Local Council Funding Options For Stairlifts

By Bethany Ward on 4th September 2025

Are you aware that there are so many funding option routes available from your local council to help you cover this cost though? Let us guide you through ways for you to make the price of a stairlift much more affordable…

Disabled Facilities Grants

The Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) is a government grant available to assist those making alterations to their property up to a value of:

£25,000 in Northern Ireland.
£30,000 in England.
£36,000 in Wales.

To be eligible for a DFG, either you or someone else living in the house being altered must be disabled and have intentions to live in the property throughout the entire period of the grant. This period is normally five years, but exceptions are made for shorter lengths – such as when a person is terminally ill.

Make sure you have had a care needs assessment carried out by your local council before applying for a DFG. This assessment sees one of their social care professionals looking into how you manage everyday needs, so that they can advise on any support you require to make things easier.

If you are eligible for a DFG and have your care needs assessment completed, you can apply for the grant here. It is your local council’s responsibility to provide you with a decision within six months of you filling in your application, with any work needed to be finished within 12 months of your grant being approved.

The Scheme of Assistance

You may have noticed that Scotland wasn’t included in the nations listed when we discussed how to apply for a DFG.

This is because those in Scotland are to go through the Scheme of Assistance when seeing if local authorities can provide financial help.

A Scheme of Assistance grant must be provided by any of Scotland’s local authorities when help is needed to make home adaptations so that a disabled person can access standard amenities. This includes use of a bath, shower, sink or toilet.

Your local council often assesses your needs through an occupational therapist, so that they can ensure the changes being made are essential. If eligible, the grant provided must be at least 80 per cent of the eligible cost. However, this will go up to 100 per cent if you receive one of these benefits:

The guarantee credit part of Pension Credit.
Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance.
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance.
Income Support.
Universal Credit.

To get started with an application for a Scheme of Assistance grant, you will need to visit your local housing office to fill out a physical form. Alternatively, download the form online from the website of your local council.

Attendance Allowance

Your local council may still be able to help you with funding for a stairlift even if you are not eligible for a DFG of Scheme of Assistance grant mind.

For instance, people over the Stage Pension age may be entitled to Attendance Allowance if they have a disability or illness to assist them with personal care or supervision.

There are two rates available, which work out as follows as of April 2025 to April 2026:

A lower rate, which is a weekly amount of £73.90 and available to those who require help during the day or throughout the night.
A higher rate, which is a weekly amount of £110.40 and available to those who require help during the day and throughout the night.
People who are terminally ill will receive a higher rate too.

Both rates are normally paid once every four weeks, with the money not necessarily needing to be spent only on care. It can be used to fund stairlifts and other equipment which are designed to make sure a person can stay independent in the home, for instance.

Apply for Attendance Allowance by completing this claim form, making sure you have GP letters, prescription lists and care plans available to clearly identify your disability or illness. When assessing your eligibility, you may be contacted by the Department of Work and Pensions for further details or for them to arrange a doctor to visit you.

Your Attendance Allowance application will then be granted or declined in writing through a letter, with the date when the rate begins included if successful.

Personal Independence Payment

While Attendance Allowance is only available to those over the State Pension age, people with a disability or long-term illness that are under this age could be entitled to Personal Independence Payment (PIP).

So long as you are not already claiming Disability Living Allowance, you could receive this benefit to help to get around and receive assistance for completing daily activities.

Here is how PIP is set out:

A daily living component is awarded at a standard weekly rate of £73.90 or an enhanced weekly rate of £110.40.
A mobility living component is awarded at a standard weekly rate of £29.20 or an enhanced weekly rate of £77.05.

Take note that one or even both components could be claimed.

Head here to find out how to fill out a PIP claim form and apply for this benefit. The following evidence should be at hand to support with your application:

A diary detailing your daily routine.
A personal statement
A statement prepared by a carer, a family member or a friend.
Any medical evidence you have available, such as letters received from medical professionals, your prescriptions, and/or a patient summary obtained from your GP surgery.

Once submitted, a healthcare professional will assess your claim – this could involve a face-to-face assessment being needed. A complete assessment will then see you receiving a score that sets out the level of help you require, which in turn will inform if you are to receive PIP and, if so, how much.

Managed to secure the funding you need to elevate your home’s accessibility? We have a wide variety of stairlifts available to fit various home environments, from robust HomeGlide straight stairlifts to precision-engineered Flow X stairlifts for narrow staircases.

Explore our full range and let us become your partner in home mobility solutions today.

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