Arrangement Fee for Council arranged care and support

If you pay for your own care and ask Nottingham City Council to arrange this for you, an arrangement fee may apply. The fee is set in line with the Care Act 2014. The arrangement fee covers the work involved in arranging and administering your care and support on your behalf. This includes:

contacting and working with care providers
setting up and managing contracts
arranging or responding to changes in your care and support
ongoing administrative support related to your care

The arrangement fee is separate from the cost of your care and support services themselves.

Arrangement Fee - Frequently Asked Questions

The arrangement fee is a charge for people who pay for their own care (sometimes called self‑funders) and ask Nottingham City Council to arrange their care and support for them.

The fee helps cover the behind‑the‑scenes work involved in setting up, managing and paying for care services on your behalf.

You are a self‑funder if:

you pay the full cost of your care yourself, and

your savings or assets are over £23,250 (the national threshold), or

you have chosen not to have a financial assessment because your savings are above this level.

By law, the Council must help arrange care if a self‑funding resident asks. The law also allows councils to charge a reasonable fee for doing this.

At the moment, the Council covers these costs itself. Introducing the arrangement fee means the cost is shared more fairly and reflects the actual cost of arranging care, in line with national guidance. Many other councils already charge a similar fee.

No. All of the following are free:

care and support needs assessments

financial assessments

care planning

These are legal duties and will never be charged for.

The fee covers the administrative work involved in arranging and managing your care, such as:

finding and contacting care providers
setting up and changing care packages
paying care providers
raising and checking invoices
setting up direct debits
answering questions about charges and payments (which may include checking details with care providers)
dealing with care‑related queries or complaints
managing quality concerns

Yes. Many councils in England charge a fee to self‑funders for arranging care. Annual fees range widely, but the national average in 2025/26 was around £450 per year. Nottingham’s fee is in line with this.

If you receive an invoice from the Council’s Fairer Charging team, your care is being arranged and managed by the Council.

This may have started through Adult Social Care, the NHS, a GP, or after a hospital stay.

For 2026/27 the arrangement fee is equivalent to £433.16 per year, but we will charge you every 4 weeks as part of your invoice from Fairer Charging. This will work out as £33.32 per invoice, equivalent to a weekly cost of £8.33. The fee starts on 30th May 2026.

You will continue to be charged every four weeks while the Council arranges your care.

If the Council arranges your home care, it uses a list of approved providers. The Council has agreed an hourly rate with these providers, which is passed on to residents.

The current hourly rate is £21.92. This rate was agreed April 2026. It is a flat rate, which means:

there are no extra charges for weekends, and

there are no extra charges for bank holidays

Yes. You can contact any care provider directly and arrange your care privately if you prefer. However, private rates are set by providers and may be higher than the Council’s rate. For example:

Private hourly rates can be £3 to £7 more than the Council rate

Some providers charge higher rates at weekends (around £9 more per hour)

Some providers charge much higher rates on bank holidays, and this can sometimes be double the normal daily rate (around £18 more per hour)

If you arrange your care directly with a provider:

you will not pay the arrangement fee
you will deal with the provider directly for payments and queries

If your savings drop below the threshold and you become eligible for Council‑funded care after a financial assessment, the arrangement fee will no longer apply.

Please tell the Fairer Charging Team if your circumstances change.

You can contact Fairer Charging by telephone on 0115 876 2525 or email the team at fairercharging@nottinghamcity.gov.uk and someone will call you back.

The arrangement fee is an annual charge, spread across the year. You will continue to be invoiced every four weeks while the Council arranges your care.

If you would prefer to arrange your care yourself, you can do this in a couple of ways:

You can contact your current care provider directly and ask them for a private quote, or
You can choose a provider from the Council’s online directory, Your Notts Directory:

Your Notts Directory Website

The directory lists local care providers and includes contact details to help you get in touch.

There is also a short YouTube video that explains how to use the Your Notts Directory step by step:

If you choose to arrange your own care and support privately, there are a few important things to think about to help you make safe and informed decisions.

If your care involves regulated activities (for example, personal care, help with medication, or treatment), the provider must be registered with and regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The CQC is the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England. They regularly inspect services and publish reports and ratings online. You can check a provider’s inspection history and rating online

CQC Website

All carers should have an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. This helps ensure that people providing care and support are suitable to do so.
You may wish to ask what arrangements are in place if your usual carer or care workers are unwell, on holiday or unable to attend at short notice. It is important to know what backup or emergency support is available so your care needs can still be met.
You should make sure you have clear written terms or a service agreement, that set out costs, notice periods and what happens if care cannot be provided.
Be aware of how to raise concerns or complaints with a provider and what their complaints process is.

If you decide to directly employ a care worker (rather than choosing an agency), you will become an employer. This means you will need to think about appropriate training for the care worker, payroll and tax arrangements, Employers Liability Insurance, contingency planning for unexpected sickness or absence. Getting advice before employing someone directly can help you understand these responsibilities and plan effectively.

You can contact Nottingham Health and Care Point (NHCP) by telephone on 0115 876 3330, or make a self-referral online:

NHCP self-referral form

The Council manage a list (a Framework) of homecare providers, where an hourly rate has been negotiated for the Council to pass on to residents. This hourly rate has been £21.13 since November 2024 but is subject to review.

The Council rate can be around £3 to £7 per hour, less than private rates.

The Council’s homecare rate is a flat rate; there are no additional payments for weekends or bank holidays. Privately arranged providers may charge an increased rate for weekends, which can be around £9 more, per hour. For bank holidays, some providers may have a specific bank holiday rate, but some may charge double the day rate, which could be around £18 more, per hour.

Arranging your care through the Council also means that all your care provision and fees are included in one single invoice, meaning that you have less administration to manage. The Council will also deal with any queries or issues that you have with the provider on your behalf.

The Council will manage any safeguarding issues or concerns regarding your care provider. You should report these to the Council through Nottingham Health and Care Point (NHCP) for investigation.

The care providers used by the Council are registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), meaning that they have been vetted for quality and safety, reducing the risk of engaging poor-quality care.

The council is responsible for ensuring care remains consistent, even if a provider fails.

You can contact Nottingham Health and Care Point (NHCP) to confirm who your care provider is. If you want to find out some additional information about your provider you can look them up on the Council’s online Directory:

Your Notts Directory Website

Care Act 2014 guidance

Your Notts Directory Website