How proposed care cost and pension changes may affect your estate

National Care Service: what the proposed care cost changes could mean for your will and estate

On 29 September 2026, Prime Minister Andy Burnham used his Labour conference speech to set out plans for a National Care Service in England, funded by changes to the State Pension triple lock from April 2030. If delivered, it would provide free personal care for older people, based on need rather than ability to pay.

For families in Bristol and across the South West, that raises a fair question: if the rules on paying for care change, should you change how you plan your will, pension and estate?

Currently nothing has changed yet, and these plans are quite a way off – however, understanding the current system and the proposals will help you make better decisions today.

How does care funding work at the moment?

In England, when an older person needs care, the council looks at their income and their capital to decide how much they pay.

Income means what you receive: pensions, benefits and other regular payments. You are expected to put what you can afford towards your care, but the council must leave you with a minimum amount to live on.

Capital means what you own: savings, investments and, in some cases, property.

The limits are:

• Under £14,250: your capital is ignored and you pay from income only.
• Between £14,250 and £23,250: the council treats your savings as extra weekly income, adding £1 a week for every £250 (or part of £250) over £14,250.
• Over £23,250: you pay the full cost of your care yourself, known as being a ‘self-funder’.

These limits have not changed since 2010, so rising prices push more people over them every year.

How does owning property affected care costs?

• Care at home: your house is not counted.
• Permanent move into a care home: your house is ignored for the first 12 weeks. After that it usually counts, which often pushes people over £23,250.
• Partner or qualifying relative: the house can still be ignored if a partner or qualifying relative continues to live there.
• Deferred Payment Agreement: if you don’t want to sell, the council can pay the care home now and recover the money later from the sale of the house or from your estate. It works a little like a loan against your home, with interest and fees.

Are there exceptions?

If your needs are assessed as primarily health-related, NHS Continuing Healthcare can pay in full with no means test.

Also, if someone gives away money or property to avoid care costs, the council can still treat them as owning it (known as ‘deprivation of assets’) and charge accordingly.

What are the proposed changes to care costs?

The headline proposal is a National Care Service for England. According to the government, it would:

• provide free personal care for older people, such as help with eating, bathing and using the toilet;
• be introduced in phases during the next Parliament, with its scope growing as funding and workforce capacity allow; and
• not cover accommodation and food (‘bed and board’) in a care home, so the current means-tested contributions would remain.

Baroness Casey’s independent commission will recommend how and when the service should be built, informed by public engagement and cross-party talks. Her report is due in summer 2027, and the details of eligibility and exactly what ‘personal care’ includes still need to be worked out.

This concept isn’t new: A National Care Service was proposed back in 2009, and a first stage became law as the Personal Care at Home Act 2010, before the coalition government dropped the plans and the Act was later repealed.

What is changing for the State Pension?

The triple lock currently raises the State Pension each year by the highest of inflation, average earnings growth or 2.5%. This stays in place until April 2030, and the government says it will increase the State Pension by over £2,000 during this Parliament.

From April 2030, an ‘adjusted’ triple lock would raise the pension by 2.5% or inflation, whichever is higher, and by more if needed to keep its value in line with earnings.

The government says the State Pension would still rise every year, but estimates the change would reduce spending by around £15 billion a year by the end of the 2030s. Those savings are intended to fund the National Care Service without borrowing.

Simply put:

Nobody’s pension would go down, but over time it is likely to grow more slowly than under the current triple lock.

How could the changes to care costs affect estate planning?

Less pressure to ‘protect the house’ from personal care fees.
If personal care becomes free regardless of assets, one of the main worries about care costs eating into an inheritance weakens.

Accommodation costs would still be means-tested.
Savings and property could still be drawn on to pay for a care home place, so estate planning doesn’t become irrelevant. It simply covers a smaller slice of the bill.

Deferred Payment Agreements remain.
Any debt built up under one is still repaid from the sale of the home or from the estate, so your will and estate plan need to account for it.

Home protections remain.
Nothing announced so far changes the rules about a partner or qualifying relative living in the property.

Slower pension growth.
If the State Pension grows more slowly after 2030, people who rely on it may need to draw on savings sooner, leaving less to pass on.

Giving assets away remains risky.
Nothing announced so far changes the deprivation of assets rules. Councils can look at whether avoiding care charges was a significant motive for a gift, and may treat the money as still yours.

Should I change my will because of the proposed care cost changes?

These proposals are not law yet, so making any immediate changes isn’t necessary. The detail on eligibility and scope hasn’t been published, and Baroness Casey’s report isn’t due until summer 2027. Rewriting your will now to fit rules that may change would be premature.

However, it serves as a good reminder to keep on top of your estate planning:

• Is your will up to date?
• Do you have Lasting Powers of Attorney?
• Have you thought about how your home and savings could be used if you needed residential care?
• Do you and your partner share assets? If you’re unmarried, you may also want to read our blog about cohabitation reform, as the rules for unmarried couples differ.

Planning ahead with Bristol solicitors

At Daniel Woodman & Co, our friendly team of Bristol-based solicitors help individuals and families plan for the future with clear, jargon-free advice. Whether you need to make or update a Will, put a Lasting Power of Attorney in place, or deal with an estate through Grant of Probate, we are here to help clients across Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Bath and Swindon.

Get in touch with Daniel Woodman & Co. today to talk through your options.

This article is general information only and is not legal advice. The proposals described are not yet law and may change.