Grants are available to adapt your home. This will enable you to live safely, independently and longer in your home by improving access and facilities.
Disabled Facilities Grants (DFG) are available to:
- make it easier to use your toilet, bath or shower, for example installing a shower rather than a bath
- make it easier to get in and out of your home by installing ramps
- make it easier to get around the home and improve access to your bedroom, bathroom, living room and kitchen by widening doors, installing stairlifts, hoists or through floor lifts
- provide safe access to part of an outdoor space
- make kitchen facilities accessible for more independent wheelchair users.
View information on how to apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant.
Apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant
Owners, tenants and other occupiers can apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant. You can also apply for a grant for a disabled person who lives with you or a disabled child.
If you are an adult or are applying on behalf of an adult, you need to contact Lancashire County Council Adult Social Care and ask for an Occupational Therapist home assessment. Once a visit has taken place, an Occupational Therapist will send a referral to us containing recommendations for adaptations which are based on an assessment of your medical or physical needs.
If you are applying on behalf of a disabled child (aged 19 or below) you need to contact Lancashire County Council Inclusion Service and ask for an Occupational Therapist home assessment.
Once we receive the referral, we register the case and notify the applicant that we have received it. We will then check eligibility for a Disabled Facilities Grant. If you are eligible for a grant you will receive a visit from us to assess the feasibility of the recommended work.
Disabled Facilities Grant eligibility
Foundations (the national body for Home Improvement Agencies, who deliver the DFG) have developed a portal which you can use to check whether you could benefit from your home being adapted and whether you are likely to be eligible for assistance:
Complete the eligibility self assessment.
There are a series of questions about your property, mobility and the feasibility of adaptations. There is also a section called 'Means Test Calculator', where you can enter your own financial information which generates a response to advise whether you are likely to be eligible for Disabled Facilities Grant.
Please note: this self assessment will carry out a general assessment which will provide an indication of your qualification, this should not be taken as proof of eligibility as it is designed for guidance only .
View our Privacy Notice: Financial Assessment for Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) Applications
Finding a more suitable home
If you think your current home is no longer suitable, adapting it may not always be the best solution. There may be other homes already adapted or more suitable for adaptation that would suit your needs. We will discuss this with you when we receive your referral if required.
Disabled Facilities Grants - Service Standards
Legislation requires a decision from us to approve the grant or not within 6 months of receiving the full application (this includes all necessary information e.g. proof of home ownership or landlord consent). We will aim to achieve this within 8 weeks. Our budget is limited and the ability to fulfil the non-statutory timescales will depend on demand and available funding. These standards apply to all properties and tenures.
- in accordance with legislation, we will aim to complete the installation of all disabled adaptations within 12 months from the date of grant approval
- we will aim to process applications fairly, efficiently, courteously and promptly
- we will aim to pay all grant money due within 30 days of a valid claim on certified work
- where the cost of the work is £5,000, or more, we will put a local charge on the property. The local charge will last for 10 years. If the property is sold or otherwise changes ownership within 10 years of the completion date, we will require repayment of the grant. The maximum repayable amount at the change of ownership is £10,000.
During the period that we are considering the application a number of options will be explored with the applicant as follows:
- alternative options such as a possible move to a property owned by a Registered Provider or a private sector property
- liaison with local Registered Providers to determine whether it is more cost effective for the applicant to transfer to another property rather than adapt the existing property
- complete a financial assessment to determine eligibility for assistance and if a financial contribution will need to be made by the applicant.
View more information on our housing assistance policy