RESIDENTS who use the county council's health and adult services will be asked to pay more for them if plans are approved.

Senior leaders in North Yorkshire’s health and adult services are being asked to approve plans to change the way people pay for the adult social care services they use.

The changes follow a public consultation by the County Council that ended in January.

Services will continue to be subsidised significantly by the council, and any increase to charges would be a contribution rather than the full cost.

The recommendations are that the full cost of care is taken into account when charging people who use services.

The new charges will come into place from September 2019 for people currently using these services and from June 2019 for new customers.

The charge for transport provided by adult social care to places where people receive a service –a day service for example - is increased to £5 per journey from September 1, 2019, with charges capped at £30 per week.

From April 1, 2021 the cost will increase to £7.50 per journey with a cap of £40 per week.

County Councillor Michael Harrison, executive member for adult services and health integration said: “Nationally, there is an expectation that those people who can afford to pay towards the cost of their social care services do so – and some of our charges have not been reviewed for almost a decade.

“So, we have consulted with residents and service providers on two proposals around transport costs and contributions to the full cost of care.

"The main impact is on people who have two care workers supporting them at the same time - as the council currently only includes the cost of one of those workers in how much it charges.

“The recommendations reflect changes to the proposals that have been made following the consultation.

“If the changes are approved, we will contact everyone who uses adult social care services to let them know how the changes will affect them individually.

"We will ensure that the appropriate level of care is in place in every case, and that people understand the reasons behind the changes.

"We will also advise people on how they can claim other benefits and support to which they may be entitled.”

North Yorkshire County Council has made £157m of cuts over the past nine years, including £40m less on frontline services and £117m of efficiency savings.