Testimonials | Paladin Advocates

“Confused by ‘social care’? Most of us hear about the care system in the news – usually bad news – but we hope never to need it in our own lives: ‘care packages’, self-funding, community care, supported living, private nursing homes, charitable almshouses, social services finance, NHS finance, direct payments, Attendance Allowance, Housing Benefit, local council, county council, Care Direct, DWP.….

A dear friend of mine turned up unexpectedly on my doorstep, with symptoms of dementia and no-one else to help him. Following much research and a lot of useless activity, I felt like throwing myself under a passing bus.

I did discover that if your loved one is able to pay £1000-plus per week to a local privately run home (ie ‘self-funded’) which has a room available (they are like gold dust), the process can be fast-tracked. A quick assessment of your loved one’s care needs, a contract and a large sum of money in advance will secure a place in a house. The care, food and services offered can be of a high quality, the carers can be wonderful (despite the notorious low pay) and it will cost £50,000 per year. Without self-funding you will be entering Kafka’s Castle. The local council (my first port of call) will try to pass the buck. Where did your friend live before? Has he/she been living in this area for less than six months? He/she/you will then be put in front of a computer to fill in a form on-line. Aaargh!

After a month of futile effort and a nervous breakdown beckoning, I heard of Anne Reed of Paladin Advocates. Paladin are experts in cutting through the bureaucracy and obfuscation and taking on the work of finding specialist care for someone in need. They will treat your loved one as a unique individual, focusing on the smallest details of the case, and advise on the best type of local care – at home, in a residential setting, in a shared house with independent living, or a placement within a family environment. They can manage the assessment of financial needs and advise on the routes: private funding; local authority funding; benefits help. They will look at whether Lasting Power of Attorney is appropriate. They will fight for the individual, if, as he/she almost certainly will, comes up against challenges in their new environment. They will also take nothing for granted and question every ‘fact’ that you are presented with – whether related to cost or care. There is no such thing as standard provision, and Anne Reed, with professional qualifications in nursing, social care, and law will fight on every front. She lifted the great solitary burden from me, and I was able to resist that passing bus.“

“In June 2021 my Dad went to hospital with a UTI, but then spent weeks in hospitals and a care home as they didn’t think he was “safe to discharge” home and needed some rehab. All this time my Mum was insistent that she wanted Dad home but we agreed with the short term plan as we thought ‘rehab’ sounded good. However once in the care home, Dad would constantly cry and beg and even shout to go home. After two weeks it was clear that Dad was massively deteriorating not rehabilitating, so we asked the NHS/Council if the money that was being spent on him for the care home could be redirected for a care package at home. The social work team said given Dad’s complex needs this would be “highly unlikely”. I then began looking into the logistics of care agencies, night nurses and how to borrow funds against their house.

When the initial NHS funding period ran out, the medics and social workers advised that Dad should stay in a care home. When my mum refused they discussed a “Best Interest Meeting” for September. We were told that this panel of experts could potentially override the LPA my mum had for Dads health and welfare. That’s when I reached out to Anne, asking if it was a ‘pipe dream” to think we could get him home with 24 hour help, without them losing their little bungalow. By this point Dad had been away from us for 3 months and was unrecognisable.

From the moment Anne arrived late August, I felt that we finally had hope, with someone on Dad’s side, who would fight for him. Amazingly only 2 months after asking Anne for help – Dad was home with 24/7 fully funded care.

I have a huge regret that I didn’t call Anne earlier. We didn’t know what was possible with the right advocacy. We thought all we needed was an LPA. An earlier call would have saved Mum and Dad two months of separation and I truly think Dad would not have deteriorated so much, so fast, had he been discharged home with 1:1 care sooner.

It’s now nearly a year on from Dad’s admission and I can honestly say Anne’s advocacy has changed the lives of all of us in our family. She has made it possible for us to stay together at home, while ensuring Dad has the very best, fully funded care. We will be forever thankful and recommend Paladin Advocates wholeheartedly.”

