Direct payments guidance

Introduction

The direct payments guidance sets out how to get direct payments, how the Council provides them and the way they work in practice. It also provides information about the processes and procedures involved, support that is available and examples of different and flexible ways direct payments can be used.

This guidance will explain the responsibility and agreement between the person receiving the direct payment (you, or your representative/suitable person) and Leicester City Council (we/us/our).

What is a direct payment?

A direct payment is money that we give to you or someone acting on your behalf, on a regular basis, to meet your care needs. This allows you to arrange and pay for your own support, instead of receiving social care services arranged by us.

If you need support to meet your care needs, we will carry out an assessment to agree what these needs are and how much money we will provide to support them being met. Choosing to have a direct payment provides you with flexibility and a choice on how to meet the outcomes of your care package, and by whom.

Direct payments may involve more responsibility for you, which will be explained later in this guidance. Once a direct payment has been set up, we will provide you with an agreement, so you are clear about your responsibilities.

We hope this guidance provides you with the advice and information to help you decide whether to choose direct payments, and how it can be accessed.

Who can get a direct payment?

The following people can get a direct payment:

• Any adult that has been assessed by us as being eligible for care and support, including people who require support to look after their child
• Carers of the above

Direct payments can be paid to a person who is assessed as needing support, someone they choose (called a suitable person) or, if they cannot make decisions about this, we can agree to someone else managing this on your behalf (called a suitable person).

How will I know if I am eligible?

You can choose to have a direct payment if you already receive support from the Adult Social Care. If you do not currently receive support from us, you can request an assessment.

We will carry out an assessment of your needs and will determine whether any support services identified in the care and support plan can be provided via a Personal Budget, which is the amount of money we will pay you to use towards any social care and support you need.

Having a direct payment will not affect any of your benefits and it will also not be counted as income in any of your assessments.

How do I get a direct payment?

If we agree that you have eligible needs, we will set these out in a care and support plan, and you may then request a direct payment to meet these needs.

You can choose to have your support provided in a variety of different ways, which are explained in detail later in this guidance:

• nominate a suitable person
• have us arrange and provide support
• have us arrange for another organisation or agency to provide a service
• a combination of the above.

How much money will I receive?

The Direct Payment allowance will vary from person to person, depending on how much has been agreed when your assessment or review has been completed. The amount of your Direct Payment will be enough to cover the amount of a service of the same quality and quantity, as we would otherwise have provided for you through our arranged care services (commissioned care package).

Will I have to pay anything myself?

Support from Adult Social Care (unlike most health care) is not free. The Council will charge adults for care and support to sustain the delivery of care services, such as home care, to everyone who needs them.

As part of the assessment and support planning process, a financial assessment will also be completed separately to your assessment of needs. Some people may have to pay a contribution towards their direct payment, which is also known as an assessed charge.

The amount to pay will depend on your financial circumstances. Some people may qualify for financial assistance towards the cost of their care, while others will have to pay for some or all of their care from their savings and income.

We will work with you to assess your finances, consider how much the support will be and what you have to pay towards this. To work out how much someone has to pay, the assessment will take into account any income, savings or investments and expenses (rent, mortgage, household bills). The Adult Social Care Charging Policy sets out the financial assessment rules, how charges are calculated, and reviews and appeals processes. Your Social Worker can explain this to you in more detail, if necessary.

For more information on the financial assessment and charging policy, please see our Adult social care charging policy.

The outcome of the assessment determines the level of support you need, and enough direct payment money will be provided to ensure your support needs can be met. If you are required to pay towards your support, you will need to add your contribution to your direct payment, to make up the full cost of your care package.

Some people have financial support from Continuing Health Care to meet their needs. If this applies to you, your Direct Payment will be the difference between the funding provided by Continuing Health Care, and the total cost of your support. If this applies to you, you will be able to discuss it with your Social  Care Worker.

Direct payments – exceptional circumstances

There are some circumstances within direct payments that are exceptional and have some additional guidance in place so to ensure we consider specific circumstances flexibly. These are exceptions to the standard direct payments rate and family members being employed as personal assistants.

Can I use a provider (including a personal assistant) who charges more than the standard direct payments payment rate?

When you have a direct payment, it is expected that the person or agency you employ will charge the standard direct payment rate. If they charge more than this, you will need to pay the difference yourself, directly to the person or agency.

