Lasting Power
of Attorney.

Independent capacity assessments and certificate provider appointments for Lasting Powers of Attorney: granting, revoking and certifying, delivered by a permanent employed team across England and Wales.

Granting, revoking and certifying an LPA, with decision-specific capacity evidence where it is needed.

LPA capacity assessment: £720 including VAT

Certificate provider: £360 including VAT

Turnaround from assessment visit: 5 working days

Nationwide coverage: England and Wales

01At a glance

Services covered

Granting, revoking and certifying a Lasting Power of Attorney

Legal framework

Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Office of the Public Guardian

Format

Face to face or remote

Report

Standard capacity reports: peer reviewed and delivered within 5 working days of the assessment visit. Other instructions have an agreed timetable.

Coverage

England and Wales

02What is a Lasting Power of Attorney?

A Lasting Power of Attorney, usually shortened to LPA, is a legal document that lets a person appoint one or more attorneys to make decisions on their behalf. There are two types: property and financial affairs, and health and welfare. An LPA can only be made while the donor still has the capacity to make it, which is why the capacity question so often has to be answered first.

Capacity for an LPA is decision-specific. The question is not whether the person can manage their day to day money, but whether they understand what an LPA is, what powers it gives, who they are giving those powers to, and that they can cancel it while they still have capacity. A person may have capacity to make an LPA and not have capacity to manage their own finances, and the reverse can also be true.

What is a Lasting Power of Attorney?

A lasting power of attorney lets the donor appoint attorneys for property and financial affairs or health and welfare. The donor needs capacity to execute the instrument, an eligible certificate provider and registration before it can be used. A separate decision-specific report may help resolve genuine capacity concerns; it is not mandatory for every LPA or revocation. Our team confirms the assessment or certificate service and its scope before instruction.

03The test that applies to an LPA

Capacity to grant or to revoke an LPA is assessed under the two-stage test in the Mental Capacity Act 2005, against the relevant information for that particular document, and in line with what the Office of the Public Guardian expects of a certificate provider.

04An unwise choice of attorney is not the same as lacking capacity

The assessor does not decide whether the donor has chosen well. The issue is whether the donor can make the decision, not whether others agree with who they have appointed or what powers they have given.

05How the process runs

From the first enquiry to the report your solicitor, the Office of the Public Guardian or a bank can rely on. Most families meet this process at speed, at a hospital discharge or a care review, with little warning.

06How the process runs

The same five steps whether you need a capacity assessment or a certificate provider.

Enquiry and scoping

We identify whether the question is granting, revoking or certifying an LPA, the circumstances and any deadline, and confirm the right service, the fee and the timescale in writing before instruction.

Records and background

We review the relevant background, which may include the draft or registered LPA, medical records, financial or care context, prior assessments and any safeguarding or legal correspondence.

The assessment or certification visit

A qualified assessor meets the donor at home, in a care setting, in hospital or remotely, alone where possible, using the donor's own circumstances and taking practicable steps to support their decision-making.

Peer review

A second qualified professional reviews the report for reasoning, evidence and structure before it leaves the practice.

Report or signed certificate

The agreed instruction determines whether you receive a capacity report or certificate-provider service. Standard capacity reports are delivered securely within 5 working days of the assessment visit; enhanced or wider work has a separately agreed timetable. Certificate signing depends on the provider being eligible and satisfied about the statutory requirements, with arrangements confirmed before booking.

07Inside a Nellie Supports report

Every report follows a structure a court, solicitor, bank or the Office of the Public Guardian can scrutinise: evidence, analysis and conclusion in a traceable line.

Instruction and the specific decision assessed

Documents and records reviewed

The relevant information for that decision

Practicable steps taken to support decision-making

Assessment findings and observations

Analysis against the Mental Capacity Act 2005 test

Conclusion and professional opinion

Limitations, declarations and appendices

08Is your case more complex?

Our standard assessments are suitable for most instructions. If your case is more complex, high-risk or potentially contested, additional evidence may help. We can advise on the appropriate scope before booking.

Explore Advanced and Enhanced assessments

09How this works in practice

The situation

Mr S. had made a property and financial affairs Lasting Power of Attorney several years earlier, appointing a relative as his sole attorney. The relationship had since broken down and he no longer wanted that person managing his money. He asked his solicitor to revoke the existing LPA and to make a new one appointing his daughter, who had been supporting him day to day. Four months before, following a hospital admission, he had been diagnosed with vascular dementia.