“For thirty four years I worked for a high street store in their Head Office. I was a manager used to dealing with staff, relatives and outside organisations, and completing documents including legal documents.
In November 2017, I walked into the A/E department of a London hospital with a pain in my shoulder, seven hours later I was diagnosed with Cancer. I had numerous tests, Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy. In February 2018 I was told that I was paralysed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair. Unable to return home I needed to find a Nursing home. We looked on web-sites for companies dealing with NHS Continuing Healthcare Funding, but were very unsure of their success rates. I was very happy when I was recommended by my Solicitor to Anne Reed at Paladin Advocates. I felt when I spoke to Anne and then met her that I had won the Lottery. Anne was very professional, which you would expect but showed understanding of my situation and gave me a lot of confidence to face the future.

The first set of forms I found difficult to complete, the hospital only wanted to record some details, so I had to make statements insisting they included all the facts I wanted recorded. I found this to be stressing and upsetting, although the worst was yet to come. At the meetings for NHS Continuing Healthcare Funding, I was confronted by six employees from the Trust, and a Social Worker from the local council, on one side, and my support was a very dear friend Anne Reed. With Anne’s help and expertise we were able to focus their thinking into helping me in my plight. I am a very strong minded person, but the meetings were very stressful, with the system seeming not to help but stacked up against me. I felt that they regarded me simply as a number on a form, and with little or no understanding of my medical needs, and I felt humiliated by the experience.

My life had changed from being a happily active person, to one diagnosed with cancer, which over a period of three months led to my irreversible, and complete paralysis, from the waist down, not able to have any independence of movement, or bodily functions .They showed very little sympathy for my situation.
This has been the most difficult period of my life, and without Anne’s friendship, help, and expertise, I would not have been able to cope, and to her I am most grateful.

I later learned that only 18% of applications are approved after their first assessment, but mine was one. I would recommend Anne Reed, Managing Director of Paladin Advocates to anyone who faces a similar ordeal.”

“Dear Anne

I would like to express my sincere thanks for your advice and tenacity in dealing with dad’s case. The process would have probably been a little less traumatic and time consuming had our PCT been a little less incompetent however, ultimately we achieved our goal to obtain funding for dad and for that I am really very grateful.

To anyone who is thinking about embarking on this journey, it is by no means a simple procedure – the wheels within the NHS turn infuriatingly slowly – be prepared for endless correspondence, difficult assessments and a degree of incompetence in each NHS department that you may deal with BUT just knowing there is a knowledgeable, friendly person on your side, fighting your corner, makes the whole process a little less gruelling.

Thank you once again Anne.”

“I have just been advised that the assessment for CHC funding for my father has been successful. There is no doubt that the decision to appoint Anne and the team at Paladin made a huge impact on the outcome. Having undertaken her initial analysis, she gave us confidence that we could achieve the right result and as much as anything kept the pressure on the NHS despite their continual delays. Her attendance at the CHC assessment meeting added credibilty as she was able to provide an expert opinion. I am more than happy to recommend her to anyone in a similar situation.”

“Dear Anne and team at Paladin Advocates

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! For everything you did to help with our claim for CHC funding for my late father. You made a terribly difficult situation so much easier to deal with because you cared so much for our plight. We knew we could always contact you – even if it was just a silly question- and know we would get a quick reply.

Life had been very tough over the last few months of my father’s life and we can honestly say that had it not been for you and your team, we would not have had the strength to claim what was rightfully ours.

Anyone who is considering using Paladin Advocates to claim continuing healthcare funds, stop what you are doing, pick up the phone, and call Anne, not only will you gain expert knowledge and wonderful advice, you will also gain a friend.”

“There was only one lifeline that we came by – and purely because a friend knew of someone who had been in a similar situation – and through her I was put in touch with a wonderful, caring person called Anne Reed, whose company, Paladin Advocates, will represent and give advice to people in the situation in which we found ourselves. She was the one and only person who really seemed to care and could offer practical and realistic advice and help, and would have represented us in our battle with the National Health Service to get Continuing Health Care for my husband. However, very sadly, the help and representation she was going to give us never materialised because my husband died shortly after we had started negotiations with Anne Reed.”

