Direct paymentsBrighton and Hove
Direct payments in Brighton and Hove
If the council has agreed to pay towards care at home, you can take the money as a direct payment and choose who provides the care. A direct payment can usually pay a self-employed carer, on the council's conditions. Below is what the council publishes about its rates and rules, and what an hour of care costs near you.
45 self-employed carers within about 45 minutes of Brighton and Hove
What the council pays
Direct payment rates in Brighton and Hove
These are the rates Brighton & Hove City Council publishes for direct payments, with a link to where each one appears. Your budget is set in your support plan and can differ from them.
| What the rate is for | Rate | Applies | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct payments Monday to Friday hourly rate for people employing a personal assistant (2024/25 agreed rate)Older figure | £13.50 an hour | from 8th April 2024 | democracy.brighton-hove.gov.uk |
| Direct payments weekend hourly rate for people employing a personal assistant (2024/25 agreed rate)Older figure | £14.70 an hour | from 8th April 2024 | democracy.brighton-hove.gov.uk |
| Direct payments sleep-in rate (2024/25 agreed rate)Older figure | £61.00 a night | from 8th April 2024 | democracy.brighton-hove.gov.uk |
Choosing your carer
Paying a self-employed carer in Brighton and Hove
Direct payments in Brighton and Hove work under the Care Act 2014. A direct payment can usually pay a self-employed carer your family has chosen, as well as a personal assistant you employ or an agency. We could not find Brighton & Hove City Council's own wording on self-employed carers, so ask the direct payments team what it wants to see before anyone starts.
Councils tend to ask for the same few things before a direct payment pays a self-employed carer:
- the carer's employment status for tax, which HMRC's Check Employment Status for Tax tool on gov.uk works out in a few minutes
- proof that the carer is insured
- a DBS certificate
- an invoice for the hours worked, which becomes your record of how the money was spent
How direct payments work covers asking for one, what the money can buy and the records councils want back, and self-employed carer or employee? explains the tax question.
The council's arrangements
How direct payments are run in Brighton and Hove
What the council publishes about paying the money, getting help and getting in touch. Each card links to the page we checked it against.
How the money is paid: Prepaid card
The council provides a prepaid card account and loads the direct payment onto it every four weeks.
How the money is paid: Managed account
If nobody can manage the prepaid card for you, a separate organisation can hold the money and make payments on your behalf through a supported bank account.
Help with running it
PeoplePlus Independent Living Services. They give information and guidance about direct payments and help people recruit and employ a personal assistant.
Where the council points you to find a personal assistant
Worth knowing
After an assessment you can ask for a one-off direct payment to buy equipment that helps with daily living.
Worth knowing
Any assessed contribution towards your care has to be paid into the prepaid card account alongside the council's money.
Worth knowing
A direct payment cannot normally be used to pay a close family member unless an assessment has identified exceptional circumstances.
Who is available
Self-employed carers in Brighton and Hove
45 carers are based within about 45 minutes of Brighton and Hove. You can see their rates and experience, and message them, before committing to anything.
45 private carers are based within about 45 minutes of Brighton and Hove
Filter by what they charge, who drives, who does nights, and who speaks your language, then message the ones you like. Free, and nothing is booked until you say so.
See private carers for Brighton and HoveIn their words
Families near Brighton and Hove on the carers they chose
“Una felt safe, secure and loved in her time with Debbie which is a gift that I am eternally grateful for.”
Tisana S., 2024
About Debra S.Carer based in Lewes“She has been a massive help and contribution to me making steps to be able to be more independent and with my mental health she works very hard”
Andrew W., 2024
About Rose M.Carer based in Peacehaven · 3 reviews“The care Sally gave to Mum and Dad was second to none, nothing was ever too much trouble whether within the timeframe allocated or out of hours.”
Carole E., 2024
About Sally ann M.Carer based in Crawley · 2 reviewsStep by step
Using a direct payment for a carer you choose
- Get the assessment and the support plan. The council assesses the care needed and works out the budget. Say at this stage that you want a direct payment and would like to choose your own carer.
- Check what the council allows. Ask the direct payments team whether it will pay a self-employed carer and what it needs to see from them.
- Find carers and talk to a few. Search carers near you, compare rates, experience and reviews, and message your shortlist. None of that costs anything.
- Agree the hours and rate in writing. Match them to the support plan, and keep within the budget once bank holidays are allowed for.
- Keep the records. Invoices and statements are what the council looks at when it reviews how the direct payment is being used.
Questions
Questions about direct payments in Brighton and Hove
Usually, yes. A direct payment can pay a self-employed carer your family has chosen, employ a personal assistant, or buy agency hours. We could not find Brighton & Hove City Council's own wording on self-employed carers, so ask the direct payments team what checks it wants before anyone starts.
We could not find a rate that Brighton & Hove City Council publishes. The amount is set in your support plan, worked out from the cost of meeting your eligible needs, less anything the financial assessment says you pay yourself. Ask the council how it calculated the hourly figure, because that decides how many hours the budget buys.
It depends on the rate the council used. Carers near you typically charge £20.00 an hour. Divide your weekly budget by that to see the hours it buys, and remember that bank holidays are charged at one and a half times the usual rate.
In England a direct payment cannot normally pay the person’s husband, wife or partner, or a close relative who lives in the same household, unless the council considers it necessary. That is the direct payments regulations rather than this council's own rule, so ask the direct payments team how it applies it. Can my mum pay me to care for her? covers the other routes.
Only if you employ somebody. Paying a self-employed carer or an agency does not make anyone an employer. Taking on a personal assistant does, which brings payroll, holiday pay, sick pay, pension enrolment and employer's liability insurance. HMRC's Check Employment Status for Tax tool on gov.uk tells you which applies.
Start with Brighton & Hove City Council's adult social care team, whose direct payments page has the current details. If you do not have a care assessment yet, ask for a needs assessment first.
Direct payments in nearby council areas
- Direct payments in West Sussex
- Direct payments in East Sussex
- Direct payments in Surrey
- Direct payments in Sutton
- Direct payments in Croydon
- Direct payments in Kingston upon Thames
If the care needed is mainly about health, the NHS may pay for all of it through Continuing Healthcare, decided by the NHS rather than the council. In Brighton and Hove that is NHS Surrey and Sussex.
Council details were read from Brighton & Hove City Council's published pages and checked against them on 17 September 2026. Councils change their rates each April, so check the linked page before relying on a figure. Carer rates are what carers near you advertise, read live.
Find a carer in Brighton and Hove
See self-employed carers near you with their hourly rates, experience and reviews, and talk to the ones you like for free. Check with the council what your direct payment can pay for before you book.