Deputyship Services
Money Carer assists care providers and local authorities with our multiple client appointee transfer facility. This is a project-managed service where we ‘hold the hand’ of our partners, resolve historical problems, and ensure the smooth transfer of appointeeships into the foundation.
Making the right strategic choice
Many care providers are struggling with securing the correct resources in order to provide core services and manage care contracts confidently.
Whilst acting as the corporate appointee may have been practical in the past, it is no longer a sensible option for many providers moving forward. Conflicts of interest, cost, risk factors and lack of experience are driving forward-thinking organisations to leverage the resources of Money Carer.
Local authorities also have difficulty in provide this non-statutory service to vulnerable community members and Money Carer work with over 110 councils to bolster their limited resources and to ensure that an important and independent money management facility is available to vulnerable people to whom they have a duty of care to safeguard.
Our Appointeeship Service
The award-winning appointeeship service from Money Carer has been provided entirely independently since we started our national social enterprise over 14 years ago in 2009.
We manage the welfare benefit and daily money management responsibilities securely for thousands of clients as a trusted national partner of the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).
Our comprehensive case management system and banking platform enable us to our clients with choice about their money management needs. Our systems also allow the care providers who support our clients to partner with us so that we can provide convenient and secure access to certain aspects of our clients financial information to assist them in the role .
Our experience in appointeeship is second to none and we can provide the appropriate level of assistance and intervention that is practically required on a client by client basis.
We operate an ‘open door’ referral policy which means that we can work with clients from all walks of life and with varying life challenges and circumstances.
Case Study – National Learning Disability Charity
The Money Carer Foundation (MCF) was approached by the Group Finance Director of a large care provider charity who had concerns about them continuing to act as the corporate appointee for their clients with learning disabilities.
The main concerns revolved around the costs and complexities of the organisation continuing as the appointee, the lack of understanding from staff in the field regarding financial decision making and the significant conflicts of interest risks to the business that the role had. This last point had been picked up on by the organisation’s regulator at a recent inspection.
The Solution
The Money Carer Foundation met with the care providers executive management team and presented a proposal for MCF to work with the care provider to fully project manage the transfer of the appointeeships. The process involved providing the care organisation with a structured project plan including letter templates and communication timelines with clients, family members and social workers (if involved)
Implementation
The project involved the direct transfer of circa 250 appointeeships to MCF and approximately 30 transfers to family members who were willing to take on the complexities of the role.
New bank accounts were opened in each client’s name and the DWP was contacted by MCF and the care provider jointly to manage the smooth transfer of incoming payments. MCF also assisted with decision-specific capacity assessments via their network of independent social workers as part of the consultation process.
The care provider has now realised a significant cost saving, reduced risk and removed conflict of interest criticism and support workers’ time is focused on delivering core care needs without this being diluted due to being side-tracked with money management matters.
Protected by our Appointee
Security Bond
The Appointee Security Bond was developed by the Money Carer Foundation in partnership with Security Bonds Ltd and Aviva Insurance. As an organisation, we understand the importance of accountability and transparency and the introduction of the bond reinforces these principles.
Emulating the requirement for solicitors and family members by the Court of Protection applying to be authorised as the court appointed deputy, we introduced the Appointee Bond in bond in 2018. The bond costs £35 per year and protects the vulnerable person under appointeeship up to £16,000 in the event of theft or fraud by the appointee.
For non-professional appointees (family members and friends) the bond will recompense the vulnerable person in respect of honest mistakes made by the appointee without seeking financial redress from the appointee. Local authority safeguarding teams can inform Deputy Bond Services to enable them to start the claim process for the vulnerable person that has suffered financial loss.
Importantly, the appointee bond will aim to compensate the vulnerable person within 7 working days.
Some frequently asked questions
- What is the difference between appointeeship and deputyship?
- What legislation governs appointeeship?
- Why would someone need a corporate appointee?
- Who can be an appointee?
- What legal duties does an appointee have?
- What happens when a person with an appointees dies?
- Can Money Carer provide appointee bank accounts?
- Is appointeeship regulated by the MCA 2005
