Guardianship Orders let the third party named in the order act on behalf of a person who has lost the capacity to deal with their own affairs. It gives continuous authority for the appointed person to act until the expiry date stated on the order.

This order may be appropriate if you care for someone who lacks mental capacity. This might be because of:

• Serious brain injury or illness
• Dementia
• Learning disabilities

It may be appropriate if you need to support someone who lacks mental capacity and there is no Continuing Power of Attorney in place.

Orders are usually granted for a period of three years, but can be for longer.

We won’t charge you for registering a Guardianship Order with us.

Please contact our customer services team to discuss the most convenient way to register this or pop into your local branch to discuss with one of our friendly colleagues. Please have to hand / bring these documents with you — they’ll help us speed up the process:

If you have been granted a Guardianship Order you should bring ID(PDF, opens in new window) with you.

A DWP Appointeeship can be granted where the account holder is unable to manage their state benefits. The appointee will be authorised to make and maintain any benefit claims on the mentally incapable adult's behalf.

DWP Appointeeship’s relate SOLELY to state benefits. The DWP Appointee will not have any control over any other funds, income or assets of the mentally incapable adult.

This order may be appropriate when caring for someone who lacks mental capacity or is severely physically disabled and only their state benefits need to be managed. This may be as a result of:

• Serious injury or illness
• Dementia
• Learning disabilities

We do not charge you for registering a DWP Appointeeship with us.

Please visit or make an appointment with a banking adviser at your local branch. Please bring the following documents with you, this will help us speed up the process:

• The original BF57 form issued by the DWP or if you do not have this, a recent letter from the DWP, issued within the last 3 months, which is addressed to the appointee and makes reference to them as ‘Appointee for’. The letter must also detail the current address of the person receiving DWP benefits
• If you have been granted a DWP Appointeeship you should bring ID(PDF, opens in new window) with you