Attendance Allowance
This information is correct as of April 2008.
Attendance Allowance is paid at two rates:
Lower rate £44.85 per week
This would be awarded if you have a reasonable need for help with personal care or supervision during day or if you have a reasonable need for help with personal care or supervision during the night.
Higher rate £67.00 per week
This would be awarded if you have a reasonable need for help with personal care or supervision during day and you have a reasonable need for help with personal care or supervision during the night. The help you need usually has to be regularly throughout the day, not just morning or evening. The help at night usually has to be for about 1/2 an hour or it must be a repeated need. Supervision means someone is checking on you throughout the day, and for the night means someone is awake to check on you.
To get Attendance Allowance you need to show that you ‘reasonably require’ help or someone to watch over you. You do not have to show that you actually get, or want help, just that it would be reasonable for you to have it. If a task causes you pain, breathlessness, makes your condition worse or means you need to rest afterwards, help from someone that lessens this would be reasonable. Prompting or reminding to do things can also be help. For example, if you need someone to motivate you to get up or remind you to have a wash.
A claim pack will be sent out and will be date stamped. If you return the form within six weeks the date of claim is taken as the date the claim form was requested.
The Department for Work and Pensions is relying more and more on telephone contact with people, as this is often quicker and cheaper than writing letters. If you do not wish to be telephoned at home and asked questions you may decide to leave the daytime telephone number box blank, although the Department for Work and Pensions may already have—or be able to find—your number. If the reasons you would refer not to be telephoned at home is in connection with your disability then you may want to enclose a note saying so. For example, if you have a mental health condition and you get anxious or confused when telephoned and asked questions by people you do not know, then you should ask not to be telephoned.
Part 2 - For People Signing this Form for Someone Else
If you are just filling in the form for someone else, but they know what you are writing and are going to sign it themselves, then you do not need to complete this section.
Part 3 - About this Claim
The special rules relate to people who are terminally ill and where death could be expected within the next six months. In these circumstances you automatically qualify for the higher rate of Attendance Allowance. A medical professional involved in your care will need to complete a DS1500 form on your behalf.
You still need to complete the details about yourself and how you want to be paid for the claim to be valid. There is a leaflet that comes with the claim pack which explains how to claim under the special rules or you can call the Benefit Enquiry Line on 0800 88 22 00. Your application will be decided quickly.
Part 4 - About Your Illnesses or Disabilities
List all your health conditions. As well as physical conditions, include any emotional or mental health problems such as depression or anxiety. Your entitlement to Attendance Allowance is based on the combined effects of all your health problems, so make sure you put them all down.
Part 5 - More About Treatment or Help You Receive
The people you give details about in this section may be contacted by the Department for Work and Pensions. Please do not assume your GP or other health professionals know all about the problems you have with things like moving about, dressing or washing—you may never have told them or they may not have made notes at the time. People are often surprised by what their GP or other health professionals write about them.
Try to make an appointment to give them an up-to-date picture of your problems as soon as you have completed this form and before they are contacted by the Department for Work and Pensions. You should also warn them that the Department for Work and Pensions may contact them but there is no guarantee that the Department for Work and Pensions will contact them.
Part 6 - More About Why You Are Making This Claim
Read part 6 carefully. The boxes for you to write in are rather small so you can put “See additional sheets” and write your name and national insurance number on the top of a sheet of paper with your answers. Attach any sheets firmly to the form.
These are the sort of issues the decision maker will need to know about:
Help with housework is not considered personal care. A good way of thinking of personal care is that you need to be present for the task. Someone can clean your bath when you are not there but you would be there to have a bath. We recommend you use our four-step system on most pages to ensure you give detailed and relevant information. This is how it works:
Step 1
Say what causes the problems with the activity, decision-makers are very fond of saying that claimants could do things if they chose, they just prefer not to. So make it clear, in your own words, that the reason you have problems is not about personal choice, but because of your health condition or because you are disabled. For example:
If there is more than one reason why you have problems then say so:
You might get fed up with having to repeat the same thing on, but it really is worth doing.
Step 2
Say what the problems are in detail. Give as much information as you can about the problems you have. For example: ‘I have problems with washing and bathing because of my arthritis. I cannot stand for long in the shower because of pain in my legs, feet and back. I have tried putting a stool in the shower to sit on but it was too cramped and I almost fell trying to stand up again.’
‘I need help getting in and out of the bath because it is painful stepping over the edge of the bath and I am very unsteady on my feet.’
‘Washing my hair causes a great deal of pain in my arms and shoulders and there are many days when I cannot do it at all. Washing my feet causes pain in my lower back and I cannot reach behind me to do my back, even with a long brush, because of the pain in my arms, shoulders and back. Drying myself is extremely painful; I cannot bend enough to do my calves and feet.’
