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Protecting Park Homes From Care Fees

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Illustration showing a park home beside a care‑fee document, gavel, and shield symbolising legal protection and estate planning for park home owners.

For years, homeowners have asked whether they can protect their property from possible future care fees by placing it into a trust. But what happens when the property isn’t a traditional bricks‑and‑mortar house — it’s a park home?

This article explains how park homes are treated by local authorities, whether they can be placed into a trust, and when a trust might be accepted as legitimate.

Are Park Homes Treated as “Homes” for Care‑Fee Assessments?

Yes. If a park home is your main residence and you own the home itself, local authorities treat it the same as any other residential property when assessing your ability to pay for care.

That means:

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  • It has a market value

  • It can be counted as capital

  • It can be subject to property disregard rules

  • It can be subject to deprivation‑of‑assets rules

The fact that it’s a park home rather than a traditional house doesn’t change how the Care Act 2014 applies.

Can You Put a Park Home Into a Trust?

Yes — legally, you can place a park home into a trust. Solicitors can draft a trust for a park home just as they would for a standard property.

But the crucial question is not “Can I?” It’s “Will the council accept it?”

And that depends entirely on your intention at the time the trust was created.

The Key Test: Was Care Foreseeable at the Time?

Local authorities don’t look at the legal structure — they look at why the home was put into a trust.

If the trust was created:

  • Many years before any care need

  • When you were in good health

  • With no GP notes suggesting declining health

  • With no care assessments or care discussions

  • For normal estate‑planning reasons (inheritance, remarriage protection, family planning)

…then the council is far more likely to accept the trust as legitimate.

In this situation, the trust was not created to avoid care fees, and therefore is not deprivation of assets.

When a Trust Will NOT Be Accepted

Even if the trust was created years ago, the council may still treat it as deprivation if:

  • You already had long‑term health conditions

  • You were already receiving care at home

  • You had mobility issues or daily‑living difficulties

  • You had been advised you may need care

  • The trust paperwork mentions care fees or “protecting the home”

Councils look at foreseeability, not the number of years that have passed.

If care was reasonably predictable at the time, the trust can be ignored.

Park Homes: A Non‑Obvious Advantage

Park homes often have lower market value than traditional houses. This means some owners remain below the £23,250 capital threshold, even without a trust.

In many cases, the issue isn’t “protecting the home” — it’s simply understanding how its value affects the assessment.

So, Can a Park Home in a Trust Be Safe From Care Fees?

Yes — but only if the trust was created long before care was foreseeable, and for reasons unrelated to care fees.

If the trust was created:

  • Early

  • In good health

  • For normal estate‑planning reasons

…it may stand.

If it was created:

  • Late

  • After health decline

  • With care fees in mind

…it will almost certainly be challenged.

Need Help Understanding Your Options?

If you own a park home and want to understand your position, our helpline can explain:

  • How park homes are valued

  • How trusts are assessed

  • What councils look for

  • What is and isn’t allowed under deprivation‑of‑assets rules

You can also request our free guide on care‑fee planning.

Book a FREE Estate planning review today