At Winston Solicitors, we run our cases under a No Win, No Fee agreement with our fees being the equivalent of 25% + VAT of any compensation awarded to you.

The Historical Institutional Abuse Redress Board HIARB will pay a fixed sum towards legal costs which we will offset from the fixed deduction.

The legal fees paid by the board depend on the level of compensation awarded, therefore the more you are awarded the more legal fees the board will contribute.

You will need to be able to name the institution(s) where you suffered abuse. Any details you may recall about the abusers is of benefit to your application but not essential.
A statement of case will need to be drafted detailing the abuse suffered and the impact this has had. Our experts will speak with you and draft this statement on your behalf to ensure the best outcome for your claim.

It may be that medical records are required where treatment has been sought for physical and mental injuries.

If you have previously provided evidence to the Hart Enquiry, you will not need to provide this again as the Redress Board will be able to request this from the Public Records Office.

The board will pay compensation to victims who were suffered abuse whilst resident in an institution between 1922 and 1995, therefore approximate dates can be provided.

Yes - The National Framework for Continuing Healthcare encourages a person-centred approach, which requires the NHS to take into consideration what the individual (and/or their family members) say about their needs.

If the patient has the necessary mental capacity to make the application themselves then they may do so, with or without the support of others.

If the patient lacks mental capacity to apply, then you may apply for them. However, the information you can access and the steps you are able to take may be limited if you do not hold formal legal authority to act for the patient. If the patient is alive and has made Lasting Powers of Attorney for Finance and/or for Health and Welfare, then this will be their attorneys. Where there are no attorneys, the Court of Protection may appoint a deputy.

If the patient has passed away, then those with authority to act on behalf of their estate are the executors of their Will, or the administrators of their estate if they died without leaving a Will.

No – the individual’s illnesses and medical conditions are relevant but do not determine eligibility. What is important is the needs which arise from the individual’s health problems and the level of care and skill required to meet those needs. So, for example, a person with dementia may be eligible for CHC, but it is not the dementia diagnosis that makes the individual eligible – it’s the mental and physical health needs which arise from that dementia (such as cognitive impairment, or immobility) that are taken into account. Each case is different because each person’s needs are different.

You can ask a professional, such as a nurse or social worker, to complete the NHS Checklist screening tool to start the process, or you can contact the Integrated Care Board directly to request an assessment.

It can take several weeks from start to finish. The guidance provides that a full assessment of eligibility should take place no later than 28 days from the date of the positive NHS Checklist screening tool.

The National Framework for Continuing Healthcare indicates that, where an individual has been found eligible, a review should be undertaken within three months of the eligibility decision. After that, further reviews should be undertaken annually, or more frequently in line with clinical judgment and changing needs.

These reviews should primarily focus on whether the care package remains appropriate to meet the individual’s needs (as opposed to a reassessment of eligibility). However, if the NHS consider it necessary to re-assess eligibility, then it will need to arrange for a multi-disciplinary team (MDT) to complete a Decision Support Tool (DST) and make a new eligibility recommendation.

You may register an appeal against a decision of ineligibility. In England, this must usually be presented within 6 months of the decision.

It covers the full cost of the care package, so if the care is provided in a nursing or residential home, for instance, it would cover all the care home fees.

It is a concept developed by the Department of Health and Social Care to assist in the determination of eligibility for NHS Continuing Healthcare. According to the National Framework for Continuing Healthcare Funding and NHS-funded Nursing Care, the Nature, Intensity, Complexity, and/or Unpredictability of your needs may indicate a Primary Health Need.

CHC is a fully funded healthcare package provided by Integrated Care Boards on behalf of the NHS for individuals who are assessed as having a Primary Health Need due to significant, ongoing healthcare needs.

FNC is a financial contribution by the Integrated Care Board towards the cost of care and the cost of nursing care for those in a nursing home. It is an acknowledgement that you have nursing needs, but that they are incidental to your social care need. Unlike Continuing Healthcare Funding, which pays 100% of the care costs of those people who are assessed as having a Primary Health Need.

CHC is for people with significant healthcare needs, whereas local authority funding is typically for social care needs and may involve a means test.

Someone such as a nurse or social worker will complete the Department of Health and Social Care’s NHS Checklist tool to screen the individual’s needs, determining whether a full eligibility assessment is needed. If it is, then a multi-disciplinary team (MDT), best comprising a combination of health and social care professionals, will complete the Decision Support Tool (DST) to obtain further information about the individual’s needs, before making a recommendation to the Integrated Care Board about their eligibility.

Charities can provide free information, and for more direct help, organisations. Or law firms, such as Winston Solicitors, can help you.

Anyone who has care needs which go beyond what a local authority social services department can provide may be eligible for CHC. Assessors will apply the “Primary Health Need” test to help determine this.