There are some exceptional circumstances where we will pay the difference. We call this an exceptional circumstance payment. Exceptional circumstance payments will be agreed when:

• your care and support needs are so complex they cannot be met by any of the direct payments’ framework providers and
• you cannot afford to pay the difference in cost.

All exceptional circumstance payments are approved by a senior manager in Adult Social Care when social care workers:

1. Confirm that all of the direct payments framework provider have been asked to meet your outcomes and needs within the standard payment rate.
2. Confirm that all of the relevant providers are unable to meet your needs and outcomes within the standard payment rate.
3. Give the detail of the complex needs and outcomes that are cannot be met.
4. Give details of why you cannot pay the difference between the standard rate and the rate requested by the provider.

When the cost of your services is higher than the standard rate, and:

1. You do not pay the difference to the person or agency, and,
2. There are no exceptional circumstances for the council to pay the difference

Then commissioned care services will instead be considered  so that you can continue to receive your support – please note that your support may be delivered by a different provider in this case.

Can I employ family members?

You can use the direct payment to pay a family member who does not live at the same address as you, to provide care and support if we agree this is appropriate to meet your needs. We have a duty to ensure that employing a family member is a suitable and safe use of Direct Payments. This will be discussed with you as part of your assessment and support planning process.

A direct payment cannot ordinarily be used to employ a family member that you live with to provide their care and support. However, if all other options fail to meet your eligible needs, the council can use discretionary powers to consider agreement for this, under exceptional circumstances.

The direct payment can be used to pay a family member (whether or not the person lives with you) to provide the management and administration of the direct payments, where we agree that this is necessary.

Uplifts (annual increase)

The hourly rates of direct payments are increased each year at an amount set by us and this is known as an uplift. Uplifts are percentage increases that differ depending on what the direct payment is used for.

The uplift changes start from the first Monday of each April and you will notice a small increase to total incoming and outgoing payment. As direct payments are paid four weeks in advance, the increased amount may be made to you in the following month but will always be backdated to the start of April.

How will I receive my direct payment?

You can choose one of the following ways to receive your direct payment:

A prepayment card is a debit card that is linked to a virtual bank account where we pay the money for your direct payment. The account is held by a third-party company. If you choose to use a prepayment card, you will not be required to submit any statements to us.

Your direct payment will be paid four weeks in advance, to your prepayment card. The amount paid by us will be the amount of money agreed in your care and support plan, minus the amount of any calculated contribution. You will need to pay your contribution into the prepaid card account via a standing order, either weekly or monthly.

You agree that in using your prepayment card you will:

• keep your Prepayment card safe and not let anyone else use it.
• call 0844 2255 729/033 080 0102 immediately to cancel your card if you lose your prepayment card or suspect it has been used by someone else
• only spend the money that is on the prepayment card, as per care package
• follow the separate terms and conditions set by the Prepayment card provider, which will be sent to you with the card.
• set up a standing order to pay us the money you have to pay to us as your contribution to the cost of your care.

This is where money is paid into a United Kingdom bank account. This can be an account held by you or your representative, but it must be a separate account that is only used for direct payments transactions, clearly showing how it has been spent on your support.

Your statements and receipts will need to be sent to us on a quarterly basis (or whenever requested), as evidence of the spend towards any care and support needs.

If you require assistance to manage your direct payment, you can choose to have support from a direct payment support service. An agency can manage the money that we have agreed for your support needs and pay the people or organisations who are providing that support to you, including providing timesheets for your personal assistant and receiving these back. They can also support you with tax and National Insurance contributions and HMRC responsibilities.

If you have selected this option, money will be paid directly into the agency’s account and they will manage it on your behalf, ensuring payments are made all providers.

The direct payment support service will liaise with the council to provide us with details of your spending. If you are required to contribute towards your care package, your chosen agency will advise you on the best way to pay your contributions for support and receiving these contributions from you on our behalf.

What can I spend my direct payment on?

direct payments are an excellent way to choose how to get support. You are required to spend them on achieving the outcomes that have been agreed in your care and support plan.

Once you have your care and support plan finalised and agreed, and you have decided to have a direct payment to achieve the things that are important to you, you will then need to organise your own care.

What is a personal assistant?

