Attendance allowance higher rate

[AInightingale]

My mother is in a care home, self-funding, and currently receives the lower rate of AA. This was awarded five years ago almost, when she lived alone and was able to dress, wash, feed and toilet herself, and cook simple meals - she had dementia and quite severe memory issues, so needed help with day to day life. We did all shopping, admin, gardening, most cleaning etc.

She now has restricted mobility following a serious fall, uses a frame, needs help to dress (to keep her upright I think), staff shower her, and she suffers from incontinence and uses pants/pads which they change.
She is occasionally wakeful/restless at night and has an alarmed mat by her bed.

As I recall it, AA is a horror of a form, but has she got a good chance of getting the higher rate given her decline and much higher care needs?

You've nothing to lose by filling in the form, although I agree that it's an awful one to do. No doubt you'll be speaking to the staff who may be able to help you with terminology etc, Make sure you keep a copy so when/if the application for the higher rate is turned down you've got something to work on when you appeal.

@AInightingale I’m in a very similar position - I requested a paper copy of the form and keep putting it off. It is so intimidating and it’s not like I have no other admin to do!

Do you have to fill in a new form? We just had general letter about my FIL AA and it said just write if any changes so we have just written a letter as he should get night time allowance now. (I might be totally wrong and they will come back asking for a form of course... fortunately we have a photocopy of the original)

Hi OP, I'm a disability benefits advisor. If applying for a change of circumstances on AA and the low rate is already awarded you will get a slimmed down from, only asking about night time needs. It's not very well designed with page breaks in funny places, it seems to ask the same thing multiple times and you have to sign it in 3 separate places, but it's nowhere near as long as the original form!

To get the high rate she will need to require help with personal care (so getting in/out of bed, toileting, taking medication, staying safe, being reassured if upset) three times on the majority of nights for 20+ minutes each time. They don't include going to bed or getting up in the morning, it's just the hours when she would normally be asleep.

It will be worth sending in some medical evidence, eg care care records from the residential home

Best of luck

@DigitalGoat thank you - I’ve called the helpline several times and never had this help. Thank you so much for sharing.

I need to write to AA because we have now had some help with funding but confusingly it is backdated - so I know there will be some lower rate benefit clawed back - yet definitely DF would also qualify for higher rate, I’ll ask the nursing home to provide evidence.

Thanks @DigitalGoat I didn't realise I had to report a change of circs rather than completely reapply. We have never been asked to renew her claim in almost five years which seems odd. I will speak to the staff and see if she meets the threshold for night care.

This is really helpful.

Sadly I completed my dad’s application for nighttime AA this week but I don’t think I listed helped needed 3 times a night, possibly twice a night. I’ll have a feeling it is going to get rejected.

@RememberDecember I left something important off my Mum’s application as I was focusing on just her sight loss. I phoned them up straight away to explain and they wrote down word for word what I told them on the phone. Mum got the higher amount because of my phone call.