“Our family found itself needing assistance in battling the difficult and challenging process required under the Continuing Health Care Regulations as our knowledge of what was behind many of the questions and requirements was extremely basic. We engaged Anne Reed based on a word of mouth recommendation.

Without Anne’s detailed knowledge we would have fallen at the first hurdle as the CHC’s initial response to our request was a rejection based on incorrect interpretation of the Regulations.

As our case progressed finally to a successful conclusion it was evident that we would have been rejected at every stage without the professional leadership, knowledge and experience of Anne and her perseverance and commitment. Her knowledge of the requirements exceeded that of many of the Assessors.

My belief is that Anne is respected in many areas of CHC organisations as a person who fights for what is right and not for spurious claims.”

“I can’t thank you enough for the help and advice you have given me to secure NHS Continuing Healthcare Funding for my mother. When I first started the process towards this end I felt as though I was wading in a bureaucratic mire and was treated as a nobody by the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Panel and the Multidisciplinary Team.

Within days of my sending you a copy of the decision of the Panel you had studied it and pointed out several gross errors on their part, including the illegal prolonged time-scale taken to reach their decision and the fact that I, as my Mother’s representative, had not been invited to take part in the coalition of the various reports. You gave me full and clear explanations of the jargon the Panel used – terminology deliberately used to confuse the layman. Not only was your advise clear but it also gave confidence to challenge the Panel members on points of law. Their attitude towards me improved spectacularly and the result was a resounding success in not only obtaining Continuing Healthcare Funding but also getting that Funding backdated several months.

Thank you so much for your care, help and encouragement. I am quite certain all of you at Paladin Advocates will continue to help many more people like me who find themselves in the situation which had brought me such anxiety.”

“Anne has been supporting me during the last two years when my fathers Alzheimer’s started to deteriorate at a dramatic pace. Her advice has been invaluable and her empathy having been through this herself has been a great comfort. Recently Anne represented my interests at my fathers CHC health assessment and I do not know what I would have done without her as it was a very complex and gruelling process. However her professionalism and knowledge of the CHC process won the day and we were successful in being awarded CHC for my father. I cannot thank Anne enough. This is a huge relief as after two years of serious health and care issues with my father I too have become battle weary and Anne’s support has been vital.”

“At the age of 89 my Father suffered a stroke. After a short stay in the local hospital he was transferred to a specialist stroke recovery unit. An Age UK centre, recognised for its expertise and advice helping relatives of stroke victims, kindly provided several documents and sources for other information. There was also the warning that dealing with the NHS system could well be like wading through treacle!

This comment was soon understood when confronted with a plethora of NHS abbreviations and terminology. It was like listening to someone talking in a foreign language who assumes you understand every word being uttered. The situation was compounded further by misinformation, missing information, use of incorrect procedures and missing records. The guidance available from the local Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) only explained how to deal with each particular situation. Unfortunately, this did nothing to help ones holistic understanding and failed in the ability to provide a speedy response.

Thankfully, in the hour of need, the existence of Anne Reed at Paladin Advocates became known. The prompt support available from Anne was immediately appreciated and a relief. It was like having someone in the role of medical interpreter and quality controller at your side i.e. someone who knows the correct procedures and terminology, especially when being ‘fobbed’ off. In fact, at the end of a phone call to Anne for help, it sometimes felt as though one had unleashed a Rottweiler to guard ones best interests.

As a professional European Engineer it is second nature to fight ones corner, but without the support provided by Anne, Dad would have suffered even more than he did. From the beginning, Dad’s treatment was recorded in a diary of events which covered several months and amounted to twenty six sides of A4 paper. Many unsuccessful attempts were made to get the Trust to acknowledge their failings. In the end, with Anne’s help and guidance, a complaint was raised with the Parliamentary Health Service Ombudsman who upheld the complaint. The recommendations by the Ombudsman caused the Trust to review and rewrite their procedures as well as provide additional staff training. Furthermore, details of the complaint and its outcome has been forwarded to the Care Quality Commission.

