Home Care in Melksham
Melksham has 4 CQC registered home care agencies. 3 are rated Good, and 1 has not yet been rated. 2 of the 4 were last inspected more than three years ago.
Source: Care Quality Commission register, kept up to date as ratings change.
Melksham at a glance
What the local numbers say about home care in Melksham, to help you judge the options below.
- Hourly care visits, South West: £28.75 to £34.94 an hour. Middle half of prices from 10 agencies.
- People aged 75 and over: 65,200. Rising to 79,600 by 2035, up 22%
- Living with dementia, aged 65 and over (estimate): 8,500. Rising to 11,200 by 2035, up 32%
- People aged 85 and over: 17,700. Rising to 28,000 by 2035, up 58%
- Dementia diagnosis rate: 64%. The NHS ambition is 67%.
- Agencies in the borough, last 12 months: 4 opened, 6 closed. 134 registered today.
- Choice of agencies: 46 within 10 miles. In a typical neighbourhood. The nearest is under a mile away (0.7 miles).
Powered by Orrery Intelligence. Market model built 22 October 2026 (ONS 2022 based population projections, CQC register), published care home prices, council planning records.
Planning and paying for home care in Melksham
Starting with a care needs assessment
A written account of what someone needs makes every later conversation shorter, and that is what a care needs assessment produces. It is free, carries no means test and can be requested by the person or by a relative acting for them. Assessment and funded support in this area are handled by Wiltshire Council, whose assessor will look at mobility, washing and dressing, meals, medication, continence and the help family members already provide. If eligible needs are identified, the council can offer a personal budget, and taking it as a direct payment means choosing the agency yourself rather than accepting an allocated one. A relative giving unpaid care can ask for a separate assessment of their own.
What home care costs
Agencies charge by the hour or by the visit, with higher rates at weekends and on bank holidays, and the figures differ between providers in Melksham, so ask for a written schedule rather than accepting a verbal quote. Check whether travel time, mileage or a minimum visit length is included, because those additions change a weekly total considerably. A financial assessment establishes what the council contributes and what the person pays, and savings above the national threshold mean meeting the cost privately. Even then it is worth telling the council about the arrangement, since needs rise over time and eligibility can be reconsidered.
Choosing an agency and what to check
Reading the inspection record
Three of the four agencies listed are rated Good and one has not yet been inspected for a rating. Where an agency does have a report, find out which of the five key questions it was judged on most favourably and least, how recent the inspection was and whether any concern involved medication, timekeeping or record keeping, because those point to quite different problems. For the agency with no rating yet, ask when an inspection is expected and what the provider can offer meanwhile by way of references, a trial period or a named supervisor you can contact.
The questions that actually predict good care
Ask how many different carers would come in a fortnight and whether the same faces return, because continuity matters more than almost anything in the brochure. Ask what happens when a carer is off sick, at what point the office telephones to warn you a visit will be late, and whether carers are paid for travelling time, since agencies that do not pay it tend to run behind all day. Check whether early mornings, evenings and weekends can be covered, as those are the hardest slots to fill. Ask who writes the care plan, how often it is reviewed and how a concern is raised out of hours.
4 home care in Melksham
- Autonomy Care · Melksham, Wiltshire · CQC Good
- Home Care · Melksham, Wiltshire
- Somerset Care Community Services · Melksham, Wiltshire · CQC Good
- Abney & Baker (Bath) · Melksham, Wiltshire · CQC Good
What home care costs
| Type of care | What it costs |
|---|---|
| Hourly care visits, South West Middle half of prices from 10 agencies. Median £32.96. Shown for South West because too few Wiltshire agencies publish a rate. | £28.75 to £34.94 an hour |
| What Wiltshire pays Average hourly rate, October 2026. | £29.40 an hour |
| Homecare Association minimum price 2026 to 2027. The Association's estimate of the lowest price that covers the cost of delivering care. It is not a legal minimum. | £34.42 an hour |
| Live in care, England Middle half of prices from 62 agencies. Median £1,455. | £1,250 to £1,668 a week |
Published prices come from agencies that publish rates, so treat them as a guide. Ask the agency for its own price. Powered by Orrery Intelligence.
Inspected most recently
- Abney & Baker (Bath) Ltd, 3 December 2025, Good
- Somerset Care Community Services (Wiltshire), 27 October 2022, Good
- Autonomy Care Limited, 24 October 2019, Good
Longest since a report
- Autonomy Care Limited, 24 October 2019, Good
- Somerset Care Community Services (Wiltshire), 27 October 2022, Good
- Abney & Baker (Bath) Ltd, 3 December 2025, Good
Frequently asked questions about home care in Melksham
How many home care agencies are there in Melksham?
Melksham has 4 CQC registered home care agencies: 3 Good, 1 not yet rated. Counts come from the CQC register and are kept up to date as ratings change.
How much does home care cost in Melksham?
Hourly care visits, South West: £28.75 to £34.94 an hour. Middle half of prices from 10 agencies. Median £32.96. Shown for South West because too few Wiltshire agencies publish a rate. Published prices come from agencies that publish rates, so treat them as a guide. Ask the agency for its own price.
Which home care agencies in Melksham were inspected most recently?
Abney & Baker (Bath) Ltd (3 December 2025), Somerset Care Community Services (Wiltshire) (27 October 2022) and Autonomy Care Limited (24 October 2019) have the most recent CQC reports.