Cumbria County Council will vote next week on whether to introduce day care charges following the conclusion of a consultation on the details of the new scheme.
If approved by councillors at a meeting of the full council in Kendal on 13 September, the charge will pave the way for extra investment in services which provide more independence and choice for people in need of support.
In February this year, councillors agreed to explore plans for a new £10 charge for day care services (£5 per session) which would be means-tested with only those who can afford to contribute, asked to contribute.
This would result in about 30 per cent of users paying nothing, 50 per cent paying a portion and 20 per cent paying the full charge.
The new charge has been set at the lower end of what service users can expect to pay in other parts of England. In Cheshire, day care users can expect to pay £20 for day care while in Gloucestershire, the charge is £31.45 a day.
In July, the county council's cabinet reaffirmed its view that the introduction of a day care charge would be the fairest way to provide more independence and choice for service users but said it was keen to hear for councillors to hear more views before deciding whether to introduce the charge.
The county council has made a commitment to plough any extra money raised through the new charge back into services which give people more choice and independence. These include:
* An expansion in night time home care services enabling more carers to get a night's rest;
* More investment in extra-care housing which provides people with their own front-door and the sort of 24-hour on-site care and support previously only available in residential homes;
* Investment in a new Home from Hospital scheme to ensure that when people leave hospital they have a warm home and food to eat as well as someone to care for them.
* The purchase of an additional thirty nursing home beds in Barrow so that people who need nursing care can have their needs met locally.
The decision to introduce day care charges has not been without its critics and later this year, a legal challenge supported by Age Concern is expected to be examined under the judicial review process.
The county council is confident that if required, it can present a robust case which will show that it has acted properly in seeking to introduce a fee for day care, which many other local authorities already charge.
Councillor Oliver Pearson, cabinet member responsible for Adult Social Care and Healthy Communities, said: "This consultation has given us the opportunity to address a number of concerns and misconceptions about the council's plans to introduce day care charges.
"If agreed by councillors at a meeting of the full council next week, only those who can afford to contribute to their day care costs will be asked to contribute with every penny raised going back into services that give people more choice and independence.
"In short: more money for Adult Social Care services and more money for services which give people better choice and flexibility with no one who cannot afford to pay towards their day care, asked to pay."
ENDS
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