So, thank you Anne very much for all your help, support and advice. Without it, I am sure I would have foundered because I was out of my depth and would have failed to reach this result on my own. Therefore, I am very happy to recommend the services of Anne Reed and colleagues for those in difficulty with the NHS. I sincerely hope this kind of support will not be needed again by me or my family but we know who to contact if we do.”

After a month of futile effort and a nervous breakdown beckoning, I heard of Anne Reed of Paladin Advocates. Paladin are experts in cutting through the bureaucracy and obfuscation and taking on the work of finding specialist care for someone in need. They will treat your loved one as a unique individual, focusing on the smallest details of the case, and advise on the best type of local care – at home, in a residential setting, in a shared house with independent living, or a placement within a family environment. They can manage the assessment of financial needs and advise on the routes: private funding; local authority funding; benefits help. They will look at whether Lasting Power of Attorney is appropriate. They will fight for the individual, if, as he/she almost certainly will, comes up against challenges in their new environment. Anne Reed, with professional qualifications in nursing, social care, and law lifted that great solitary burden from me, and I was able to resist that passing bus.”

“As I live in Australia, Anne Reed has been acting on my behalf as legal POA in all matters relating to my elderly parents – whose care needs have escalated in the past year.

I cannot thank Anne enough for guiding me through an extremely hard 10 months.

Since my first phone call with Anne, she has always been incredibly kind and supportive. She has treated my parents and their situation with the utmost respect and understanding and has done everything in her power to ensure my parents are now receiving the quality of care they deserve.

Anne persevered relentlessly to “get things moving”, she has been incredibly supportive and, on many occasions, when I felt so desperate, Anne was always there at the end of the phone to reassure me that things would work out.

I am so grateful to Anne for her empathy, professionalism, advice, determination, understanding and kindness. I don’t know what I would have done without her.”

“Please don’t go through what my husband and family went though. Thankfully, I now have NHS Continuing Healthcare funding in place for my husband, Power of Attorney for myself and Deputyship for my husband. This was all made possibly through the help and support I received from Anne Reed.

I first instructed Anne to be my husband’s Advocate on the 26^th August 2021. My husband Alan had been in two different Hospitals and a rehabilitation centre for head injuries since the 12^th February, 2021. It became quite clear to Anne in the beginning that no one seemed to know how to discharge Alan home safely. One of the many emails that Anne sent to the lead Social Worker was a total of 1’865 words long, expressing concerns with care and the inabilities in my husband’s case. Anne was present at a meeting with Alan’s Consultant shortly after his return home, that could have gone horribly wrong. Anne supported us though Alan’s review and believe me a DST is not an easy thing to negotiate. Anne has so much knowledge, understanding and empathy where a client is concerned. When handling Alan’s Deputyship, Anne obtained extremely thorough supporting medical reports. Camilla Pinkney (Operations Manager) is exceptional in the office.

My advice to anyone who may read this, don’t sign or agree to anything until you have spoken to Anne Reed, Director of Paladin Advocates & Attorneys.”

“My brother and I live and work overseas, in Africa and Australia respectively.

Although we both have LPA for our elderly parents who live in the UK, it has become increasingly difficult and worrying, trying to find the best available care pathway for them.

At the beginning of 2022 the situation became even more challenging and desperate, with my mother being diagnosed with vascular dementia. We were then put in touch with Anne Reed from Paladin Advocates.

Anne has become the “voice and feet” on the ground in the UK, advocating for our parents. She is guiding us through this difficult journey, ensuring that my parents receive the best possible care and support that they deserve.

Her genuine caring nature, empathy, and kindness, together with her professional knowledge, have helped us immensely in these recent months. Although we live so far away, Anne has given us peace of mind. She is in regular contact, keeping us informed with updates.

Anne has worked tirelessly with the best interests of my parents at heart. She is approachable, compassionate, and kind. We are extremely grateful for her support.

Whenever I speak to Anne, I always feel more reassured about my parents’ situation. I know that Anne is doing her utmost to help them as if they were her own family.”

