Disabled Adaptations Council Properties

You or another member of your household may require work to that property. In this section you can find out what works we can help with and the procedure for applying.

Minor Adaptations for Council Tenants

Do you have difficulty with day to day tasks in your home? If so the Council may be able to help to make life a little easier, by carrying out minor adaptations to your home.

What type of help is available?

The Council can put in some grab rails in your home to give you support or make you feel a little more secure and give you some confidence to move around.

Can you also provide walking frames and wheelchairs?

No. The Council will provide structural adaptations. Frames and wheelchairs are mobile aids and need to be obtained via Adult Social Care. Call Health and Social Care Connect on 0345 60 80 191.

I have difficulty getting in and out of my home because of the steps. Can you help with this?

Sometimes yes. We can put in wider steps or a ramp but the ability to do this will be based on the size of the adaptation concerned. Larger adaptation schemes will be required to go through a disabled facilities grant.

Is there anything else you can help me with?

Possibly. These may include lever taps for people with arthritis, sensory impairment fire alarms for people who have difficulty hearing or seeing and also specialist doorbells for people with similar problems. We may also carry out dementia friendly adaptations such as visual improvement measures, noise reduction measures and signage.

For further information on minor adaptations to your home call us on 01323 443321 or email adaptations@wealden.gov.uk We will listen to your requests and may be able to provide a minor adaptation however if we think you would benefit we may require you to get a full assessment carried out by an Occupational Therapist to ensure all your needs are met.

Mandatory Disabled Facilities Grant (Major Adaptations)

If you or a person living with you is disabled, you may qualify for a Mandatory Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) to adapt your property to enable the disabled person to live as independently as possible.

Who can apply for a DFG?

Owner-occupiers, landlords and a wide range of tenants (including Council tenants) and licensees can apply for a DFG. You can apply if you are the disabled person, the landlord of a disabled person, or someone living with a disabled person. Adaptations for Wealden District Council tenants are also administered through this process.

Who will qualify?

The DFG must be for a person who is registered, or could be registered, as a disabled person. The disability can be caused by physical illness or injury, a major sight, hearing, speech, or mental-health problem, or a learning disability. The Council work closely with Adult Social Care at East Sussex County Council and the disabled person will need to undergo an assessment by one of their Occupational Therapists, who will advise us what works are considered necessary and appropriate for their needs.

To arrange for an assessment to be carried out, you will need to contact Health and Social Care Connect on 0345 6080191. Should the Occupational Therapist decide that adaptations are required, they will then forward recommendations to the Council.

What works can be carried out:

Mandatory Disabled Facilities Grant are available for:

• Making it easier to get in to and out of your home
• Making it easier to get to your bedroom, bathroom, living room and kitchen
• Making it easier to use the toilet, bath and shower
• Making it easier to prepare and cook food
• Improving or installing a suitable heating system to meet the needs of the disabled person
• Helping you control lighting, power and heating
• Making it easier to get around your home to help you care for another person
• Making your home safe for you and other people who live in it
• Making it easier to get in and out of your garden

Does the Council have to give a grant?

If recommendations are made by the Occupational Therapist, the Council will then determine whether the works are reasonable and practical. The adaptation may also be refused if adapting the property is not considered appropriate for that type of accommodation or its occupants. In these cases our Housing Solutions Service would assist you in moving to more suitable accommodation.

How will the grant be calculated?

To ensure that the grant goes to the most needy households, the level of grant is decided by a means test which looks at the income and capital/savings of the disabled person and their spouse or partner. You may have to make a contribution towards the cost of any grant eligible works.

If the grant is for a child under the age of 19, and you receive child benefit for that child, there is no means test assessment for the mandatory DFG.

If you are in receipt of one of the following income-related benefits, you would normally be eligible for a 100% grant

• Income Support
• Income based employment support allowance
• Housing benefit
• Guaranteed pension credit
• Income-based job-seekers allowance
• Working tax credit with an annual income of less than £15,050
• Child tax credit with an annual income of less than £15,050
• Universal Credit

How much is the level of the grant?

The maximum mandatory limit for the grant is £30,000. If the cost of the works is less than £30,000 and you have been assessed at having a contribution, the amount of grant will be the cost of the works less your assessed contribution. If the cost of the works exceed £30,000, the amount of grant will be the maximum grant limit less your assessed contribution.

Please note: The Council can only proceed with an application for a DFG should a recommendation be made by the Occupational Therapist and if you start work before the Council approve the application, no grant can be paid in retrospect.

I need some help with all of this?

Council officers will assist you in all aspects of making an application and arrange for estimates of work to be obtained from the Council’s approved contractor.  

No work should start on an adaptation until the funding has been fully approved as funding cannot be awarded in retrospect.

Children’s Home Adaptations Service

Information on adaptations for children can be found through the East Sussex Children’s Integrated Therapy and Equipment Service 

Further Information

For further information contact us using the details below, or contact:

• Health and Social Care Connect: Telephone – 0345 60 80 191
• Health and Social Care Connect: Getting Help Webpage (external link)
• Sensory Impairment Team:
  South Wealden Telephone – 01323 747333
  North Wealden Telephone – 01273 482770

To find out more about the adaptation process please read The communities and Local Government website .