Step 3
Give an example. This could be when you tried to carry out the activity and it went badly wrong:
‘About three months ago I tried to have a bath when there was no one else at home. I managed to get in the bath but I slipped and fell while trying to stand up to wash my torso. I was not badly hurt, but it left me feeling terribly shaken thinking how much worse it could easily have been.’ Or an example where a recent attempt to carry out the activity, was not successful:
‘Last week I tried to wash my hair by myself because I did not want to disturb my partner. I was in so much pain by the time I finished that I had to take extra painkillers and I was unable to do anything for the rest of the day.’
If you never attempt the activity alone anymore, say how long it has been since you did so:
‘I have not had a bath or shower without someone to help me since I fell in the bath about three months ago.’
Step 4
Remember you need to show that you ‘reasonably require’ help or someone to watch over you. If you have problems with activities and there is nothing anyone can every do that would make the slightest bit of difference, then you may not be entitled to Attendance Allowance. So always try to show a way in which someone could help:
‘If someone is with me they can help me in and out of the bath and wash my hair and back and feet.’
Summary
The decision-maker needs to know how you cope during both the day and night. You should describe your needs as fully as possible. It is likely that you may need to repeat information. Problems with bending will be the same for many activities, getting out of bed, dressing, bathing etc. Make sure you give lots of information and details about the help you need, even if it is repetitive or embarrassing. It is about the help you need not the actual help you have. For example, someone might help you to have a bath twice a week. This does not mean you only need help to bathe twice a week. If you cannot bathe on your own, it is reasonable to say you need help with this activity seven days a week.
Read through the form afterwards and make sure you have described everything as fully and clearly as you can.
Part 7 - Anything Else You Wish to Tell Us About
If you are going to use additional sheets as we suggest, you do not need to fill this box in. If you do not use additional sheets you can put any information you could not squeeze into the other boxes in here.
Part 8 - When Your Difficulties Began
Your problems need to have lasted for at least six months before you can receive Attendance Allowance, but you can put your claim in before the six months has elapsed if you do not expect your condition to improve within that time.
Part 9 - More About You
These are questions about any hospital or residential care stays you have had, any visits abroad you have made and some questions about benefits and other money that might be coming into your household.
Part 10 - Statement from the Person Who Knows Best about You and How Your Illnesses and Disabilities Affect You
The best person to complete this page might be your partner, carer or someone else who knows you well and sees first hand the difficulties that you have with everyday activities. Alternatively, it could be a professional involved in your care, such as your GP, Consultant, Occupational Therapist or a Nurse.
In this case, make an appointment to see that person so you can answer any questions they might have. Ask the person to complete the statement there and then if they can. If they cannot, or wish to write a longer report, ask them to send it to you and check when it will be done by.
Part 11- Consent
This section asks for your permission to contact your GP or other health professionals involved in your care. Please read this carefully before signing to agree or disagree.
Part 12 - Making Payments to You
This section describes how Attendance Allowance is paid, there is nothing for you to complete.
Part 13 - Declaration
Read the declaration carefully before you sign it.
Part 14 - What to Do Now
If you are attaching additional sheets, it might be worth counting them and then writing in this box how many of them there are, in case any of them become detached. You should still staple all the extra sheets to the claim pack if possible and ensure your name and national insurance number are at the top of each page. You may want to take a copy of the completed form for your records. It is helpful to have this for your reference if you receive renewal forms at a future date. Post the form in the envelope provided. The decision and your award If you are unhappy with the decision you can appeal. You must lodge your appeal in writing within 1 month of the date on the decision letter. To lodge your appeal you can use an appeal form, GL24. These are available from any benefit office or you can ring the office on the decision letter and ask for one to be posted to you. You should send the completed appeal form to the address shown on your decision letter. Welfare Rights can assist you with the appeal process and represent you at an appeal hearing. If you would like advice about appealing a decision please contact us.
This is information on your rights and responsibilities and is to be used as guidance and not legal advice. Information correct as of April 2008.
AA Apr 08.pdf (6 pages, 385kb)
Many older people find that they are no longer as fit and well as they used to be, without thinking of themselves as disabled. You may have ill health, a physical or mental health problem that means you cannot manage like you used to, or you find it difficult living alone. Attendance Allowance is a tax-free benefit for people aged 65 or over who reasonably need help with personal care or someone to keep an eye on them. It is not means tested and it could increase your entitlement to Pension Credit and Housing and Council Tax Benefit. It is administered by the Department for Work and Pensions and is usually paid to you with your
State Retirement Pension.
The name “Attendance Allowance” is a bit misleading and can put people off applying because they think they need to be getting help from other people to qualify. You can get Attendance Allowance even if you live alone and no one looks after you. You don’t need to be registered disabled. It is also entirely up to you how you spend any money you are awarded.Attendance Allowance is paid at two rates:
Lower rate £44.85 per week
This would be awarded if you have a reasonable need for help with personal care or supervision during day or if you have a reasonable need for help with personal care or supervision during the night.
