Disabled Facilities Grants

You can apply for a disabled facilities grant from the council if you are disabled and need to make changes to your home, for example to:

• widen doors and install ramps
• improve access to rooms and facilities, such as installing a stairlift
• provide essential facilities – such as replace the bath with a level access shower, or adapt the kitchen so you’re able to prepare meals safely and independently

The grant is for adaptations costing over £1,000.

The grant is means tested - unless the adaptations are for a child or young person under 19.

How much you get depends on your household income and savings over £6,000. Depending on your income, you may have a contribution to pay towards the cost of adapting your home.

The maximum amount of grant you can get is £30,000.

You may not get any grant if you start work on your property before the council approves your application.

You or someone living in your property must have a disability – that is have a physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities.

Either you or the person you’re applying for must:

• own the property or be a tenant and have the landlord’s consent to do the work
• intend to live in the property during the grant period (five years) You can also apply for a grant if you’re a landlord and have a tenant with a disability.

Before the council can approve a grant, we must be satisfied that the work is:

• necessary and appropriate to meet the needs of the person with the disability
• reasonable and can be done - depending on the age and condition of the property

The council will normally want to see that an Occupational Therapist (OT) or OT Assistant has assessed your circumstances and is recommending the type of work you need.

For adults

Contact the council’s Access Point for an initial assessment and a referral to the Housing Adaptations Service if you need major changes to your home.

The Housing Adaptations Service provides a specialist OT assessment service, advice, and OT recommendations about the type of work needed.

• Email: AccessPoint@brighton-hove.gov.uk
• Phone: 01273 29 55 55

For children and young people (0-18 years old)

Parents and carers of children and young people can make enquiries to the OT Children’s Disability Team.

Referrals can be sent from professionals as well as parents and carers – contact this the service for a referral form.

• Email: Ot.ChildrensDisabilityTeam@brighton-hove.gov.uk
• Tel: 01273 295550

Casework and technical support service

Once you have a recommendation, the Housing Adaptations Service provides a full casework and technical support service – help with the grant application and help selecting a reputable contractor to price and carry out the work.

The council does not charge you for this service. If you prefer, you can opt to do this yourself.

Some adaptations may need planning permission or building regulations approval.

If you’re using the casework and technical support service, we can help you to apply for these. The council may ask you to employ a qualified architect or surveyor to plan and oversee the work. If you get a grant, you can use it towards the cost of their fees.

How you'll be paid

The council can pay the contractor directly if you prefer or pay you for invoices you have received. We’ll agree this with you when we approve your application.

When you'll be paid

You’ll be paid either:

• when we are happy with the finished work
• when you give the council the invoice from the contractor

If you or a relative does the work, we’ll only accept invoices for materials or services you’ve bought. We won’t pay for labour.

The council is currently offering some extra help with grant funding for renewals, repairs and adaptations, targeted at accident prevention, relieving fuel poverty and assisting with hospital discharge.

This extra help includes:

• Relocation grant – if you are eligible for disabled facilities grant and it is not reasonable or practicable to adapt your home. You must be a homeowner or private tenant. The amount you can get is subject to means test (for adults). The maximum amount you can get is £20,000.
• Hospital Discharge grant – any older person aged 65 or over or disabled person, privately renting or home owner, being discharged from hospital or intermediate care can apply. This grant is not means tested. It can fund any work that supports a safe return home. The maximum amount you can get is £2,500.
• Handy Person Services grant – available to homeowners and private tenants aged 65 or over and /or a disabled person to help with small building repairs and minor adaptations. It is not means tested. The maximum amount you can get is £2,500.
• Making Homes Dementia Friendly grant – available to any person diagnosed with dementia who needs help to make changes to their home that would support them to live in their own home safely and for longer. It is not means tested. The maximum amount you can get is £2,500.
• Warm, Safe Home grant – available to any homeowner or private tenant on low incomes and struggling to afford to keep the home warm. The grant is means tested. It can be used to fund electrical and gas safety checks and repairs, boiler repairs or replacement loft and cavity wall insulation. The maximum amount of grant available has been topped up to £20,000 using Warmer Homes programme funding.

For relatively straightforward adaptations that do not need a specialist OT assessment, such as external rails, door intercom and automatic door entry systems, the council can accept a recommendation from another health or housing professional for work up to £5,000.

Extra financial help

• In some cases, the council may agree to fund adaptations more than the DFG grant limit £30,000, up to £50,000.
• If you have an assessed contribution toward the cost of adapting your home under the normal grant rules, the council can pay up to £5,000 toward your contribution.

If you have recently returned home from hospital or care and would like more information about the Hospital Discharge grant or the Handy Person Services grant, please contact Possability People.

Possability People’s Hospital Discharge Support Team coordinate applications for this extra help.

• Email: HDS@PossabilityPeople.org.uk
• Phone: 01273 069851

For more information about the disabled facilities grant (DFG) and the wider range of grant funded assistance on offer, please contact the Disabled Facilities Grant team:

• Email: disabledfacilitiesgrant@brighton-hove.gov.uk
• Phone: 01273 294366

You can also read our Disabled Facilities Grant Housing Policy [PDF 212KB]