The barrier

His solicitor's concern was not whether Mr S. understood what he wanted. It was that the existing attorney had already indicated he would challenge any revocation, and that the diagnosis would be the first thing he pointed to. A certificate provider's signature alone would have been a thin answer to that. Mr S.'s GP confirmed the diagnosis but declined to give an opinion on capacity for the two decisions, explaining that decision-specific assessment was not something the practice carried out. There was also a second problem the diagnosis had obscured: revoking an LPA and granting one are two separate decisions, and evidence about one proves nothing about the other.

How Nellie Supports helped

Because a challenge was expected, the instruction was scoped to include additional evidence and assessment work. A registered social worker reviewed the hospital discharge summary, the diagnosis letter, the cognitive screening scores and the existing registered LPA, then saw Mr S. twice at home, alone on both occasions, at times of day his daughter said he was at his most alert. Each decision was assessed separately and recorded separately: whether he understood what revoking the existing LPA would take away and what would follow from it, and whether he understood what a new LPA would give his daughter, its scope, and that he could cancel it again while he retained capacity. A structured vulnerability and undue influence enquiry tested whether the wish to change attorney was his own, which mattered because his daughter stood to benefit from the appointment. A second qualified professional peer reviewed the report before it was released.

Why it mattered

A diagnosis of dementia is not a finding that a person lacks capacity, and it is not the test. What defends a revocation and a new LPA against a later challenge is contemporaneous, decision-specific evidence recorded at the point of signing, showing what the donor understood and what steps were taken to support him. Assessing the two decisions separately, and dealing with the undue influence question on the record rather than leaving it to be raised later, meant the instruction was documented before it was disputed rather than reconstructed afterwards.

An illustrative example drawn from the pattern of instructions we receive. It does not describe an identifiable person.

10For solicitors, will writers and other professionals

Instruction is straightforward and the evidential standard is consistent whichever LPA question is being answered:

Scope confirmed in writing

The decision to be assessed, the fee and the timescale are confirmed in writing before instruction.

A traceable evidential line

Evidence, analysis and conclusion are set out in a structure a court, bank or public body can scrutinise.

Peer review as standard

A second qualified professional reviews every report before it leaves the practice.

Follow-up clarification

Clarification for instructing parties is included after the report is delivered.

11Why choose Nellie Supports for your LPA evidence

England and Wales' largest identified specialist private social work and mental capacity assessment practice, with Over 11,000 completed assessments by a permanent full-time multidisciplinary team.

For families

A clear fee, stated before instruction and confirmed in writing, with VAT and any travel set out up front. The visit is arranged around the person, at home, in a care setting, in hospital or remotely, and your report is delivered within 5 working days of the assessment visit, in a form banks, solicitors and the Office of the Public Guardian can rely on.

For professionals

A permanent, employed multidisciplinary team, not an ad hoc associate or referral-panel model: Social Work England and Social Care Wales registered social workers and a Chartered Psychologist (BPS). Every report is peer reviewed by a second qualified professional and structured for scrutiny, with reports relied on in the Court of Protection, the Family Court and the Court of Appeal.

12Why instruct Nellie Supports

England and Wales' largest identified specialist private social work and mental capacity assessment practice.

Employed, not outsourced

A permanent full-time multidisciplinary team, not an ad hoc associate, contractor or referral-panel model.

Over 11,000 assessments

Completed assessments across England and Wales.

Peer review as standard

Every report is reviewed by a second qualified professional before delivery.

Registered professionals

Social Work England and Social Care Wales registered social workers and a Chartered Psychologist (BPS).

Court-facing structure

Reports relied on in the Court of Protection, the Family Court and the Court of Appeal.

Independence

An independent opinion with no stake in the outcome, which is exactly what gives the evidence its value.

13Frequently asked questions

How much does an LPA capacity assessment cost?

A decision-specific capacity assessment for an LPA is £720 including VAT, fixed and confirmed in writing before instruction. Acting as certificate provider is £360 including VAT. Our standard assessment is suitable for most instructions. If complexity, risk or a potential dispute calls for additional evidence, explore Advanced and Enhanced assessments using the link below. We agree the appropriate scope and fee before booking. Travel is charged at £48 per hour including VAT (£40 excluding VAT) and confirmed before booking.

