The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is urging older people with medical conditions to check if they qualify for Attendance Allowance, a benefit that can provide up to £458.40 every four weeks.
Attendance Allowance helps State Pension age individuals with extra costs if they have a disability or health condition severe enough to require help with personal care or supervision for safety. It is paid at two rates, depending on the level of care needed.
Who receives Attendance Allowance?
DWP figures show that at the end of August 2025, more than 1.7 million older people were receiving the benefit. Recipients get either £76.70 or £114.60 per week, paid every four weeks, amounting to £306.40 or £458.40 per payment period.
Arthritis is the most common condition for which pensioners receive the allowance, with over half a million of the 1.7 million recipients claiming due to arthritis.
Top 10 conditions supported
The following 10 conditions account for 75% of those receiving Attendance Allowance. The list is not a checklist but helps people understand which conditions are supported:
- Arthritis - 512,300
- Dementia - 176,393
- Heart Disease - 130,043
- Respiratory Conditions - 109,714
- Disease Of The Muscles, Bones or Joints - 91,009
- Cerebrovascular Disease - 74,361
- Back Pain - 79,646
- Visual Disorders and Diseases - 51,096
- Parkinson’s - 45,820
- Neurological Conditions - 38,529
Eligibility criteria
You can get Attendance Allowance if you’ve reached State Pension age and have a physical disability (including sensory disability like blindness), a mental disability (including learning difficulties), or a health condition that is severe enough to require help caring for yourself or supervision for safety, and you have needed that help for at least 6 months.
You must also be in Great Britain when you claim (with exceptions for armed forces members and families), have been in Great Britain for at least 2 of the last 3 years (not applicable to refugees or those with humanitarian protection), be habitually resident in the UK, Ireland, Isle of Man or the Channel Islands, not be subject to immigration control (unless a sponsored immigrant), and not receive Disability Living Allowance (DLA), Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Adult Disability Payment (ADP), Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance (SADLA) or Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP).
If you live in a care home, you cannot usually get Attendance Allowance if your care is paid for by your local authority. You can still claim if you pay for all your care home costs yourself.
