Home care
What is home care?
Home care is personal and practical care provided in a person's home by a paid carer.
Home care enables people who need support to live independently at home.
Who can have home care?
Home care is available to people who need help, particularly with personal care, so that they are able to remain living at home.
This may include:
- older people who are frail or vulnerable;
- people who have a physical, sensory or learning disability;
- people who have a physical or mental illness;
- people who receive regular care from a relative or friend;
- people who for a variety of reasons need support to care for their children;
Resources are limited and we must ensure that arranging help and care for the most vulnerable and frail people in our community comes first. This means that we cannot always provide help in the way we would like or meet your needs in the way you may prefer.
Adults' and community services staff will be able to give you more details.
What services may be provided?
Personal care
This might include help with:
- getting out of and going to bed
- washing
- shaving
- getting dressed and undressed
- going to the toilet
- eating meals
Practical care
This might include help with:
- shopping
- collecting benefits or pension
- preparing and cooking meals
- essential household tasks
- laundry
Whilst all these services are important, our priority is to help people with those personal care tasks that they cannot manage on their own.
Who provides home care?
Lambeth has contracts with a number of private and voluntary sector agencies to provide home care services.
Is there a charge for home care?
You may be asked to contribute towards the cost of your home care. The amount you pay will depend on your financial situation and on how much care you receive.
We will give you more information about charges before we arrange or provide any services.
What do I do now?
If you feel that you need help at home and want to ask whether you are eligible for a home care service, please contact us.
For details on contacting us, see asking for our support. You can also call us on 020 7926 5555, and we will put you through to the right team.
If you prefer, you can ask someone else, such as a friend, relative or your GP to contact adults' and community services for you.
If you are in hospital at present and feel that you may need help when you leave, speak to a nurse or a social worker at the hospital.