Higher rate £67.00 per week
This would be awarded if you have a reasonable need for help with personal care or supervision during day and you have a reasonable need for help with personal care or supervision during the night. The help you need usually has to be regularly throughout the day, not just morning or evening. The help at night usually has to be for about 1/2 an hour or it must be a repeated need. Supervision means someone is checking on you throughout the day, and for the night means someone is awake to check on you.
To get Attendance Allowance you need to show that you ‘reasonably require’ help or someone to watch over you. You do not have to show that you actually get, or want help, just that it would be reasonable for you to have it. If a task causes you pain, breathlessness, makes your condition worse or means you need to rest afterwards, help from someone that lessens this would be reasonable. Prompting or reminding to do things can also be help. For example, if you need someone to motivate you to get up or remind you to have a wash.
Getting an Application Pack
To get an application pack is to make a freephone call to the Benefits Enquiry Line on 0800 88 22 00 and ask them to send you an Attendance Allowance claim pack.A claim pack will be sent out and will be date stamped. If you return the form within six weeks the date of claim is taken as the date the claim form was requested.
Filling in the Form
Part 1 - About YouThe Department for Work and Pensions is relying more and more on telephone contact with people, as this is often quicker and cheaper than writing letters. If you do not wish to be telephoned at home and asked questions you may decide to leave the daytime telephone number box blank, although the Department for Work and Pensions may already have—or be able to find—your number. If the reasons you would refer not to be telephoned at home is in connection with your disability then you may want to enclose a note saying so. For example, if you have a mental health condition and you get anxious or confused when telephoned and asked questions by people you do not know, then you should ask not to be telephoned.
Part 2 - For People Signing this Form for Someone Else
If you are just filling in the form for someone else, but they know what you are writing and are going to sign it themselves, then you do not need to complete this section.
Part 3 - About this Claim
The special rules relate to people who are terminally ill and where death could be expected within the next six months. In these circumstances you automatically qualify for the higher rate of Attendance Allowance. A medical professional involved in your care will need to complete a DS1500 form on your behalf.
You still need to complete the details about yourself and how you want to be paid for the claim to be valid. There is a leaflet that comes with the claim pack which explains how to claim under the special rules or you can call the Benefit Enquiry Line on 0800 88 22 00. Your application will be decided quickly.
Part 4 - About Your Illnesses or Disabilities
List all your health conditions. As well as physical conditions, include any emotional or mental health problems such as depression or anxiety. Your entitlement to Attendance Allowance is based on the combined effects of all your health problems, so make sure you put them all down.
Part 5 - More About Treatment or Help You Receive
The people you give details about in this section may be contacted by the Department for Work and Pensions. Please do not assume your GP or other health professionals know all about the problems you have with things like moving about, dressing or washing—you may never have told them or they may not have made notes at the time. People are often surprised by what their GP or other health professionals write about them.
Try to make an appointment to give them an up-to-date picture of your problems as soon as you have completed this form and before they are contacted by the Department for Work and Pensions. You should also warn them that the Department for Work and Pensions may contact them but there is no guarantee that the Department for Work and Pensions will contact them.
Part 6 - More About Why You Are Making This Claim
Read part 6 carefully. The boxes for you to write in are rather small so you can put “See additional sheets” and write your name and national insurance number on the top of a sheet of paper with your answers. Attach any sheets firmly to the form.
These are the sort of issues the decision maker will need to know about:
- Problems getting out of bed in the morning and into bed at night.
- When you are in bed.
- Your toilet needs.
- Washing, bathing, showering and looking after your appearance.
- Getting dressed or undressed.
- At mealtimes.
- Medical treatment.
- Someone keeping an eye on you.
- Moving about indoors.
- Dizzy spells, blackouts, fits, seizures or something like this.
- Falls or stumbles.
- Communicating with other people.
- Social and leisure activities.
Help with housework is not considered personal care. A good way of thinking of personal care is that you need to be present for the task. Someone can clean your bath when you are not there but you would be there to have a bath. We recommend you use our four-step system on most pages to ensure you give detailed and relevant information. This is how it works:
Step 1
Say what causes the problems with the activity, decision-makers are very fond of saying that claimants could do things if they chose, they just prefer not to. So make it clear, in your own words, that the reason you have problems is not about personal choice, but because of your health condition or because you are disabled. For example:
- I have problems with this activity because of my arthritis.
- I have problems with this activity because I have epilepsy.
- I have problems with this activity because of back pain.
If there is more than one reason why you have problems then say so:
- I have problems with this activity because of my inflammatory bowel disease and the medication that I have to take.
- I have problems with this activity because of my arthritis and my angina.
