Decision Maker: Cabinet

Outcome:

Is Key Decision?: Yes

Is Callable In?: Yes

Date of Decision: November 19, 2025

Purpose: The Disability Facilities Grant policy has been updated to provide clarity on the parameters of the policy and applicants eligibility

Content: Disabled Facilities Grants (DFG) were delivered by the Grants & Adaptations Team within the Housing Service, in accordance with the current Housing Improvement and Adaptations Policy which was adopted in April 2020. Most of the adaptations that were carried out using DFG funds help to support residents to live independently for longer at home and reduce the need for care services or makes lives easier for family members who care for loved ones. As well as improving independence, these adaptations were also preventative measures, helping to reduce hospital admissions due to injuries from falls.   The Buckinghamshire Housing Improvement and Adaptation Policy was a published policy and had not been updated since its adoption and was currently being applied to those who approached Buckinghamshire Council to apply for assistance to keep people safe and independent at home. Since the last policy was implemented, a new non-statutory guidance on delivering DFGs was published in 2022, which had driven a review of the policy to ensure it reflected current best practice.   Since 2021-22, the DFG allocation for Buckinghamshire had been £4.065m annually and for 2025-26 it was £5.045m. The maximum mandatory DFG was £30,000, however, as building costs had risen sharply in recent years and the complexity of need (particularly for disabled children’s adaptations) had grown, £30,000 was often inadequate to fully meet complex needs. While demand for DFG remained high, if expenditure were limited to the mandatory DFG of £30,000 alone, it was likely that the service would be unable to spend the full DFG allocation leaving needs of disabled people unmet.   The DFG and Housing Assistance policy set out how the council would use its discretion to provide assistance to ensure that needs could be met as well as to ensure the allocation was fully spent; the objectives of the policy looked to preventing accidents and poor health and to help people to remain living independently in their homes for as long as possible. In addition, DFG funding also supported other related purposes to meet the policy objectives (for example carrying out essential repairs and heating improvements). Budget spend was monitored monthly and priority was given to meeting mandatory adaptation needs.   The current review of the funding formula (by Government) may result in a smaller allocation for Buckinghamshire in future years which could impact on the ability to provide some discretionary assistance.   RESOLVED that the Disabled Facilities Grant and Housing Assistance Policy be approved for adoption.