Personal assistants usually give you the greatest flexibility. A personal assistant is someone you choose to employ, to provide the support you need in the way that suits you best.

Employing your own personal assistants gives you the same responsibilities as any other employer. If you are using a direct payment support service, you can speak to them to seek help with this process.

If you are going to employ a personal assistant(s):

Can I employ family members?

You can use the direct payment to pay a family member who does not live at the same address as you, to provide care and support if we agree this is appropriate to meet your needs. We have a duty to ensure that employing a family member is a suitable and safe use of direct payments. This will be discussed with you as part of the assessment and support planning process.

A direct payment cannot ordinarily be used to employ a family member that you live with to provide their care and support. However, if all other options fail to meet your eligible needs, the Council can use discretionary powers to consider agreement for this, under exceptional circumstances.

The direct payment can be used to pay a family member (whether or not the person lives with you) to provide the management and administration of the direct payments, where we agree that this is necessary.

Support to manage your direct payment

Suitable person

A Suitable Person is a someone who manages your direct payment on your behalf. You may have a suitable person because you do not have the mental capacity to manage your own direct payment or because you prefer someone else acts on your behalf. The suitable person can be someone you trust (like a friend or family member) or, if there is no one who is suitable, we can arrange someone to do this for you.

A suitable person will have the same responsibilities as you (which will be detailed in the direct payment agreement) and will be agreeing to undertake these on your behalf. They will become responsible for all of the things you would have been responsible for and will do them instead of you. They must be reliable, manage your money in your best interest and make sure the support you receive is beneficial to you. We have to agree that the person is suitable and oversee the arrangement, by carrying out relevant checks during the assessment and subsequently, during all future reviews. This will be documented in detail, in the signed direct payment agreement.

Direct payment support service

If you do not have anyone that is suitable, but require assistance to manage your direct payment, we can arrange for a direct payment support service to help you. This is an agency who can support you on an ongoing basis, or do specific tasks, depending on your circumstances. 

The different ways a direct payment support service can support you are:

They will help you to set up your direct payment and they can support you to manage and use the direct payment in a way that best meets your needs, this includes:

• General advice and information
• An initial conversation with you to understand what support you need, including training if needed, to ensure you know what it means to have a direct payment and how to account for it.
• Help setting up a separate bank account for the direct payment
• Supporting you to find a personal assistant or organisation to provide care.
• To provide support and advice if your support package breaks down and help you find an alternative provider or organisation

They can act as your suitable person and do everything that you or any other suitable person would be expected to do. This support is known as a ‘managed account’.

• Manage the money that we have agreed for your support needs and pay the people who are providing that support to you includes providing timesheets for your Personal Assistant and receiving these back.
• Advise you on the best way to pay your contributions for support and receive these contributions from you on our behalf
• Help you to find an alternative Personal Assistant or care provider if required
• Show us how you have used your money
• Return any money to us if we claim money back

You or your suitable person can still manage your own direct payment but receive support with the following:

• Manage the money (including your Prepayment card if applicable) that we have agreed for your support needs and pay the people who are providing that support to you. This includes providing timesheets for your personal Assistant and receiving these back (unless you are using a Prepayment Card)
• Providing your Personal assistants with wage slips
• Paying your tax and National Insurance contributions
• Setting up and renewing employment liability insurance
• Recruiting a personal assistant/s or care provider
• Advise you on the best way to pay your contributions for support and receive these contributions from you on our behalf
• Managing any sick leave, annual leave, redundancy issues, employment contracts and employment advice

You or your suitable person can still manage your own direct payment but can use the direct payment support service employment support Service to help you find a personal assistant and to support you with the following:

• Training and advice about recruiting and employing a personal assistant.
• Assistance with advertising, interviews, references.
• Give advice and signpost your personal assistant to training opportunities
• Insurance, health and safety, and risks

Direct payment support service providers

There are many organisations providing care services. Some of them are large national charities, some of them are smaller voluntary organisations and some are private companies such as care agencies.

