Home care services
We promote services with the aim of helping you to achieve a maximum level of independence and to remain at home.
The home care agency staff we use are professionally trained and committed to providing high standards of care to everyone who receives the service.
Home care services are designed to offer you the support you need to maintain your wellbeing and to continue to live longer at home and in the community as independently as possible.
This could involve support to:
- manage your personal care, such as showering
- getting dressed and help with using the toilet
- assist with medication and some low level health tasks
- keep yourself safe
- prepare a meal and drink and assisting eating and drinking
- participate in your local community
- maintain your home, such as laundry and housework
- collect your pension and shopping.
Who the home care service is for
The home care service is for residents assessed as needing support in order to remain living at home.
Home care is usually offered to residents who have undergone a short term intensive period of support first, known as reablement. Reablement is offered to those:
- planning to leave hospital
- recovering from an illness or
- having difficulties with day to day tasks around the home.
The community independence (reablement) service works with you to develop a short term care plan based on your needs and what you want to achieve, helping you to do as much as you can for yourself and setting weekly goals such as:
- regaining your confidence
- rebuilding your skills and
- increasing your independence.
We will also have seen if any equipment, assistive technology such as an alarm pendant, meals service or any adaptations to your home would help you.
When your reablement programme is due to finish you will be reassessed to see if you still require other services, which may include home care.
How can I get home care services?
We will carry out an assessment to look at what you can do and what you need help with.
An assessment identifies your social care needs where we decide what, if any, care and support you need to help live your day to day life, as defined by the Care Act 2014.
It is carried out through a meeting between yourself, a trained assessor, any relevant family members, carers or an advocate. The assessment considers:
- your needs and how they impact on your wellbeing
- the needs of anyone who is caring for you or
- anyone who supports you.
- and if you can:
- make choices for yourself
- stay healthy and safe
- manage your own daily routine and personal care (such as washing, showering and getting dressed, doing your laundry, housework and shopping, collecting your benefits and meal preparation)
- be involved in family and community life and
- accept support from those around you.
Find out more about getting an assessment.
Will I have to pay?
There are no charges for receiving home care in H&F
About your personal budget
A personal budget is the total amount of money that we calculate is required to support you. You can ask the council to spend your personal budget and organise your support for you or you can ask them to give your personal budget money to you in the form of a direct payment, allowing you to purchase care to meet your needs.
Find out more about personal budgets and direct payments.
If I qualify for a home care service, what happens next?
After your assessment and if you are eligible, you will be advised of the personal budget available to you based on a care and support plan developed and agreed with you. This plan sets out in detail the services you will receive or home care services you can buy with your personal budget. You will be given a copy of this.
Welfare benefit advice service
We provide a welfare benefit advice service to those receiving adult social care services to ensure that residents are getting all means tested and non-means tested benefits they are entitled to.
Referrals to this service are made by a social worker or social work review team by contacting our welfare benefit advice officer on folashade.odejimi@lbhf.gov.uk or 0208 753 5343.
Contact the council
For more information about the Care Act or other care and support issues, or to request an assessment of your support needs contact us.
Call us on freephone 0800 145 6095, 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday.