Direct paymentsMerton
Direct payments in Merton
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. London Borough of Merton says a direct payment can pay a self-employed carer, with some checks first. Below is what the council publishes about its rates and rules, and what an hour of care costs near you.
305 self-employed carers within about 45 minutes of Merton
An hour of care in Merton
- A self-employed carer near youTypical rate on PrimeCarers, our fee included
- £20.00
- Local home care agenciesMedian of 79 agencies nearby that publish a price
- £25.00
A budget worked out at the agency rate buys more hours from a self-employed carer. What a weekly budget buys each way is set out below.
What the council pays
Direct payment rates in Merton
London Borough of Merton does not publish its direct payment rates anywhere we could find. Your budget is set in your support plan, from the cost of meeting your eligible needs less anything you are assessed to pay yourself. Ask the council which hourly rate it used, because that decides how many hours the budget buys.
Hours for the money
What a weekly budget buys
A direct payment is a sum of money, so the useful comparison is how many hours of care it pays for. Move the slider to your own weekly budget.
Starts at ten hours a week at the agency rate. Move it to match the budget in your support plan.
- A self-employed carer on PrimeCarers12.5 hours
At £20.00 an hour. The typical rate near you, our fee included. The carer invoices for the hours, and that invoice is your record for the council.
- A local home care agency10 hours
At £25.00 an hour. The median published by 79 agencies near you. The agency sends whoever is on its rota.
Hours are rounded down to the half hour. Bank holidays are charged at one and a half times a carer's rate and Christmas Day at twice, so leave room in the budget for them. London Borough of Merton decides what your direct payment can be spent on, and your support plan is the final word.
Choosing your carer
Paying a self-employed carer in Merton
London Borough of Merton allows a direct payment to pay a self-employed carer, with conditions. You may use the direct payment for a self-employed personal assistant, but it is your responsibility to check that their self-employed status is correct, and you must give the council the HMRC letter showing your PA's Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) so the direct payment can be set up.
“provide us with the HMRC letter with your PA’s Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR). We need this to set up your direct payment.”
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 Merton
What the council publishes about paying the money, getting help and getting in touch. Each card links to the page we checked it against.
What the scheme is called
In Merton you will see it called the Merton Managed Account (MMA).
How the money is paid: Prepaid card
The direct payment is loaded onto a prepaid Mastercard that can be used for BACS transfers, standing orders and card payments, but not for cash withdrawals.
Provider: Allpay
How the money is paid: Managed account
The council can instead pay your direct payment into a Merton Managed Account, with payments made on your behalf for the services agreed in your care plan.
Provider: Merton Council (Merton Managed Account service)
Worth knowing
You must keep your direct payment paperwork, such as invoices and payslips, for at least seven years, even if a payroll company does your payroll.
Who is available
Self-employed carers in Merton
305 carers are based within about 45 minutes of Merton. You can see their rates and experience, and message them, before committing to anything.
305 private carers are based within about 45 minutes of Merton
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 MertonIn their words
Families near Merton on the carers they chose
“Without his support we wouldn't have been able to navigate bringing and keeping Dad at home.”
Emma P., 2021
About Aman A.Carer based in Surbiton · 3 reviews“Sarah has helped to improve the quality of my mother's life and increased her self esteem and it is reassuring to know that she is giving my mother the best care.”
Julia G., 2024
About Sarah Y.Carer based in Morden · 3 reviews“Since Elmare has been Caring for my father I have felt a massive improvement in his overall happiness and contentment.”
Lily S., 2020
About Elmare H.Carer based in Worcester Park · 3 reviews“She is just one of those people that looks around, sees what needs to be done and does it.”
Denise D., 2019
About Sharon R.Carer based in Croydon · 2 reviews“Mario was an amusing and affectionate companion - he for example looked out my father's favourite music, engaged him in conversation and made sure he was as comfortable as possible.”
Maggie C., 2023
About Mario da Assuncao N.Carer based in Greater LondonStep 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 Merton
Yes. You may use the direct payment for a self-employed personal assistant, but it is your responsibility to check that their self-employed status is correct, and you must give the council the HMRC letter showing your PA's Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) so the direct payment can be set up. The checks a council asks for are usually the carer's employment status for tax, their insurance and their DBS certificate. Carers on PrimeCarers are self-employed, hold an enhanced DBS and are insured while they work, and they invoice for the hours worked.
We could not find a rate that London Borough of Merton 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.
Usually it buys more hours. Carers near you typically charge £20.00 an hour against £25.00 for agency care, so a budget worked out at the agency rate buys more hours from a self-employed carer.
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.
London Borough of Merton's direct payments team on 020 8545 3415 or at [email protected]. If you do not have a social worker or care assessment yet, start with a needs assessment from adult social care.
Direct payments in nearby council areas
- Direct payments in Wandsworth
- Direct payments in Sutton
- Direct payments in Lambeth
- Direct payments in Kingston upon Thames
- Direct payments in Croydon
- Direct payments in Richmond 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 Merton that is NHS South West London.
Council details were read from London Borough of Merton'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. The local agency figure is the median of 79 agencies near Merton that publish a price. Carer rates are what carers near you advertise, read live.
Find a carer in Merton
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.