Court of Protection

[WorriedParent]

Hi, I’m a mother of 3 children, 2 18 year olds and 1 14 year old, one of the 18 year olds has severe disabilities and has no capacity to make decisions for himself, I have taken some advice from the local citizens advice bureau and it scares the life out of me!!! What can I put in place to make decisions on all aspects on my sons behalf, it all seems so expensive!! Can I get any financial support to put in place Deputy-ship, etc? I cannot do a lasting power of attorney for him as he doesn’t have the capacity to appoint me, any advice most appreciated.

Thanks

[pollyanna3]

Hi, I applied to the Court of Protection to act as Deputy for my daughter, at the time I was receiving Income Support and so did not pay any fee. If you contact the Court of Protection they will advise regarding payment of fees. I agree planning for the future is scary but it is so important.

[WorriedParent]

Thats great thanks, will try contacting them and see where it goes, thanks

[Jo145]

Hello. I did the Deputyship for my 22 year old disabled son. There is lots of information on the Gov website under Court of Protection. A Solicitor can do it all for you for around £1000 or you can do it yourself for free like I did. But it was a bit confusing & quite a lot of paperwork, just to warn you. The actual CoP fee can be waived depending on the savings your son has. (Again, have a look at the Gov website & it explains it, I think from memory it was a £3000 threshold). It took over 6 months to do it and they are useless on the phone when you try and chase up the application. What I have found is that I’m doing exactly the same thing I was with regard to financial decisions (although now legally) but no one really cares & if you ever have to mention that you are allowed to do something as you have Deputyship - people look at you blankly as they’ve never even heard the word before! I then find myself explaining that it’s like Power of Attorney but without the mental capacity of the person you are acting for. And they still look puzzled usually! You can only apply for Deputyship for matters of health and personal welfare at the time a specific decision is being made. Rather than the Property & Financial Affairs covering all matters in this regard. Anyway, to sum up - I’ve felt like the whole thing has been a bit of a waste of time to be honest! Hope this helps. Jo

[frances_is_a_sibling]

Hi @WorriedParent, I don’t have anything to add on the court of protection information as other people have covered this. But I just wanted to echo how scary it is planning for the future!! I feel this too, when thinking about the future of my brother who has severe learning disabilities.

If you haven’t already come across this guide from the Foundation of People with Learning Disabilities you might find it helpful. It’s called ‘Thinking Ahead’ and it breaks down all the different parts of planning for the future (housing, finances, deputyship… etc) that can feel really overwhelming. Hope it helps, here’s the link https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/learning-disabilities/our-work/family-friends-community/thinking-ahead

Best wishes and hope you have some support nearby for yourself during this stressful time. Take care, Frances

[WorriedParent]

Thanks very much I will have a look at that

[sianwhite]

Hi @WorriedParent,

At Mencap we have a Wills and Trusts service which provides all sorts of information and advice about planning for the future.

You can find all the details here: https://www.mencap.org.uk/willsandtrusts

I hope this helps!
Sian

[frances_is_a_sibling]

No problem, hope it helps. All the best and huge well done on facing this issue - it’s not easy and I know how scary it feels! Take good care of yourself during this time too. Best wishes, F

[pollyanna3]

Hi Jo, I applied for Deputyship from the Court of Protection for my daughter (age 36), I completed the paperwork myself. I then had to apply to purchase a property in our joint names, naming my mum as Trustee to act on behalf of my daughter’s half share. Sadly my Mum has died so it is back to the Court of Protection to nominate someone else as Trustee… back to more paperwork!!!