Leicester City Council currently works closely with these organisations, and they have slightly different approaches to each other:

• Rosekel Resourcing
• Mosaic
• Purple Zest (formerly known as Purple Conversation)

Finding other services and direct payment providers in your area

There are a number of services available around Leicester. For further information about social care products and associated services, please visit:

• Adult social care portal (My Support Needs)

Additional information can also be found on our community directory, by visiting: 

• Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Adult Care and Support Services Directory

If you are choosing a domiciliary care agency which is not on Leicester City Council’s framework; it is your responsibility to check the care agency is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), that they are registered to provide services to meet your needs (e.g. for over, or under 65s, learning disability e.t.c) and you are up to date with the relevant reports provided on the CQC website. If you are unsure please contact the CQC helpline on 03000 616161 directly or discuss with the allocated worker or team.

Can the direct payment be suspended?

You or we can end this agreement in the following circumstances:

• You no longer wish to receive a direct payment.
• The money has been spent on things that are not in your care and support plan, without approval.
• You have spent the money to pay a family member who lives in the same household as you family member without our prior agreement.
• Your circumstances or care and support needs change and a direct payment is no longer able to meet your needs
• The direct payment is putting you at risk of abuse or exploitation.
• Your direct payment agreement is breached.
• You no longer require care at all

A four-week notice will be given by us, or you if the agreement needs to end, with the exception of urgent circumstances, such as abuse or death.

Direct payment monitoring & record keeping

The Council is required to monitor the direct payment to make sure the person is being given the right amount of money to meet their care and support needs, as set out in their care and support plan. We will write to you every four months to request evidence of receipts, to oversee how the money is being spent and what it is being spent on.

We do not expect detailed accounts, but it is necessary to keep some records of where your direct payment is being used. Below are just some examples of information we may request to show us how the money is being spent:

Surplus money & returning money

There are some occasions when we will need to claim money back from you. If the direct payment money starts to build up because it is not being used, we will get in touch with you to find out what the plans for this are, if necessary. This unused money is known as surplus and is reviewed every three months. If this happens on a continuous basis, it may be necessary to review your care needs.

These situations include the following:

• You have money left in your account that you have not spent on your support needs (surplus)
• The money has been spent on things that are not agreed in your care and support plan, without approval
• There is extra money in your account due to being paid in advance for support that is yet to start

We will request you to return money and recover any unspent money by either withdrawing money from your prepayment card account or by recovering the money as a debt, at the end of each quarter of the year (every three months). If you are using a direct payment support service, they will submit the financial returns on your behalf and return any surplus that is unaccounted for, directly back to us. Where possible, we will allow for any surplus to be used flexibly to meet your needs in different ways.

Reviews

Reviews will take place annually (twelve months from last assessment), or as and when things change significantly, to find out if the support plan and the direct payments are meeting your needs.

We will carry out a yearly assessment of your finances and let you know what money you may need to pay as a contribution towards your direct payment. Any changes in payments that have been agreed in your care and support plan, will be amended accordingly.

If we decide that your identified needs are not being met in a satisfactory way using a direct payment, we may suspend the arrangement and offer an alternative means of support, such as commissioned care services.

Helpful information

This section of the guidance provides information on how certain situations will be handled for those managing their own direct payments and for those using a direct payment support service.

Hospital admission

If using an Agency: Upon being informed of hospital admission, the direct payment package will be suspended. The majority of direct payment agencies do not charge if you are in hospital, but this depends on the agreement.

If using a personal assistant: They will be paid retainers to a maximum of four weeks. If four weeks have passed, the care package will be suspended, or you can request your allocated team to consider retainer payment to be extended. This will be considered on an individual basis.

If using an agency: The notice period for cancellation would be charged and then there should be no further charge for the period of the hospital stay.

If using a personal assistant: The personal assistant would be paid for the initial four-week period. During the period of the hospital stay the social work team will be informed to confirm if the retainer payment can be extended.

If using an Agency: An agency may charge for up to 24 hours after admitted to hospital, after which payments are suspended until you are back from hospital.  It does depend on the agreement that is in place with the agency.

If using a personal assistant: They will be paid up to four weeks retainer, after which the DPSS provider will refer to the relevant social work team, who may authorise additional retainer payments.  Employees may also choose to receive their holiday pay during this time. If retainer is not authorised beyond the 4 weeks, then payments maybe suspended.

If using an Agency: They can charge for up to 24 hours after admitted to hospital, after which payments are suspended until you are back from hospital.

If using a personal assistant: They will be paid up to four weeks retainer, after which we will advise social work team to suspend care package, until you are out of hospital.

