Disabled adaptations

You may find that it becomes more difficult to manage your home as you get older, and that day-to-day tasks are becoming more difficult. We can help to make your home more comfortable to live in by making appropriate changes to your house and immediate surroundings.

You can ask us to make adaptations to meet your needs, and we'll do what we can to help you live in your home safely and independently for as long as possible.

The way we deal with your request will depend on the type of adaptation you require.

Our Home Adaptations and Disability Funding Grant (DFG) Policy explains what we will and won’t do, and how we make our decisions. 

Below is a summary of some of the key points, or you can read the full policy online.

Home Adaptations and Disability Funding Grant (DFG) Policy - key points

Our commitment

• We'll make it easy for you to contact us about adaptations
• We'll support you through the process and make it as easy as possible for you
• We won't increase your rent as a result of adaptations
• We'll make sure that equipment is safely installed and maintained

Work costing less than £1,000

If the work you need is likely to cost less than £1,000, we'll usually carry out the work and you won't have to pay anything. You don't need a referral from an Occupational Therapist (OT), or to complete a consent form for small adaptations. You can request the work in the same way that you'd usually report a repair.

Examples this type of work could include:

• Rails (excluding simple grab rails)
• Banister rails
• Handrails to steps or entrance paths
• Dropdown WC rails
• Mopstick handrails to staircases
• Window restrictors
• Installation of lever taps
• Minor alterations to heating systems
• Extending pull-cord switches
• Intercom system alterations or installations
• Changing height of switches/sockets
• Half steps

We'll do the work at a time which is convenient to you within normal working hours. If we can't complete the work in this time we'll explain the reasons, and agree a reasonable time-scale with you.

Work costing more than £1,000

If you need an adaptation that's a bit more complicated, then we'll need a letter from an Occupational Therapist (OT) confirming that the work you've requested is the right thing to meet your needs. We can help you arrange this.

If the adaptation the adaptation will cost less than £2,0000 then we will pay for it.

If it's more expensive (for example installing a wet room or stair lift) then you can apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) to help pay for it. These grants are given by the local authority (council). We can explain how to contact the council to make an application, and if you need help to fill in your DFG application form please get in touch with our friendly Customer Accounts team, on 01225 366000 or by emailing customeraccountshelp@curo-group.co.uk.

A DFG is subject to a means test but, if you receive certain types of state benefit or have a low income and savings of less than £6,000, you will probably not have to pay anything towards the cost.

If you want to carry out work which you intend to pay for yourself, or which is funded by DFG, you'll need our permission before you can start work. We'll usually give consent to reasonable requests, although we may require you to agree to some conditions; this might include, for example, an agreement to pay for annual servicing or safety checks. You can find out more about our Property Consents Policy on our Policies page.

The council may help you to complete the consent forms, but if you are paying for the work yourself, you can apply online.

Reasons why we wouldn't make the adaptation

Although we'll always do what we can to support you to be able to keep living in your home, sometimes this won't be possible.

We won't make the adaptation if:

• the person needing the adaptation isn't listed on the tenancy
• the adaptation is to reduce overcrowding because more people are living in the home than there were at the start of the tenancy
• we have another home available that already has the adaptations that you need
• the work isn't appropriate for your home

Download our leaflet ' Adapting your home if you're disabled'

Download our leaflet 'Looking after your stairlift'

If you require additional ongoing support to remain independent in your home such as:

• a 24-hour alarm with support on hand
• visits and falls support
• help after a hospital admission

Then contact our Independent Living Service on:

01225 366196