Eligibility for Disabled Facilities Grants

Disabled Facilities Grant helps pay for adaptations to make your home safer and more accessible to live in if you have a disability.

Check your eligibility

You may get the grant in full or partially (with your contribution) depending on your situation.

• If you’re under 18 years old or receive a passport benefit, you’ll automatically qualify for a grant and no contribution from you is needed.
• If you don’t receive a passport benefit, you may be eligible based on your savings and assets.
• If you don’t quality for a DFG, you can still use our Home Improvement Agency Service to help with necessary home adaptations, but you need to pay for it yourself.

Please note: the grant only covers work that is necessary, appropriate, reasonable and practicable based on an assessment of your needs. The maximum DFG available is £50,000.

Passport benefits are certain government benefits that automatically qualify you for financial help:

• Universal Credit
• Income support
• Income-based jobseeker’s allowance
• Guaranteed Pension Credit
• Housing Benefit
• Income based Employment Support Allowance
• Working Tax Credit with an income (for tax credit purposes) lower than £15,050.
• Child Tax Credit with an income (for tax credit purposes) lower than £15,050.

If you don’t receive a passport benefit, we’ll carry out a means test – financial assessment to help decide if you need to contribute towards the cost of home adaptations. We assess your (and your partner’s) savings and assets (called “capital”) – not your income.

• If your capital is less than £10,000, you’ll receive the grant without contribution needed.
• If your capital is between £10,000 and £50,000, you’ll receive the grant but need to contribute 10% of your total capital.
• If your capital is more than £50,000, you’ll not receive the grant.

What counts as capital

Capital is any savings, investments, and other assets with a monetary value that you (and your partner) own. We’ll ask for proof of the value of your capital, including:

Cash and savings

Money in bank accounts, building societies, and other savings accounts. For all bank accounts, we need 3 months of recent statements.

Property

Any property or land you own, except your main home.

We calculate property value as: current market value, less any outstanding mortgage, less 10% potential selling costs

Example: If a property’s current market value is £200,000 and the mortgage is £150,000. Property value is £50,000 – 10% (£5000) = £45,000.

Jointly owned assets

Your share of any jointly owned savings or assets.

National savings accounts and certificates (such as NS&I premium bonds)

We need proof of your latest balance or value held.

Investment shares or stocks

You must tell us the type and number of shares, not just the current value.

Money held for others

Any savings in your name that belong to someone else, including children.

How to pay your contribution

Once your contribution is calculated through the means test, the amount will not change. You need to pay your contribution before we approve the grant.

Example: if the total cost of work is £5,000 and your contribution is £1,000, you’ll need to pay £1,000 first. We’ll then fund the remaining £4,000 through DFG.