Budget managed by you or someone you nominate

You can arrange and pay for your own care with the help of Direct Payments.
Your personal budget can be paid to either:

• yourself
• someone you choose to manage the money for you, such as your son or daughter, spouse or parent. (This person should be there to help you with your choices, listen to you and respect your opinion)

This option may be ideal if you:

• want more flexibility with how your care and support is arranged and provided
• would like to choose your care workers or personal assistants
• have had a specific person recommended to you whom you wish to employ
• are confident with managing money and employing people

How it works

1. Sign an agreement

You will need to read and sign the Direct Payment Agreement, which sets out the responsibilities for yourself and the Council.

It will show:

• how much money you'll receive
• what you must contribute towards the cost of your support
• how your Direct Payment money should be used, for example, if it is to be used to buy different services or support
• terms and conditions of your Direct Payment.

View our Direct Payments Agreement

 2. Set up an account to receive payments

There are different ways to manage your Direct Payment.

We have a preferred method of payment when providing funds to you. This is an online bank account ‘allpay’ which works the same as a bank account. You can make telephone or online payments, but you cannot withdraw cash or use the account to make payments through a card machine.

3. Pay in your contributions 

You will also be expected to pay in your financial contribution towards the cost of your care.

You must pay your assessed contribution to ensure you have enough money to pay to meet your care needs.

Your contribution is the first part of the payment. Each week you pay in the amount that your financial assessment has shown you can pay towards your care (if any). This money will be used up first when you pay for your care.

4. We pay in our part of your personal budget

We will pay the Direct Payment funds into this account on a four-weekly basis, in advance.

We’ll aim to make the first payment to you within 2 weeks of the relevant paperwork being completed.

Visit allpay website

Receiving your Direct Payment

You must have one of the following accounts to receive your Direct Payment:

1. Virtual wallet account

This will be available from Autumn 2025.

2. Prepaid card account (allpay)

Allpay is the Council’s preferred means of processing Direct Payments. We can set up an allpay account for you, in your name, with a pre-paid debit card.

If you are managing a Direct Payment on behalf of someone else, we can still arrange the setup of the allpay account for you.

You can read more about allpay on our factsheet

Benefits of an allpay account 

With an allpay account you can:

• make secure payments for your care, without the worry that you will go overdrawn as spending is limited to the amount in your account
• check your balance, access recent transactions and set up standing orders or transfers at any time
• use either online or telephone banking as you prefer
• pay your own contribution in from your own bank account via standing order or faster payments
• receive notifications and alerts to help you manage your account

Also:

• you won’t need to provide us with as much information when we audit your account - as we’ll be able to access reports in your Direct Payment account
• you don’t need a secondary account holder with allpay (unless you want one)

What we’ll need to set up an allpay account for you

We need to carry out an identity check, but not a credit check. We will need the following pieces of information (photograph is acceptable, or you can show the Direct Payments team member in person):

• photographic ID 
• proof of address
• your National Insurance number (or the NI number of the person for whom the Direct Payment is issued) 

You’ll receive your card within 5 working days of the identity check being completed.

You can visit the allpay website for more information or call them on 0330 808 0102

Visit allpay website

3. Self managed account (current account)

Your Direct Payment can be paid into a bank account, such as a standard current account. This will need to be set up differently depending on who is managing your personal budget.

Budget managed by you

This account must be:

• separate from your own personal bank account
• a joint account - set up in your name and the name of someone (not an employee) who can help to manage your account if you are unable to. For example, they could pay your staff if you were in hospital
• used only to manage your care and support costs

Budget managed by a relative or someone else

This account must be:

• a separate bank account - not a personal one
• a joint account - set up in the name of the person managing your budget and one other person, such as another family member
• used only to manage your care and support costs

Sending us bank statements

We ask you to send us statements every three months so we can review your Direct Payments expenditure. 

We may agree a longer review period with you if all is running smoothly with your Direct Payment. We may also write to you to request bank statements for a period of up to 12 months (or more) if we have not had contact from you. 

Bank Statements can be sent to: AdultsDPStatements@cornwall.gov.uk

Managing your Direct Payment

It's important that you spend your money carefully and keep records to provide to us.

Spending your Direct Payment

When you spend your Direct Payment you must make sure that you meet all the needs that are in your care and support plan.

If it's in your plan, you could spend it on:

• respite care at home
• a short break in a care home
• day opportunities and activities
• transport
• a personal assistant
• support from a care agency

You cannot spend it on:

• living costs, such as food, gas, electricity, water bills, council tax, rent
• household repairs
• general furniture and household electrical items
• alcohol or tobacco products
• gambling
• debt repayment
• funeral expenses
• goods or services that are the responsibility of the NHS
• anything that has not been agreed in your care and support plan

Checking your spending

As you are managing your own budget, our direct payment support service will give you advice on how to set up and manage your records.

Make sure you keep all evidence of what you spend in a safe place.

This might be:

• receipts
• invoices
• copies of staff wage slips and time sheets

You’ll need to provide this information to us at regular intervals so we can make sure you are using your budget on the things in your care and support plan.

Please note: we will ask to reclaim any unspent funds, or any money that has been spent on things that are not detailed in your care and support plan.