East Suffolk Council
Adaptations and independent living
We offer advice and support to all those living with a disability to enable them to live safely and independently at home.
The East Suffolk Independent Living Agency (ES-ILA) deals with all applications for Disabled Facilities Grants (DFG) in East Suffolk. To be eligible for a DFG you need to have had an assessment by an Occupational Therapist (OT).
If you think you need to have an OT assessment to help with living independently and you live in a council property, please contact Customer First or, if you own your home or rent from a housing association or private landlord, please visit the Independent Living Suffolk (ILS) website
What are the steps involved in applying for a DFG?
Please take a look at our customer journey illustration and newsletter, which provide you with all you need to know about the process. The customer journey provides a brief description of the stages involved in delivering adaptations, to enable you to live more independently and the newsletter provides further information on what we do and who we are.
Mandatory Disabled Facilities Grants
Most adaptations will fall under the mandatory works which cover the following adaptations:
- Facilitating access into and around the dwelling.
- Making the dwelling safe.
- Facilitating access into the principal family room and to a bedroom.
- Facilitating access to a toilet and washing facilities and kitchen facilities.
- Improved heating and access to controls for power, heat, and light.
These grants will be subject to a test of financial resources to determine if the resident should contribute towards the funding of the works (unless already on a passported benefit e.g. Housing Benefit, Universal Credit or GPC along with others). Enquiries about means testing should be directed to our Independent Living Team.
Supplementary Grant
All applicants for a mandatory DFG can apply for this grant in addition to the statutory DFG to fund the first £5,000 of works. This means that even if you have a means tested contribution you can get some help towards the costs as we want you to have the adaptations done, rather than remaining at risk. Any applications for persons under 18 years of age, are not subject to a means test, and they can also apply for this supplementary grant, where the costs are over £30k.
East Suffolk Council has adopted a policy to simplify the DFG process for urgent works that are relatively simple to specify by introducing the following grants.
Fast Track
Where you are in receipt of a qualifying benefit (see table below) and have capital of less than £10,000 you may qualify for a Fast Track Grant. The adaptations must cost no more than £10,000. The eligible works are:
- General adaptations - e.g. changing bathrooms into wet rooms with a flush floor shower, installing stair-lifts or ramping entrances.
- Providing adequate heating - e.g. where the condition suffered by the applicant is likely to be made worse by living in a cold home.
- Terminally ill - adaptations to enable the applicant to remain at home longer.
| Qualifying means-tested benefits | Capital and savings |
|---|---|
|
(excluding the property to be adapted) Less than £10,000 per applicant/partner. |
Priority Grants
Priority Grants must be supported by a professional who will recommend the need for this grant to the local authority. This particular grant is only for the most urgent of cases (to allow discharge from hospital to a safe home; acute admission avoidance and for palliative cases).
The Priority grant is not based on a financial assessment or a passported benefit.
Full Agency Support
East Suffolk - Independent Living Agency (ES-ILA) will help you with all aspects of the grant application. You will be allocated a case officer, who will be your support throughout the process. Their role will include completing the application forms, preparing the schedule and plans, liaising with builders, Building Control and other statutory bodies through to completion of the relevant works. During this process if any unforeseen works are required, they will be actioned accordingly. The final sign off will only be requested once snagging issues (if any) are rectified. This will include organising payment(s) and ensuring guarantees and warranties are in place.
Advantages - peace of mind, experienced professional staff supporting you, knowledge of the grant forms and supporting evidence required, single Case Officer to keep communication simple and effective, funded in nearly all cases by the grant.
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Read all about it!.. in our newsletter
You can find out more about we do; meet the team; see examples of the types of work we deliver; hear from satisfied clients and much, much more.
Just click on the web-links provided to read each issue.
And if you have any comments or questions, we’d love to hear from you!
- Can YOU help?
- Supplier Spotlight: James Alger, DD Alger & Sons Ltd
- Ease the Squeeze Solutions & Stepping Home
- Suffolk DFG – Didn’t we do well!
- And much more!.....
- Cost of Living / Warm Homes Healthy People
- Supplier Spotlight: Tom Kell, TAK Building Maintenance
- Client Feedback, Customer Satisfaction Survey, ‘Paws’ for Thought…and much more!
- Warm Homes Healthy People, Hoarding Support Service, 500 Suffolk Reasons
- Disabled Facilities Grants – Facts & Figures, Staffing News, Save money on heating bill, Client feedback
- Stepping Home Service, Staffing News, Covid Working, Walking 9 to 5 for Alzheimer’s Society
- Disabled Facilities Grants: Facts and Figures; Client feedback, Welcome new suppliers
- Disabled Facilities Grants On Line, Disabled Facilities Grants: Facts & Figures, Staffing News and Roles
- DFG Waiting List, Covid Working, Client feedback
March 2021 (First issue)
- Welcome... What is a Disabled Facilities Grant?.. How to apply for a Grant
- Occupational Therapy Assessments, Meet the Team, Covid working & Winter grant
- Don’t just take our word for it!.. Got any Questions?.. And our Contact Details