Equipment for daily living
Equipment for daily living can help you or the person you care for manage everyday tasks at home.
The range of equipment includes:
- equipment to help disabled adults and children at home such as raised toilet seats, commodes, bath seats and back rests
- equipment to help with a visual or hearing impairment such as white canes and vibrating alarm clocks
- equipment to help older people or those with disabilities remain independent such as personal pendants, medication reminders and falls detectors.
If you need equipment to help your mobility you need to ask your GP to refer you to a physiotherapist.
How do I get equipment for daily living?
If you or someone you care for needs equipment to help do simple household tasks independently or more safely there are three ways this can be arranged.
- If you are eligible to receive free equipment, you can now get this with a prescription from your Health or Social Care Team, following an assessment.
- You can buy the equipment you need directly from accredited shops, it can also be purchased from other suppliers.
- If you are assessed to need more complex equipment this may be provided on loan.
How do I get a prescription?
To get a prescription for equipment you will need to be assessed by someone from Lambeth Adults' and Community Services or the Health Service. This could be an occupational therapist, community nurse or other assessor such as a rehabilitation officer for visual impairment.
After an assessment you may be issued with a prescription for standard equipment or you may be offered more specialist equipment. To receive an assessment you can contact Lambeth Service Centre.
To find out which shops accept prescriptions for equipment see Information on accredited retailers.
What do I do with the prescription?
If you are given a prescription, you or a friend or family member can take it an accredited shop in Lambeth or possibly in a nearby Borough. They will exchange the prescription for the equipment you need and can arrange delivery and fitting if considered necessary by your assessor.
At the shop you also have the choice of 'topping up' the basic equipment available on prescription to equipment that does the same job but may be more attractive or just simply, more to your liking. You will only need to pay the difference in the cost of the items.
Where do I buy my own equipment?
Equipment for daily living can still be very handy for people who may not be eligible for getting equipment on prescription and is relatively inexpensive to buy.
Lambeth now has a number of accredited shops where you can view and buy equipment locally.
You can exchange your prescription or buy equipment at any shop displaying this logo.
A list of accredited shops is available from Lambeth Service Centre or the Information on accredited retailers document.
What are the advantages of buying equipment?
- You will not have to wait for an assessment of need
- You have a choice of local accredited shops that can help you choose the equipment you want
- You can buy what you want, when you want.
Recycling equipment
Equipment provided on prescription belongs to you and is not collected by the Council. Further information will be given to you at your assessment.
For information on recycling contact Lambeth Waste Management Services on 020 7926 9000 or see our recycling pages.
Further help and advice
If you would like to discuss buying your own equipment but need some advice and guidance, you can call us at the Lambeth Service Centre on 020 7926 5555.