South East Water have a special service for customers who have additional needs because of physical or invisible disabilities. Have you registered yet? It's easy to do. Just contact South East Water and let them know which services you will need from them, complete their application form and you will be added to their Priority Services Register. You can choose to: - receive prior warning of planned work which will interrupt your water supply - receive important information in a format which is easier for you to read and understand - register a password with South East Water for their technicians to use if they visit you at home - nominate someone you trust to receive your bill - receive information about specialist organisations which can provide advice on adaptations to water appliances and fittings around the home If you have not registered for the Priority Services Register call South East Water between 8am and 7pm Monday to Friday or on Saturday between 8am and 1pm on 0333 000 0001 or speak with our social and wellbeing team who will be able to help complete the application paperwork.

You must have read that it is important to exercise your brain as well as your body. If you or a member of your family have been diagnosed with dementia and enjoy social interaction why not go along to a dementia brain training session. Enjoy a relaxed day using cognitive therapy techniques to exercise your mind, play puzzles, sing and chat over a cup of tea and lunch. Help your concentration and memory, share experiences and make new friends. If you fancy a go contact the brain train me team at info@braintrainme.co.uk or call them on 07544 851 024. Sessions are run at the Ditton Community Centre every weekday between 9.45am and 2.45pm

It is being reported in newspapers that the Justice Secretary Robert Buckland has worked with a committee of MPs and quietly pushed through proposals to kill off Theresa May's increase in probate fees. He described the increase as "not fair and proportionate" as it is reported that 280,000 families would pay higher probate fees with 56,000 families paying between £2,500 and £6,000 as a result of the increased charges. So, it seems unfortunate that the Government will now lose a potential £185million in increased court fees but it has been a successful fight for the legal profession who have fought hard for the best interests of their clients. As soon as we receive confirmation from the legal profession we will confirm this news bite!

Lawyers are being asked to be transparent about the costs they charge their client. This should already be taking place I hear you shout! Do you really have a full understanding of what charges you lawyer makes when you seek advice? CILEx Regulation Ltd along with regulators of solicitors and registered conveyancers have implemented guidelines to make sure that for certain areas of work you have full knowledge of the charges involved in a process before you even make a phone call. The transparency rules state that law firms must publish on their websites or in paper form the following:- - the total price of the legal service - whether the charge is based on an hourly rate or fixed fee - the services that are included in the price - all services that might reasonably be expected to be included in the price - the cost of all disbursements and an explanation - the VAT on services that are provided - details of any fee agreements which are in place (usually for litigation) Argo's website has a special page dedicated to our charges. For the area of the law in which we work we only have to provide this information about the charges in involved in estate administration but we have decided to let you know what we charge in all areas of work we do. Over the coming weeks you will also see our charges in relation to wills, lasting powers of attorney, care advice, personal assistance and support and our social and wellbeing services.

After trauma, sweat and tears our new website is finally here. Because we want to provide you with as much information as we can the website is not all being released at once. There are many plans afoot and new and exciting things to look out for. We have taken a lot of time to get this right. We have spoken to our clients both young and old. We have spoken to those living with dementia, strokes, visual and hearing problems to try to build a site which works for our clients. We are being totally transparent in all that we do so you can see from the outset what our charges are, our terms of business are, our complaints procedure is. We are launching a client forum shortly where you can ask as many questions as you wish and discuss subjects and share experiences. Not to mention our You Tube Channel which is in the making to provide you access to short learning experiences. As always we welcome your feedback and suggestions for improvement. We hope you like what we have done!

