SEFTON Council broke the law when it froze payments covering the cost of care for elderly people in residential homes, a High Court judge has ruled.
The local authority froze payments as part of a bid to save £44m during last years budget cuts. A total of £65m must be saved by April next year.
The landmark ruling at the High Court in Manchester will affect 140 local authorities which have frozen or reduced payments to those living in residential care homes.
Yesterday, Judge Raynor QC ruled that Sefton Council should not have frozen payment levels to almost 1,600 elderly people in care.
He said that care homes in Sefton should have been allowed to voice their concerns over a two-year payment freeze period and that the local authority had a duty to consult with residential providers locally.
Failure to carry out consultation made the payment freeze unlawful.
Sefton Care Association, Melton Health Care Limited, Westcliffe Manor Nursing Home, Benridge Care Homes Limited and Craignair Care Home were the five claimants who took the authority to the High Court.
The last time that Sefton Council increased fees was in April 2009, meaning that elderly residents, many with dementia, and their families have been forced to top up the difference between the councils contribution and the level of care.
Dan Lingard, Chairman of Sefton Care Association and owner of Birch Abbey Care Home in Southport, said: This win gives us no great pleasure but it does provide a tremendous sense of justice for the most vulnerable of people.
It is an action which should not have had to be taken out in the first place, but clearly has massive implications for care. It may well be the tipping point which re-prioritises the way care is funded and provided in this country. Were now looking for Sefton Council to respond with some sort of offer in terms of increased fees for 2011/12.
A Sefton council spokesman said the ruling provided welcome clarification around the difficulties of making such important decisions in such a short period of time.
