- Extra £68 million to help adapt homes for people with
disabilities in England
- More than 280,000 home adaptions provided through the
Disabled Facilities Grant
- Details of £4 billion Better Care Fund confirmed to better
integrate health and social care
An extra £68 million will help thousands more disabled people to
access grants to improve their homes so they can live
independently, Minister for Rough Sleeping and Housing has announced today (3 December 2020), the
International Day of People with Disabilities.
The additional funding for councils will help people make the
adaptations they need to live safely and independently in their
own homes.
The Disabled Facilities Grant funding can be used towards the
costs of home adaptations such as stair-lifts, level access
showers, wet rooms, winches, grab rails and ramps. These can play
a critical role in avoiding the need for hospital or care home
admission, as well as helping to speed-up discharge from
hospital.
This funding is in addition to the £505 million paid to councils
in May 2020, increasing the overall government investment in the
Disabled Facilities Grant to £573 million this year.
With Spending Review 2020 investment of £573 million in the
Disabled Facilities Grant for 2021 to 2022, government has now
confirmed over £4 billion funding for the grant since 2010.
This is part of the government’s comprehensive programme to
better integrate health and social care services. Today details
of the £4 billion Better Care Fund were
also confirmed – setting out how councils may use this funding to
deliver effective care and support for people in their
communities.
Minister for Rough Sleeping and Housing, Kelly Tolhurst said:
I’m pleased that extra funding announced today, on the
International Day of People with Disabilities, will see
thousands more people benefit. This grant can be literally life
changing and lengthening, helping more people to live
independently in their own homes.
Since 2012 over 280,000 home adaptions have been funded through
the Disabled Facilities Grant Scheme helping many tens of
thousands of people to live at home independently.
Minister for Care, said:
This grant will help hundreds of thousands of disabled people
across England to live more independently in their own homes
and improve their quality of life.
I know this year has been incredibly difficult for disabled
people in particular and I’m pleased that, on the International
Day of People with Disabilities, we’re able to provide this
additional funding.
The Disabled Facilities Grant is a really important part of our
ambition to reduce health inequalities and support more people
to live healthy, independent lives for as long as possible.
The Disabled Facilities Grant forms part of the Better Care Fund,
a fund which brings together local government and health partners
to jointly plan and pool budgets to support integrated care.
The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated how health and social care
systems can come together and focus on the public’s health and
care needs. This announcement is part of the government’s ongoing
work to address disparities across society, and its commitment to
ensuring that health and care systems work effectively together
at a local level, and the Better Care Fund is a key part of this
integration.
