Setting an Indicative Planning Budget
Scope of this chapter
This chapter covers indicative planning budgets.
Note: The guidance in this chapter should be read alongside Lincolnshire’s Resource Allocation Ready Reckoner Guidance, which is available in the Local Resource Library under Assessments.
Amendment
In February 2025, this chapter was amended to reflect feedback received following a full tri.x legal review of the Care Act 2014 Resource section, Meeting Needs.
This procedure will explain what an indicative planning budget is, how to set one and what to do if the budget that is set is not sufficient to meet the person's eligible needs.
Note: This procedure is used by all the following teams and services:
- Hospital Teams;
- AFLTC Area Teams;
- AFLTC Review Teams;
- Learning Disabilities Teams;
- Mental Health Teams.
An indicative planning budget is a 'ball-park' figure calculated immediately following the assessment. It estimates the amount of money it may take to meet eligible needs and is based on information gathered during any assessment process.
The indicative budget is refined during the care and support/support planning process to arrive at a personal budget figure that represents the final amount the Local Authority agrees is sufficient to meet all of the persons/carers eligible needs. The final amount may be greater or less than the original indicative budget estimated.
An indicative budget is important because it helps the person/carer (and anyone supporting them) to develop a Care and Support/Support Plan and make appropriate choices about how their needs can be met. Knowing how much financial resource is available manages expectations and reduces the risk of dissatisfaction when the final personal budget is agreed.
In order for the personal budget approach to be successful, the indicative budget should be set before the care and support/support planning process begins.
Starting any planning process without having a clear indicative budget should be avoided.
The process of setting an indicative planning budget should be timely, transparent and sufficient to meet the identified eligible needs.
See: The Personal Budget to read what the Care Act says about setting indicative and personal budgets, including more about what is meant by the terms timely, transparent and sufficient.
To meet the Care Act standard, it is necessary:
- to be able to explain how the Resource Allocation has been established, and the process for agreeing upon a figure in any one case.
- to put every eligible person with a social care need through the same process.
- not to charge people who pay for their care more than the actual cost to the local authority of buying a service.
- to give a person and/ or their representative an early indication of the amount of money that will be available to meet their eligible assessed needs. This is so they can base their planning on the resources available and consider creative ways to use the budget.
The Ready Reckoner Approach is being used in Lincolnshire to give an indication of the amount of money that may be required to meet eligible support needs.
The Lincolnshire Ready Reckoner was developed through extensive consultation with a range of stakeholders, including people receiving services.
The Ready Reckoner is an optional element included in the Adult Care My Assessment and should be used whenever an assessment or review needs to generate a new or revised indicative planning budget.
The Lincolnshire Resource Allocation Guidance (which reflects the Ready Reckoner Approach to calculating indicative planning budgets) is also available in the Local Resource Library under Assessments.
The indicative planning budget must be shared with the following people as soon as it is known:
- The person whose needs are to be met.
- Any advocate involved; and
- Anyone else involved in the care and support planning process.
You should also make available any information to explain how the indicative planning budget amount was reached.
We should encourage the person and/or their representative to use the Care Cost Calculator. If a financial assessment is being carried out and it is available, the outcome of this should be provided at the earliest stage. Understanding the implications for their personal finances can influence the options that a person chooses to explore during care and support planning.
The indicative planning budget is only an estimation of the amount it may cost to meet eligible needs. It will be refined during the care and support/support planning process and the final personal budget that is agreed may be higher or lower than the indicative budget.
However, despite being estimated, the indicative planning budget should still be sufficient to support effective care and support planning.
If you are of the view that the indicative planning budget is not sufficient to support effective care and support planning you should:
- review the formal record of needs to ensure that you have not made any recording errors; and
- review the process that you followed to set the indicative budget to ensure that you followed all the required steps.
If you continue to have concerns about the sufficiency of the indicative planning budget, you should speak to your line manager to agree further action required and next steps.
If the person has a unique set of circumstances that the Ready Reckoner has been unable to account for in the planning budget, an ‘Amend Personal Budget Request Form – Residential’, or an ‘Amend Personal Budget Request Form – Non Residential’ should be completed. Both forms are available in the Local Resource Library, under Providing Support and Personal Budgets.
Any process for reviewing an indicative planning budget should also be timely and transparent.
Sometimes a person (or their representative) may feel that the indicative personal budget is not sufficient. If you agree with this, you should follow the steps outlined above.
However, if you feel that the budget is sufficient to commence care and support/support planning you should:
- Provide information about the process used to set indicative budgets;
- Encourage them to engage with the care and support/support planning process;
- Explain that, during the care and support/support planning process the final personal budget will be decided and that, if necessary, may be higher than the indicative budget amount.
Despite reassurances, the person may continue to be dissatisfied with the indicative planning budget amount and, in this case, you must make them aware of their right to complain.
Last Updated: February 10, 2025
v61