You might get fed up with having to repeat the same thing on, but it really is worth doing.
Step 2
Say what the problems are in detail. Give as much information as you can about the problems you have. For example: ‘I have problems with washing and bathing because of my arthritis. I cannot stand for long in the shower because of pain in my legs, feet and back. I have tried putting a stool in the shower to sit on but it was too cramped and I almost fell trying to stand up again.’
‘I need help getting in and out of the bath because it is painful stepping over the edge of the bath and I am very unsteady on my feet.’
‘Washing my hair causes a great deal of pain in my arms and shoulders and there are many days when I cannot do it at all. Washing my feet causes pain in my lower back and I cannot reach behind me to do my back, even with a long brush, because of the pain in my arms, shoulders and back. Drying myself is extremely painful; I cannot bend enough to do my calves and feet.’
Step 3
Give an example. This could be when you tried to carry out the activity and it went badly wrong:
‘About three months ago I tried to have a bath when there was no one else at home. I managed to get in the bath but I slipped and fell while trying to stand up to wash my torso. I was not badly hurt, but it left me feeling terribly shaken thinking how much worse it could easily have been.’ Or an example where a recent attempt to carry out the activity, was not successful:
‘Last week I tried to wash my hair by myself because I did not want to disturb my partner. I was in so much pain by the time I finished that I had to take extra painkillers and I was unable to do anything for the rest of the day.’
If you never attempt the activity alone anymore, say how long it has been since you did so:
‘I have not had a bath or shower without someone to help me since I fell in the bath about three months ago.’
Step 4
Remember you need to show that you ‘reasonably require’ help or someone to watch over you. If you have problems with activities and there is nothing anyone can every do that would make the slightest bit of difference, then you may not be entitled to Attendance Allowance. So always try to show a way in which someone could help:
‘If someone is with me they can help me in and out of the bath and wash my hair and back and feet.’
Summary
The decision-maker needs to know how you cope during both the day and night. You should describe your needs as fully as possible. It is likely that you may need to repeat information. Problems with bending will be the same for many activities, getting out of bed, dressing, bathing etc. Make sure you give lots of information and details about the help you need, even if it is repetitive or embarrassing. It is about the help you need not the actual help you have. For example, someone might help you to have a bath twice a week. This does not mean you only need help to bathe twice a week. If you cannot bathe on your own, it is reasonable to say you need help with this activity seven days a week.
Read through the form afterwards and make sure you have described everything as fully and clearly as you can.
Part 7 - Anything Else You Wish to Tell Us About
If you are going to use additional sheets as we suggest, you do not need to fill this box in. If you do not use additional sheets you can put any information you could not squeeze into the other boxes in here.
Part 8 - When Your Difficulties Began
Your problems need to have lasted for at least six months before you can receive Attendance Allowance, but you can put your claim in before the six months has elapsed if you do not expect your condition to improve within that time.
Part 9 - More About You
These are questions about any hospital or residential care stays you have had, any visits abroad you have made and some questions about benefits and other money that might be coming into your household.
Part 10 - Statement from the Person Who Knows Best about You and How Your Illnesses and Disabilities Affect You
The best person to complete this page might be your partner, carer or someone else who knows you well and sees first hand the difficulties that you have with everyday activities. Alternatively, it could be a professional involved in your care, such as your GP, Consultant, Occupational Therapist or a Nurse.
In this case, make an appointment to see that person so you can answer any questions they might have. Ask the person to complete the statement there and then if they can. If they cannot, or wish to write a longer report, ask them to send it to you and check when it will be done by.
Part 11- Consent
This section asks for your permission to contact your GP or other health professionals involved in your care. Please read this carefully before signing to agree or disagree.
Part 12 - Making Payments to You
This section describes how Attendance Allowance is paid, there is nothing for you to complete.
Part 13 - Declaration
Read the declaration carefully before you sign it.
Part 14 - What to Do Now
If you are attaching additional sheets, it might be worth counting them and then writing in this box how many of them there are, in case any of them become detached. You should still staple all the extra sheets to the claim pack if possible and ensure your name and national insurance number are at the top of each page. You may want to take a copy of the completed form for your records. It is helpful to have this for your reference if you receive renewal forms at a future date. Post the form in the envelope provided. The decision and your award If you are unhappy with the decision you can appeal. You must lodge your appeal in writing within 1 month of the date on the decision letter. To lodge your appeal you can use an appeal form, GL24. These are available from any benefit office or you can ring the office on the decision letter and ask for one to be posted to you. You should send the completed appeal form to the address shown on your decision letter. Welfare Rights can assist you with the appeal process and represent you at an appeal hearing. If you would like advice about appealing a decision please contact us.
This is information on your rights and responsibilities and is to be used as guidance and not legal advice. Information correct as of April 2008.
AA Apr 08.pdf (6 pages, 385kb)