Uplifts and rate increases

The uplift will be applied automatically, and payment will be made accordingly. Personal assistants will receive percentage of uplift, and this will be advised and arranged via payroll and employment support.

If using an Agency: Ad-hoc and Annual Uplifts are applied to individual’s budgets on receipt of confirmation from the funding body either on the new financial year (April) or throughout the year.

If using a personal assistant: All Ad-hoc and Annual rate uplifts are applied once confirmed and funding is received.  Backdated payments are also made where applicable.

If using an Agency: Once uplifts are confirmed by the Council, a notification will be sent out via email to all providers informing them of the rate increase.  The providers may choose to increase their rates in line with the increase.

If using a personal assistant: Once uplifts are confirmed by the Council, you will receive a notification email/letter advising you of the increase. You will also be provided with instructions to contact the DPSS provider, if you would like to re-budget your care package to include a pay rise for your personal assistant. If any personal assistants are on National Minimum Wage, their wage would automatically be uplifted.

If using an Agency: Uplifts will be applied as per agreement in your care and support plan or increase will be based on uplifted rates in April, of each year.

If using a personal assistant: Uplifts will be applied, and budgets are prepared once new rates are confirmed.

Personal protective equipment

Direct payment agencies will provide appropriate Personal Protective Equipment for paid carers.

Personal Protective Equipment will only be agreed if you are receiving care through a personal assistant. This will be arranged upon providing evidence of purchase.

Receipts for Personal Protective Equipment purchases should be sent to Rosekel. If they are approved within the budget then payment will be made with 5 working days.  Alternatively, Rosekel will contact the social work team for approval for the purchase before the reimbursement can be processed.

Personal Protective Equipment purchase receipts should be sent with a claim form or request to the DPSS provider.  This can then be refunded from the Managed Account. 

Personal assistants can order COVID-19 personal protective equipment through the Government PPE portal.

Statutory sick pay

The personal assistant will be informed of their sick payment via payroll and employment support service. The agency that provides payroll and employment support will let us know if they need extra funds to cover the sick period. You or the personal assistant will be advised by the Payroll and Employment Advise service, via the agency.

On receipt of a GP sick note all Statutory Sick Payments are calculated when processing payroll.  Where there is sufficient funds/surplus the payment is made.  Where there is insufficient funds within the managed account Rosekel will advise the funding body to make the additional payment into your account to cover all Statutory Sick Payments.

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is calculated as part of the payroll support and is payable from the funding. SSP is not refundable from HMRC, however, small employers receive a relief on employer’s National Insurance, therefore, any money budgeted for NI will accumulate in the fund account and can be used to cover the cost of any SSP. For longer periods of sickness and where funds are not available to cover the cost of SSP, the relevant social work team will be contacted to provide additional funds for SSP costs.

If a personal assistant is not entitled to SSP, you will be notified and a form would be provided to you to forward to your employee, for them to make a claim for additional benefits from HMRC.

Once a sick note is received for a personal assistant, one week’s allowance is payable from your account. For any period longer than a week, the social work team is advised to add funds into your account to cover this.

Employing a personal assistant

If you decide to employ a personal assistant yourself, you will be responsible for recruiting and managing them once they start working for you. This means you will have employer responsibilities for that person.

If you are employing a personal assistant, you will need to be clear about what you want them to assist you with and how long the support they will be providing you takes. You can use this information to help with your job advert and description. 

Whoever you employ, they should have a positive attitude towards your support needs and want to support you to fulfil your potential.

Recruitment

Before setting out to recruit someone, it is a good idea to draw up a job description. This allows you and the personal assistant to be clear about what is expected of them. The job description should include the purpose of the job, a breakdown of the main duties as well as details of working hours and rates of pay.

You might find it helpful to draw up an application form. This could cover:

• Biographical details (e.g. name and address)
• Employment history
• Personal experience or voluntary work
• Training and qualifications
• Why the person wants to be a personal assistant
• Ownership of car or driving licence (if required)
• References including last place of work
• Whether the applicant has any criminal convictions
• Their agreement to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and to share the results with you

Unless you intend to employ someone you already know, you will need to draw up an advert outlining some basic details such as:

• A short description about you
• The type of support you require the personal assistant to provide
• The hours required
• Pay rate
• How to get in touch with you

You could ask to place your advert locally, in places such as local shops, supermarkets, schools and local facilities.

