Disabled people in Kent could be driven to the brink of suicide over planned changes to care funding, a campaigner has claimed.

Under proposed new rules, thousands of vulnerable people in the county could see their care bills rise.

Kent County Council (KCC) is planning to change the charging policy for people who receive care in their homes or in the community.

The first Vicci Chittenden, a 72-year-old MS sufferer from Maidstone, knew of the proposals was when a letter from KCC dropped through the letterbox in February.

She said: "I am probably a bit luckier than most because I think I can manage but there will be a lot of others who won't be able to cope.

"The case studies KCC has given out show people losing relatively small amounts of money, say £30 a week. But that is huge for most disabled people at a time when the cost of everything is going up.

"They will not be able to leave the house to go for a coffee with a friend. They might have to ration the heating, not be able to afford a piece of equipment in the house or economise in other ways.

"Life is tough enough and this is another pressure. We are hearing that some people are nearly suicidal - that they they wonder what the purpose of their life is. I always tell them 'you have a life and you have a family and you mustn't think you are not valuable'.

"For some people who opened that letter last month probably sent them into a panic. It really shook me up."

Mrs Chittenden said she has yet to work out exactly how much KCC's proposed changes will cost her.

The KCC letter said the authority was looking at ways to take into account the enhanced or higher rate for night care attendance allowance, the care component of the Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and the daily living part of the Personal Independence Payment (PiP).

This would mean affected disabled people would have more income taken into account as part of their means testing, pushing up their bills.

Mrs Chittenden, who has suffered from MS since she was 17, requires round-the-clock care at her home in Maidstone.

Sophie Fournel of the charity Disability Assist said: "I am very concerned about the impact these changes could have on people like Vicci, disabled people in Kent.

"The current cost of living means that disabled people need to use their income from PIP and other benefits to help cover their utility bills and everyday expenses as it is.

"This will take even more from them and push people into or further into poverty. Disabled people will be less able to lead a full and inclusive life.

"Leaving people without the resources they need to be able to do the things that our able-bodied peers take for granted. Taking away an individual’s choice and control and ultimately their independence."

KCC’s Cabinet Member for Public Health and Adult Social Care, Dan Watkins, said: “We’re facing ever-increasing demands for complex care services, rising costs of care and a lack of adequate funding from central government.

"It means that, along with many other councils in England, we’re having to make tough decisions and find ways to ensure our services are sustainable for the future.

“The 2014 Care Act gave local authorities the power to change their charging policies to take into account higher, or enhanced, rates of disability benefits when assessing the contribution some people should make towards their care – subject to consulting and carrying out an Equality Impact Assessment. A number of councils have subsequently done so.

“Our set-up fee for self-funding care arrangements is also among the lowest local authority fees in the country and has not been reviewed since it was introduced in 2017.

“It’s important we hear from people who draw on social care and support, and organisations working on the front line, to help us make informed decisions; and I urge residents, carers, care providers and organisations representing disabled and older people to have their say."

Although she was keen to work in catering, the divorced mother of two says that pre-Disability Discrimination Act, employers were put off hiring her.

Mrs Chittenden said that she has suffered discrimination throughout much of her life - especially when it came to getting a job.

She said: "You wouldn't even get an interview at the time because they'd see that you had MS on the application. It was blatant discrimination."

The consultation period started on February 6 and lasts until April 7.