“We were advised by WBW Chartered Financial Planners of Newton Abbot to contact Anne Reed when our dad was told he had to move from his present Care home as they could no longer cope with his dementia. It was recommended that Anne could help with this process and would also try and secure funding for dad’s care as the severity of his dementia entitled him to financial support. WBW Chartered Financial Planners said Anne was the most experienced and best person in the UK.

How true they were.

As soon as we made contact with Anne, the wheels were set in motion at a very fast pace. Even though lots of homes refused to take dad because of his complex needs, Anne never gave up; her passion for supporting the elderly and vulnerable people to access the best care was evident. She made numerous phone calls on behalf of the family, enquiring as to whether they would take dad and always questioning the quality of the care that would be provided. Anne used her vast clinical experience and comprehensive understanding of the NHS to support us, also providing alternative ideas as to where dad might be able to live happily and safely. Anne understood how difficult things had become and really did care about how these circumstances were impacting on dad and our family.

Finally, Anne helped secure a new dementia specialist care home place for dad; it is an exceptional place and we have been very pleased with how well dad has settled in and how well he is cared for.

Simultaneously, Anne commenced the complex process of applying for full CHC funding. Anne made sure the people she contacted acted quickly and pressed them if they did not. She was not afraid to challenge people and the system, using her excellent understanding of the funding process and her exceptional communication skills. Anne has, after an immense amount of hard work and dogged determination, succeeded in getting full funding for dads care, as well as securing backdated monies.

Throughout this process, Anne has replied back to emails and telephone calls immediately and nothing was ever too much bother. Anne explained the process of the application of applying for funding thoroughly and supported us all of the way. Anne prepared all paperwork, liaised with relevant parties and organised a key meeting to discuss dad’s needs and as a result, secure a positive outcome. We have no doubt if we had not employed Anne’s services, we would have been unsuccessful in gaining the funding.

We would also like to mention that whenever we have phoned the office, the secretaries/PA were also extremely professional, polite, helpful and attentive.

If you require help and advice to support someone you love who has to go into care, we would not hesitate to recommend Anne Reed. Reading Anne Reeds profile, found on the website, with its impressive account of her qualifications and career experiences, will not fail to assure anyone looking for support in this area. It is an absolute truth that she is an experienced, driven advocate who really does care about the people she is serving.”

“’I wish I’d found you earlier but I’m grateful we did at all. The difference it’s made already to Mum and what it will mean for Dad is, … well its indescribable really. Truly a life changing and relationship saving intervention.”

“Anne has been supporting me during the last two years when my fathers Alzheimer’s started to deteriorate at a dramatic pace. Her advice has been invaluable and her empathy having been through this herself has been a great comfort. Recently Anne represented my interests at my fathers CHC health assessment and I do not know what I would have done without her as it was a very complex and grueling process. However her professionalism and knowledge of the CHC process won the day and we were successful in being awarded CHC for my father. I cannot thank anne enough, this is a huge relief as after two years of serious health and care issues with my father I too have become battle weary and Annes support has been vital.”

“I just wanted to say one last thank you for all your support over the last few years. An extreme sense of injustice and fear for my mother’s future started me along this path but I know I wouldn’t have got very far without your tireless effort and encouragement. There were several times I was quite prepared to give up but it was your determination that kept me going. Finally winning the appeal was unexpectedly emotional as I felt I had done all I could for my mum.”

“My late mother entered a nursing home in February 2008 and lived there for five years. My wife and I first approached our local PCT in October 2009 as we felt my mother should be eligible for NHS CHC funding. We have been battling with the PCT for over four years and have found the whole experience incredibly distressing. We approached our MP, the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Health but all to no avail.

In July 2011, we employed Paladin Advocates to help us and our situation changed dramatically. When dealing with the PCT, knowledge of your rights is simply not enough. They seem to be experts in side-stepping their responsibilities. Anne Reed of Paladin clearly has considerable experience in dealing with PCTs and the legal and nursing background to take them on.

