through properly with someone who knows the system, rather than assuming the worst or assuming nothing will be asked of you at all.