Care fees calculator
Care home fees in Portsmouth: will the council pay?
Portsmouth council paid care homes an average of £1,145 a week for a residential place and £1,254 a week for nursing care in 2025–26, £184 more than the typical English council (£962). If your savings, and usually your home, are worth more than £23,250, you’ll normally pay your own care home fees. Below £14,250 your savings are ignored.
What Portsmouth pays care homes
| Year | Residential | Nursing |
|---|---|---|
| 2025–26 | £1,145/wk | £1,254/wk |
| 2024–25 | £1,093/wk | £1,197/wk |
Average weekly fee the council pays external care homes for residents aged 65 and over. Source: the Department of Health and Social Care’s Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund returns (MSIF 2025-26 (final 2024-25 / provisional 2025-26)); the most recent year may be provisional.
Care homes in Portsmouth
22 care homes in Portsmouth are listed on AskBart. See care homes in Portsmouth
How the means test works in Portsmouth (England, 2026/27 thresholds)
- Over £23,250: you pay the full fee yourself until your capital falls to £23,250. Ask Portsmouth council for a care needs assessment anyway: you can still ask them to arrange your care.
- £14,250 to £23,250: Portsmouth council helps, and you contribute £1 a week for every £250 above £14,250, plus most of your income.
- Under £14,250: your savings are ignored; you still contribute most of your income, keeping a personal expenses allowance.
- Your home isn’t counted if a partner or qualifying relative still lives there, and for the first 12 weeks of a permanent care home stay. If it’s the only thing putting you over the limit, Portsmouth council must offer a deferred payment agreement, so you needn’t sell it straight away.
- Top-ups: if you choose a home that costs more than Portsmouth council will pay, a relative or friend can pay the difference.
Care funding & means-test calculator
Enter a few figures to see where you’re likely to stand in the care means test — whether you’d fund your own care, get help from the council, and which extra support you might be able to claim. It’s a plain-English guide, not a benefits decision, and nothing you type is saved or sent anywhere.
Likely to fund your own care
Your assessed capital of £230,000 is above the upper limit of £23,250 in England, so you’d normally be expected to pay the full cost of care until your capital falls to that level.
The means test explained · What happens when savings run out · Giving money away: deprivation of assets
Likely eligible for Attendance Allowance
Attendance Allowance is not means-tested — your savings don’t matter. At State Pension age and needing regular help, you can usually claim about £77–£115/week (lower or higher rate). Confirm the current rate at gov.uk/attendance-allowance.
What Portsmouth pays care homes
Portsmouth council paid care homes an average of £1,145.43/week for residential care and £1,254.37/week for nursing care in 2025–26 (DHSC). Self-funders usually pay the home’s own fee, which is often higher than what the council pays.
Get free, independent advice
MoneyHelper (from the government-backed Money and Pensions Service) has free guides to paying for care, and the Age UK Advice Line gives free, confidential advice.
This is general information, not financial, benefits or legal advice, and not a decision by any council or the NHS. It applies published England thresholds (2026/27) to the figures you entered; your actual assessment depends on your full circumstances, income and the rules that apply on the day. Always ask your local council for a financial assessment, and consider free advice from Bart or a specialist such as Age UK or Citizens Advice.
Free, independent help
Talk to an adviser
Not sure where to start with paying for care in Portsmouth? Ask Bart, our AI assistant, answers questions about funding, care types and what to look for straight away. For anything you’d rather talk through, leave your number and a person from AskBart calls you back within one working day.
We don’t sell your details or take commission from homes, so the advice is the same whichever home you choose.
Last reviewed 13 October 2026 by the AskBart editorial team. Thresholds are England’s 2026/27 capital limits; council rates are the latest the council has published.
More help: paying for care guides · the care home means test explained · compare another council