With the average cost of a funeral varying from family to family it is those with the least amount that bear the greater burden of costs on the death of a loved one. In 2017 there were 607,000 deaths across the UK and of these only 94,000 had considered purchasing a prepaid funeral plan to relieve the financial burden of funeral costs at death. In some circumstances an average funeral can cost up to 40% of the annual income of a low income household. It is thought that the average cost of a funeral is now in the region of £4,300 with a potential further £2,000 being spent on flowers and life celebrations. The Competition and Markets Authority and HM Revenue & Customs are separately reviewing the funeral industry because of the rising costs of burials and cremations and associated costs and the vulnerability of individuals at the time these purchases are necessary. This is no formal regulatory body overseeing the funeral industry which can step in to impose rules and procedures so perhaps a review is overdue. The review which started in Autumn 2018 is looking into whether information provided on funeral prices and services are sufficiently transparent for customers to make appropriate choices, increases in year on year prices and factors affecting costs incurred by funeral directors. What is surprising however is from initial research conducted on behalf of the Competition and Markets Authority knowledge among the general population on how to arrange a funeral is vague, the exact prices involved with a funeral are not scrutinised by customers and that is was not thought appropriate to negotiate the cost of a funeral. What is pleasing however is that quality service from funeral directors is considered in terms of going "above and beyond" to provide support to families at difficult times and giving their family member a meaningful farewell. Initial findings were provided in a 133 page report in November 2018. These indicated that the review had uncovered difficulties within the market. Following the initial review the public has been consulted and further reports are due later this year. To view the initial Competition and Markets Authority report please click https://tinyurl.com/yb5hx4k2 As soon as we hear further news in relation to this review we will, of course, update you. In the meantime make sure you do your research to find an excellent funeral director who will meet your requirements and standards and also check what you are being charged for!!

Being neighbourly is important to us here are Argo. We do not want to keep all the knowledge we have in our heads to ourselves. This is why we are holding a wills and power of attorney seminar at The Business Terrace in Maidstone on 19 February 2019 between 10am and 12am. Taking the brave step to run your own business is risky. We remember to take advice to secure the future for the business but in getting up and running we often forget those who are important to us. Us business owners all think we are superhuman and that the worst will never happen to us, but it does, and we want to make sure that our business colleagues know how to protect their husbands, wives and children should the worse happen. To book an appointment call 01622 843729.

Argo are delighted to be helping the Heart of Kent Hospice again this year with their revamped make a will MONTH! April 2019 will see Argo offering to make a free will in exchange for a donation to this Hospice on each working day of the month. We know that making a will can be a little scary. Superstition and being a super hero often means that the decision to do this is put to one side as the inevitable will "never happen to me". It is also sometimes daunting walking into a solicitors' office. To take the fear out of making a will we are holding an ask the expert "making a will" session on 6 March 2019 between 1pm and 3pm in our offices at the Business Terrace, Maidstone House, King Street. To book a space please log onto the eventbrite booking app by clicking on the following link https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/heart-of-kent-hospice-make-a-will-month-pre-event-tickets-53432931336 Alternatively, give us a call on 016222 843729 and we will book you a place! We hope to see you there

Red tops call them a further death tax. Some say they are a further tax on bereaved families. Some just say the reforms are greedy. What are we talking about? The increase in Probate fees which were due to lack of parliamentary time in 2017 by the Conservative Government and substantial disquiet from the public. The fees have now been picked up from the long grass and firmly planted on the starting line and are due to come into existence in April 2019 as the Government clearly do not consider the significant disquiet as as defeat to their proposal. Unfortunately for executors these costs bear no correlation to the actual cost for the Probate Registry to issue a grant of probate but are being seen as a way to subsidise other courts and tribunals. The reintroduction of these proposals have again been widely condemned. At the moment a personal application for a Grant of Probate attracts a fee of £215 or £155 if a solicitor makes the application. The proposal is as before, a sliding scale of probate fees based on the value of an estate with seven bands running from zero to £6,000. For an exempt estate or estate under £50,000 there will be no probate application fees. For an estate between £50,000 and £300,000 fees will be £250. For an estate between £300,000 and £500,000 fees will be £750 and will then increase from between £2,500 to £6,000 for estates over £500,000 up to and in excess of £2million. This upper fee of £6,000 is a reduction from the first draft of £20,000 but still a potential headache for executors. There is a great deal of arguing and lobbying taking place behind the scenes to try and avoid this disproportionate change in regime from hitting bereaved families. Whilst we expect April 2019 to be kick off there is still a chance that the Government may change its mind. Watch this space for further updates.

