So many families reach a point where their parent is receiving council-arranged care and the visits feel completely out of their hands. Three different carers in four days. A stranger on Monday who doesn't know the medication routine. Someone else on Thursday who can't stay the full hour. The person being cared for is unsettled, the family is exhausted explaining the same things over and over, and nobody seems to be in charge. If any of that sounds familiar, you are not alone, and it is not just bad luck.

The way care has been arranged in this country for decades puts the council in the middle: they assess the need, they commission the service, they decide which provider turns up. The family is often the last to know. But there is a legal route that flips this arrangement, one that not enough families know about or feel confident asking for. It is called a direct payment, and it gives you real control over who provides your parent's care.

What a direct payment actually is

Under the Care Act 2014, anyone who has been assessed as having eligible care needs and who does not fund their own care entirely can request that the council pay the cost of that care directly to them, rather than commissioning services on their behalf. The money sits in a separate account, and the family uses it to pay for care themselves. According to gov.uk, direct payments are available to most adults with eligible social care needs, as well as to carers in some circumstances.

The critical thing a direct payment changes is choice. Instead of accepting whoever the council sends, you choose who provides the care. You can use a direct payment to hire a private carer directly. You can also use it to pay an introductory care agency, which handles the vetting of carers and introduces you to someone you actually choose and meet before they ever cross the threshold. What you cannot do with a direct payment is pay a close family member who lives with the person being cared for, in most cases, though there are exceptions the council will walk you through.

This matters because continuity is not a luxury in care. Skills for Care has consistently found that familiar, consistent faces reduce anxiety in people with dementia and other cognitive conditions. A carer who knows the morning routine, the food preferences, the particular way the bathroom needs to be set up, is doing something different in kind from a carer who has to be briefed from scratch every visit.

How to request one

The starting point is a social care needs assessment, if your parent has not already had one. You can request this from your local council's adult social care department. There is no charge for the assessment itself, and the council is legally obliged to carry one out under the Care Act 2014. If an assessment has already been done and a care package is already in place, you can still ask the council to move to a direct payment instead. You do not have to wait for a review.

Once eligibility is confirmed and the council works out the personal budget (the amount they will fund), you ask specifically for that budget to be delivered as a direct payment. Get the request in writing. Some councils are more direct-payment-friendly than others; if you hit resistance, the Carers UK Helpline on 0808 808 7777 can walk you through your rights, and Age UK's advisers are also well-versed in this.

You will need to keep basic records of how the money is spent, to show the council at review that it is going on the agreed care. This sounds onerous but in practice means saving receipts and keeping a simple log. The council assigns a social worker or care manager to help you set this up.

What good care actually looks like in this arrangement

The shape of an arrangement that works is usually this: one consistent carer, chosen by the family, who the family has met in person before any commitment is made, whose background has been independently verified, and who has a direct relationship with the household rather than being allocated by a third party. A direct payment is the funding mechanism that makes this possible. The payment itself does not guarantee quality, it just puts the decision in your hands.

When families tell us what they wish they had known earlier, the most common thing is this: they did not realise they could ask. They assumed the council's arrangement was fixed. It is not.

Hibant can be one practical route here. We are a London introductory care agency, and we work with families using direct payments as well as those paying privately. We do the vetting work, you meet the carer yourself, and you make the call.

If you are not sure whether your parent would qualify for a direct payment, or you want someone to talk through the process with before you ring the council, call the Carers UK Helpline on 0808 808 7777. It is free, it is not tied to any provider, and they know this territory well.

The one step worth taking this week, if none of this is in place yet, is to request the needs assessment in writing to your local council's adult social care team. That is the door everything else opens from.

If you would rather not navigate the direct payment process on your own, we can help. We are a London introductory care agency, and we work with families who are using direct payments or paying privately. Every carer we introduce has been DBS-checked and insurance-verified before you meet them, and you choose the person yourself after meeting them in person, before any arrangement begins. We have helped families in this exact situation find one consistent, trusted carer rather than a different face every day. If you want to talk it through, email us at hello@hibantcare.com or visit hibantcare.com.

Hibant

---

Useful links to keep handy

Looking for care or thinking of joining Hibant?

Whether you are a family navigating care for a loved one or a carer looking for fairer, more meaningful work, we would love to hear from you.

Find a carer Join as a carer
← Back to Understanding Care Questions? Get in touch