An older woman is sat on a stair lift

£50 million boost to Disabled Facilities Grant ‘only part of the solution’, occupational therapists warn

 

A professional body for occupational therapists has warned that the government’s £50m boost to the Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) falls short of what is needed to support people to live independently at home. 

The investment, due to be distributed to local authorities next month, is expected to support around 5,000 more people to install home adaptations such as stairlifts, ramps, accessible bathrooms and assistive technologies. It brings total DFG funding to £761m.

Minister of State for Care, Stephen Kinnock, said: “Home adaptations play a crucial role in easing pressure on our NHS - preventing falls, speeding up hospital discharges and reducing admissions. This investment is part of our commitment to shift more care out of hospital and into the community, where people want to be.”

But the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT) has stressed that while the DFG is “essential” for enabling people to continue living in their own home, it is “only part of the solution”.

Director of Practice and Innovation at the RCOT, Karin Orman, said: “Without urgent investment in occupational therapists too, people risk waiting longer for expert assessments, which means people can get the changes they need to make their homes safe and accessible.

“Without occupational therapists, the right support can’t reach the people who need it most, when they need it. Disabled people deserve timely, tailored support that will help them live the lives they want, which means more than just money.”

ADASS chief executive Sally Burlington echoed the call for more investment in occupational therapy, commenting: “Our members tell us that occupational therapy services who are administering the grant still face multiple challenges such as increasing demand, lengthy administration processes including unnecessarily lengthy paperwork, restrictions on what the money can be spent on and limits to how much can be spent per person meaning local authorities can't support people quickly enough with this grant.”

Sally called on the government to review the statutory DFG framework “as a matter of urgency”, complete and publish its review of the £30,000 upper limit and means test criteria, and better resource occupational therapy to ensure the grant can “go further to improve people’s health and wellbeing”.