What does a certificate provider actually do?

The certificate provider confirms that the donor understands the LPA’s purpose and scope, that no fraud or undue pressure is being used, and that nothing else prevents its creation. The provider must be at least 18, meet the personal-knowledge or professional-skills route and be free of the exclusions in official guidance. They are not simply witnessing a signature.

Do we need a capacity assessment as well as a certificate provider?

Not always. Where capacity is not in doubt, an independent certificate provider is usually enough. Where there is a diagnosis, a fluctuating presentation, a family disagreement or any prospect of the LPA being challenged later, a full decision-specific assessment gives you evidence that stands up to scrutiny. Tell us the circumstances and we will say which you need.

Can someone with dementia still make an LPA?

A dementia diagnosis does not itself decide capacity. At execution, consider whether the donor can understand, retain, use or weigh the relevant information and communicate the decision with practicable support, then whether any inability is caused by an impairment or disturbance of mind or brain. We assess the actual LPA decision rather than inferring the answer from a diagnosis or general support needs.

Can an LPA be cancelled once it is registered?

Yes, if the donor has capacity for the revocation decision. The assessment considers what is being cancelled, the authority being removed and the consequences. A donor ending an LPA follows the Office of the Public Guardian’s deed-of-revocation process; a separate capacity report is not universally required to be sent with the deed. Obtain legal advice where the document, authority or proposed change is disputed.

How quickly will we receive the report?

Standard capacity reports are delivered within 5 working days of the assessment visit. Enhanced, retrospective or wider court instructions have a separately agreed timetable. Tell us about an urgent deadline at enquiry so we can confirm the earliest suitable arrangements.

Can our GP not do this?

A GP or another suitably competent professional may assess capacity within their expertise and available services. A medical practitioner is not universally required for an LPA capacity opinion. We can provide a separately instructed decision-specific assessment where appropriate; the professional should be chosen for the actual question and the donor’s needs.

Where do you cover?

Assessments and certificate provider appointments are carried out across England and Wales, at home, in care settings, in hospital or remotely where appropriate.

14Other support from our social workers

If a Lasting Power of Attorney is not the question you need answering, these areas may fit better. Each has its own hub and its own dedicated services.

Mental capacity assessments

Decision-specific capacity assessments across finances, property, care, residence and litigation.

NHS Continuing Healthcare

Our NHS Continuing Healthcare service supports the England assessment, review and appeal pathway. Wales has a separate framework; confirm the relevant service before instruction.

Expert capacity reports and reviews

Independent expert reports and critical review of existing capacity evidence.

15Services we provide

Each LPA decision needs its own relevant information and conclusion. More than one decision or instrument may be considered during the same suitable appointment. Tell us what needs to happen so we can confirm the right service and scope before instruction.

16Explore LPA support

Lasting Power of Attorney

Capacity evidence and certificate provider services for making, certifying and revoking a Lasting Power of Attorney.

Nellie Supports explains legal and procedural frameworks but does not provide legal advice.

17Not sure which stage you are at?

Tell us who the person is, what has happened and any dates involved, and we will confirm the right support and the fee in writing.

18Lasting Power of Attorney

3 assessments

Capacity to grant a Lasting Power of Attorney

Where the question is making an LPA, not day-to-day finances.

Capacity to revoke an LPA

For cancelling an existing Lasting Power of Attorney by deed of revocation.

Certificate provider for an LPA

Independent professional certification that the donor understands the LPA and is acting freely.

19What is a critical review of a mental capacity assessment?

What a critical review of a mental capacity assessment is, including report flaws, evidence gaps, reasoning and litigation scrutiny.

20What is capacity to act as a trustee?

What capacity to act as a trustee means, including trustee duties, property responsibilities, conflicts and decision-specific evidence.

21Mental capacity assessments for vulnerable adults and safeguarding

Guidance on mental capacity assessments and safeguarding in England and Wales, including decision-specific evidence and the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

22Who can complete a COP3 assessment?

Who can complete a COP3 assessment, including suitable assessors, professional expertise and Court of Protection evidence requirements.

23How enhanced reports support court and solicitor scrutiny

How enhanced reports support court and solicitor scrutiny, including evidence, reasoning, relevant information and professional opinion.