NHS Continuing Healthcare
CHC Assessment Support: Prepare for the Checklist and DST with a Registered Social Worker
Specialist preparation and representation for NHS Continuing Healthcare assessments across England
CHC assessment support helps a family prepare for an NHS Continuing Healthcare Checklist or full Decision Support Tool assessment. A registered social worker explains the process, prepares the evidence of need across the twelve care domains, and can attend the assessment meeting to present that evidence, so the person's needs are recorded accurately and the eligibility decision is made on complete information.
From £1,250
Fixed fee, plus VAT, stated before instruction
One working day
Enquiry triage response
England
Wales runs a separate Continuing NHS Healthcare framework
Social work led
Registered social workers, peer reviewed
Nellie Supports is England and Wales' largest identified specialist private social work and mental capacity assessment practice, operating through a permanent, full-time employed team that has completed more than 11,000 assessments. Our NHS Continuing Healthcare support is social work led: we prepare and present the evidence of need. We are not a law firm and not a claims company.
When you may need assessment support
A Checklist is a screening tool completed by a health or social care professional to decide whether a full assessment is needed. A positive Checklist does not award funding; it triggers the full assessment, where a multidisciplinary team scores the person's needs across the twelve care domains of the Decision Support Tool.
Families are often given little notice of these meetings and no guidance on what evidence matters. Support at this stage means the person's day-to-day needs are described accurately, in the language of the domains, before the Integrated Care Board makes its eligibility decision.
The framework the assessment applies
NHS Continuing Healthcare in England is governed by the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care, in its 2022 revision. Eligibility turns on whether the person has a primary health need.
A primary health need is judged by the nature, intensity, complexity and unpredictability of the person's overall needs. The Decision Support Tool informs that judgement; it does not replace it.
Nature of the person's needs
Intensity of the person's needs
Complexity of the person's needs
Unpredictability of the person's needs
Framework: National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care (2022 revision); the primary health need test; Integrated Care Board decision-making
For more, read our guide: The NHS Continuing Healthcare process explained
Our support process
Initial enquiry and triage
Contact us by phone, email or website form. We gather the key details and confirm whether assessment support is the right route within one working day.
Scope and fixed fee
We confirm the level of support, the fixed fee including VAT and any travel charge, in writing before you commit to anything.
Evidence preparation
A registered social worker reviews the care records and prepares the evidence of need against the twelve care domains of the Decision Support Tool.
Coaching or attendance
For the preparation pack, a coaching session explains the meeting and what to say. For full representation, your social worker attends the MDT or DST meeting and presents the evidence.
After the decision
We explain the written decision and, where the outcome is not eligible, the challenge options and the six month timescale.
What you receive
Support is practical and evidence led. Depending on the level you choose, you receive:
A plain English explanation of the Checklist and DST process
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A domain-by-domain summary of the person's evidence of need
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A preparation coaching session before the meeting
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Written representations for the assessment meeting
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Attendance and representation at the MDT or DST meeting
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A written summary of the meeting and the next steps
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Fees
From £1,250 plus VAT
Checklist screening support £1,250 plus VAT. Full DST assessment with MDT or DST representation £3,750 plus VAT. Travel for in-person attendance is confirmed in writing before booking.
Travel for in-person attendance is confirmed in writing before booking.
Fixed fee confirmed in writing
The whole price, VAT included, is agreed before instruction.
Records review
A registered social worker reads the care records properly.
Evidence mapped to the twelve domains
Needs are set out in the language the assessment scores.
Coaching or representation
Preparation coaching, or attendance at the meeting, by level.
Peer review as standard
A second qualified professional reviews the work before it is used.
Clear next steps
A written explanation of the decision and what can follow it.
How CHC assessment support works in practice
A daughter had five days' notice of her father's Decision Support Tool meeting. He had advanced Parkinson's, and on his best days he could hold a conversation and manage a cup of tea. She was terrified the meeting would see that man and miss the one who choked on his food twice a week and could not be left for twenty minutes.
A registered social worker read the care records and mapped what was actually written there to the twelve care domains: the choking risk, the night-time supervision, the medication timed to the quarter hour. On the day, the social worker sat beside her and presented that evidence domain by domain, so the multidisciplinary team assessed the whole picture rather than a good morning.
The eligibility decision was the Integrated Care Board's to make. What changed was that it was made on the complete evidence.
This is an illustrative example. It does not describe any individual client.
Why families and professionals choose Nellie Supports
Social work led, not a claims company
Registered social workers prepare and present the evidence of need. We are not a call centre and not a no-win-no-fee operation.
Evidence in the language of the domains
Needs are described the way the Decision Support Tool scores them, so nothing important is lost in translation.
Fixed fees, VAT included
The whole price is published and confirmed in writing before instruction. No percentages, no surprises.
A permanent employed team
A full-time, in-house multidisciplinary team, not an ad hoc panel of associates, with more than 11,000 assessments completed practice-wide.
Peer reviewed as standard
Everything we prepare is reviewed by a second qualified professional before it is used.
Honest about outcomes
Eligibility is the Integrated Care Board's decision. We never promise a result, and we say so plainly.
Frequently Asked Questions About CHC Assessment Support
Does a positive Checklist mean funding is awarded?
No. The Checklist is a screening tool, not a decision. A positive Checklist triggers the full assessment, where a multidisciplinary team scores the person's needs across the twelve care domains using the Decision Support Tool. The Integrated Care Board then makes the eligibility decision based on whether the evidence shows a primary health need. The Checklist therefore opens the door to assessment; it does not itself award funding.
Can you guarantee the person will be found eligible?
No, and no honest provider can. Eligibility depends on whether the person's overall needs amount to a primary health need, judged on the evidence by the multidisciplinary team and the Integrated Care Board. Our job is to make sure that evidence is complete, accurate and properly presented, so the decision is made on the strongest possible picture of the person's needs.
Do you attend the meeting in person or remotely?
Either, depending on what the meeting arrangements allow and what suits the person and family. Many Checklist and Decision Support Tool meetings now run remotely or in hybrid form, and we attend in whichever format the Integrated Care Board offers. Travel for in-person attendance is confirmed in writing before booking, so there are no surprises on cost.
What does the fixed fee include?
The published fee covers all the work described for the level you choose, with VAT included, from preparation of the evidence through to the meeting itself. Travel for in-person attendance is the only possible addition, and it is confirmed in writing before you book, so the total cost is known before any work begins. There are no hidden extras.
Is this legal advice?
No. Nellie Supports provides independent social work assessment, evidence and advocacy support. We do not provide regulated legal advice, and where a legal remedy is needed we will say so and support your solicitor's work. In assessment support this means we prepare evidence and represent the person's needs at the meeting, while legal questions remain matters for a solicitor.
Related NHS Continuing Healthcare guides
The NHS Continuing Healthcare process explained
The CHC Checklist explained
The Decision Support Tool and the 12 care domains
Who decides CHC eligibility
Other CHC support stages
If your situation is at a different stage, our team supports the full NHS Continuing Healthcare pathway.
CHC Appeal Support
Fast Track Review Advocacy
Retrospective CHC Claims
Nellie Supports provides independent social work assessment, evidence and advocacy support. We do not provide regulated legal advice, and where a legal remedy is needed we will say so and support your solicitor's work.
An assessment is coming up?
Contact Nellie Supports to discuss Checklist or Decision Support Tool assessment support. We will confirm the right level of support, the fixed fee and the next steps.
We aim to respond to all enquiries the same working day.
Written by Ben Slater, Founder and Managing Director, Nellie Supports. Read our editorial policy.