With Anne’s help, we have now been granted CHC funding for four and a half out of five years. We have no doubt that without her help we would have achieved nothing and the whole exercise would have been completely futile. Our only regret is that we did not approach her sooner.

Most importantly of all, we felt that this was far more than a job to her, it was a personal crusade for justice for my Mum who was a frail old lady. We cannot recommend Paladin and Anne Reed highly enough and would not advise anyone to take on their PCT without similar help unless CHC funding is granted almost immediately.

Thank you Anne. You have done a terrific job and been a great comfort and support over the last two and a half years.”

“When i first applied for NHS Continuing Healthcare Funding for my mother, I felt well equipped, as professional administrator, to read the relevant policies and guidance and pursue the application. Unfortunately the behaviour of the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) was something I had not reckoned with: assessments not conducted for many months, decisions not communicated, a request for reassessment unfairly and incorrectly rejected and an assessment of my mother’s deteriorating condition which I felt wasn’t’ right, but I didn’t have the knowledge and vocabulary to argue effectively. I finally realised that I needed expert help.

Ann Reed’s advice and representation secured a second assessment for us, and achieved firstly a decision to award CHC, and then agreement to conduct a retrospective review which is ongoing. I know we would not have reached these outcomes without her. As well as her professionalism and skill, her kindness and humanity are a great support.”

“I was attempting to secure NHS Continuing Health Care Funding for my aged aunt. Months of frustration in dealing with Social Services and Health Care staff were not really showing much sign of progress and I was given Anne Reed’s name and what a help she was.

I experienced some frustration in understanding the rationale in a process that seemed to fully support an application based on needs though eligibility was denied and funding, therefore, rejected. I clearly needed an objective and professional opinion to guide me through the minefield and it would have been quite easy to have walked away in frustration or been dissuaded from pursuing what entitlements my aunt was due.

Anne’s approach was first class in so many ways. From the outset she thought the case had merit and agreed to look at it in more detail. From this point on she took instructions and set about highlighting, assessing and reassessing some of the reports. She met with the my aunt’s Social Worker, District Nurse and nursing home staff to get a real handle on what care needs my aunt had and presented a very thorough and powerful case. Most importantly she visited my aunt in the home and I felt totally confident in her ability to deal with the logistics of building a forceful argument at an appropriate time.

Make no mistake it is essential to be patient when dealing with most Government departments, but the inevitable red tape appeared to be in abundance in my case. However, Anne’s resolute approach won through and finally the claim was awarded and backdated a year.

Given the cost of nursing fees this was a considerable amount balanced against the cost of her services.

I highly recommend Anne Reed to you and would have no hesitation in utilising her services again.”

“After carrying out a considerable amount of research we decided to appoint Paladin Advocates to represent us with our application for NHS Continuing Healthcare funding.

Throughout the process we received an outstanding personal service from Anne Reed and her team which resulted in our application being approved. The attention to detail and the depth of previous personal experience brought to the process would be almost impossible to find elsewhere.

If you are reading this because you are currently doing your own research then you have found the right team of Advocates.

Thank you Paladin Advocates for all your help.”

“Anne, I was thinking about the great news you gave me yesterday and it occurred to me that my response might not have properly conveyed my true feelings. I think in some ways, I am simply shocked that it is over. Really, I haven’t been involved in the process since my dad died. You have kept the momentum going through your own determination and tenacity and, without a doubt, I would not have persevered if not for you. You’re an exceptional person with a commitment to seeing justice done that seems to know no bounds. I am extremely grateful to you and filled with admiration, especially knowing that there were moments in your personal life that meant even greater efforts were required. Also, I am so happy for you that four cases gave positive results on the same day. How amazing for you and your clients. Hopefully, that has given you the personal boost to continue banging your head against the Establishment wall.”

“Dear Anne
Just a note to thank you for your efforts on behalf of my mother. We have won! When our initial appeals were unsuccessful we were ready to give up, but you believed we had a valid case and encouraged us to continue. You guided us through the maze of processes, forms and meetings in a professional yet sympathetic way. That well known cliché “we couldn’t have done it without you” is definitely true in our case.
Thank you”