We recommend not using your personal address in the advert although you will need to say the general area where you live. Consider using an e-mail address or telephone number instead, until you have selected someone. 

You will also need to decide where to carry out the interviews. If you are worried about safety or privacy you may wish to use a local community setting, such as a

community centre, church hall or voluntary group.

There are some questions you will want to ask all the people you are interviewing. This will allow you to compare one candidate against another. These could cover:

• Why they are applying for the post
• Their experiences and training
• Their ideas and views about the personal assistant role

A Disclosure and Barring Service check provides details of a person’s criminal record (including convictions, cautions, reprimands and warnings) that are held on the Police National Computer. It can also contain details from the Barred Persons list and aims to check the background of a job applicant (whether paid or voluntary).

Although there is no legal requirement for a check to be undertaken, they are recommended to protect you. Anyone employed to work with or near a child (unless it is a close family member) is legally required to have an enhanced check undertaken.

You can use your direct payment to pay a Disclosure and Barring check, but you will have to make your own arrangements for carrying out the check unless you are using a direct payment support service. Please speak to your social worker or direct payment support service for further advice.

For more information, please visit: www.gov.uk/dbs

Arrangements to employ your personal assistant

Once you have made the decision about who you want to work for you as a personal assistant, you should contact them to offer them the job and advise that they will be subject to employment checks. This should include:

• Enhanced DBS check and this is mandatory for children
• Proof of identity including current and previous address
• Right to work
• Declaration of any criminal history
• Taking up their references
• Discuss how you will be storing and sharing/processing their information and get their consent for this (GDPR)

You are also required to complete some basic checks to ensure that the person you are employing can legally work in the United Kingdom before they begin to work with you.

For more information, please visit the Home Office website.

If you recruit a personal assistant, you become their employer. The only exception to this is where a personal assistant is self-employed. It is important to understand the employment status of your personal assistant and the implications this may have on you and your care.

Please visit the HM Revenue & Customs website for further information.

All employers have a legal duty of care towards their employees while they are working. This is the case even when employing a friend or relative. If a personal assistant is injured as a result of an accident or injury at work and believes their employer is responsible, they could sue for compensation. For this reason, you must take out employer’s liability insurance.

You should also ensure you are covered for public liability insurance which offers protection if your personal assistant injures someone or damages property, during working hours.

Consider taking out employer’s indemnity insurance, this is optional and covers the employer against any costs related to the terms and conditions of employment (for example, legal costs of defending a claim for unfair dismissal).

If the personal assistant will be using your car you need to ensure they are insured to do this.

Some insurance companies provide policies specifically for personal assistants. Seek the advice of a local organisation or an insurance broker. 

Training

The person you recruit may require training outside of what you can provide yourself, or through existing networks or relationships. Other training may have to come from a specialist provider, as long as it is related to your social care needs.

Your Social  Care Worker can advise you of your options or can source and arrange training on your behalf, if required. If you are using a Direct Payment Support Service, your chosen agency will signpost you to voluntary organisations or will put you in contact with a Skills for Social Care officer for support on arranging training. This could include, but is not limited to:

• Moving & handling
• Food hygiene
• First aid
• Administration of medicine
• Infection control
• Health & safety

Appeals, comments & complaints

Appeals are made during the decision-making process and are managed by the team that has done the assessment. There are established processes for managing these appeals and changing any decisions.

All appeals can be made directly to the relevant team, using the contacts details that are provided within the support plan.

Information about how to send in compliments, comments, or complaints about how the  Adult Social Care  has provided a service or made a decision, can be found on our Adult social care comments and complaints page.

Useful contacts

For serious concerns about agencies/CQC:

• Care Quality Commission
• 0300 061 6161
• Website: www.cqc.org.uk
• Email: enquiries@cqc.org.uk

Issues on being an employer:

• HM Revenue and Customs
• 0300 200 3211
• Website: www.hmrc.gov.uk/employers

Advice to employers - legal working:

• Home Office UK Border Agency
• 0300 123 4699
• Website: Preventing illegal working guidance for employers - GOV.UK

Personal assistant recruitment:

• Website: www.skillsforcare.org.uk

Frequently asked questions

To help answer some of the questions you may have, please visit our section on Direct payments. 

If you are unable to find an answer to your query, please email us directly at directpaymentsinfo@leicester.gov.uk.