Funding care in Bath and North East Somerset

Step 1: the care needs assessment

Bath and North East Somerset Council begins by assessing needs, at no cost. When those needs are eligible it sets a personal budget, which is its estimate of what meeting them would cost. The number to call is 01225 394570. The needs assessment in Bath and North East Somerset, explained.

Step 2: the financial assessment (means test)

The council's financial assessment weighs income against capital. Working up from the bottom, the 2026/27 bands are:

• Below £14,250: capital is disregarded, and only income is used to work out a contribution.
• From £14,250 up to £23,250: the council pays part, and the council counts £1 a week of "tariff income" per £250 held over £14,250.
• Above £23,250: the person generally pays for all of it.

Staying at home? Then the house is disregarded and the person keeps at least the Minimum Income Guarantee (£241.45 a week for a single person over pension age). Moving to residential or nursing care? The property normally counts unless a partner, or a relative who qualifies, is still living in it; it is ignored for the first 12 weeks, and the resident keeps a weekly Personal Expenses Allowance, currently £31.80.

Bath and North East Somerset Council: paying for care.

Local picture: Bath and North East Somerset

There are 54 care homes in Bath and North East Somerset, and 84% of the 50 with a rating are Good or Outstanding (about level with England's 83%). 37% (20) are registered to provide nursing care. Our modelled typical self-funder price for a visiting carer in Bath and North East Somerset is £33.50 an hour, against a regional £33.50 (South West) and £33.50 for England.

CQC published 18 ratings for services in Bath and North East Somerset in the last 12 months (5 moved to a higher rating, 2 were first ratings). The most recent was on 23 October 2026. £1,530 a week: that is our estimate of a typical private fee for residential or nursing care locally. The South West figure is £1,530 and England's is £1,520. It is not a quote. Nursing places run at about £1,690, residential at about £1,450.

England-wide, 88% of rated home care agencies are Good or Outstanding; in Bath and North East Somerset it is 70%, from 20 rated agencies among the 29 registered.

Based on the register as of Oct 2026, with Q4 2026 fee estimates from our index.

Funding you can get whatever you own

Attendance Allowance is paid to those of State Pension age or older who need personal care: £76.70 a week, or £114.60 when care is needed by day and at night. Savings and the house do not count, and many families never claim it. Carer's Allowance may be available to carers giving 35 or more hours of care each week. Where the primary need is a health need, NHS Continuing Healthcare funds the care in full, and the NHS pays a nursing contribution (NHS-funded nursing care) in nursing homes.

Find out what you could get.

Choosing your own care with direct payments

You can ask for the council's contribution to home care as cash, then pick an agency or employ a personal assistant. This works whether it funds part of the support or all of it. Bath and North East Somerset Council: direct payments.

Deferred payment agreements

If the home has to be counted for a care home place, Bath and North East Somerset Council is required to offer a deferred payment agreement to anyone who qualifies, which avoids selling the property in the person's lifetime. The council charges interest plus an admin fee.