Updates to the process for obtaining a Grant of Probate mean that the old fashioned swearing of an oath is no longer necessary. The Probate Service is a busy service dealing with some £270,000 applications each year. Of these £110,000 are made personally by executors with the remaining £160,000 being made by solicitors and probate practitioners. As the Probate Service tries to modernise and meet the needs of a changing world it is updating its procedures, and quite a lot faster than we thought they would! Without consultation the Probate Service has removed the need to swear an oath and replace it with a signed statement. At the moment an application for a grant of representation is supported by an oath sworn by the personal representatives. The new process involves a written statement of truth whereby the personal representative believes the facts referred to in the statement are true. It is also a requirement for the personal representative to confirm that making a false statement is contempt of court and punishable by a range of sanctions. However the exact wording of the statement of truth has not yet been determined and until such time as it is the oath can still be used.

We all know that local authorities have to protect our vulnerable clients but how far does this actually go? In the recent Court of Protection case of SR v A Local Authority & Anor [2018] EWCOP 36 (06 June 2018) a local authority took a case to the Court of Protection to restrict a husband's access from his wife because of their concerns about his opinions on euthanasia. She was 83, residing in a care home and living with late onset Alzheimers which was of a moderate to severe intensity. The couple had been married for over 50 years and family provided evidence to show they were a devoted couple who spent all their time together. The husband visited his wife twice a day in the care home spending more than three hours a day with her. Her family had objected to her move into a care home which was instigated by the local authority. Repeated requests to return her home had been ignored and and she frequently expressed her wish to be with her husband. Over the course of a number of years through frustration and desperation her husband had expressed the wish to end both of their lives stating that we would put animals to sleep if they were in the situation his wife found herself in. There was no evidence put before the Court to indicate that he had ever or would ever harm his wife. The local authority sought to prevent the husband from taking his wife out of the care home alone without another family member or member of staff from the care home. They also requested that he should not be allowed to take his wife out in a car on his own just in case she became agitated or her behaviour became challenging. It was clear that the local authority worried that her husband would harm her. Unfortunately, this situation is not uncommon and this is not the first time I have seen reports of cases like this. The increased stress that this situation causes to an already stressed family is enormous. The eroding of confidence to family members and the inferences that are made to the family in cases like these cause significant damage. So, what was the outcome? The Court dismissed the application from the local authority on the grounds that it was neither justifiable, proportionate or necessary. What could have helped with avoiding this situation would have been a signed health and welfare power of attorney. The health and welfare power would have enabled the family to keep SR at home and provide care. Yes, of course, safeguarding concerns would have to be addressed but more power would have been retained by the family in respect of the decision making process. Of course, Courts have to hear cases like these as there would be uproar if something happened and no action had been taken. There really needs to be a way forward where the local authorities can work with families and understand the pressures they are under rather than simply looking and rules and regulations in isolation without truly understanding what is going on. What our families need is support. If they had the support we may be able to avoid the desperate conversations where families no longer feel able to cope. If you are struggling please telephone us for help and support because we can get things working again!

An expected rise in families relying on the assistance of foodbanks marks a worrying trend in financial poverty for our most vulnerable. In 2017 159,388 families had to rely on a three day emergency food supply according to the Tressel Trust. The trust blames the increase on cold weather and insufficient benefits, saying families are left unable to cope with the increased living costs in winter, such as heating. Benefits do not cover essential living costs of families in the cold season, the charity says, and the minimum five week wait for a first Universal Credit payment, experienced by those moving onto this system, has only exacerbated the situation. This problem is not just limited to young families but our elderly neighbours too. At this time of year with surplus food, drink and an abundance of festive spirit perhaps we could all consider delivering a small parcel of festive goodies to our elderly neighbours to help with difficulties caused by rising fuel bills.