Home Care in Mitcham

Mitcham has 21 CQC registered home care agencies. 15 are rated Good, and 6 have not yet been rated. 11 of the 21 were last inspected more than three years ago.

Source: Care Quality Commission register, kept up to date as ratings change.

What home care in Mitcham involves and what to look for

Personal care at home is a regulated activity, which is why the agencies on this page are registered with the Care Quality Commission and why their inspection reports are public. In practice the work covers washing and dressing, help with medication, preparing meals, support with continence and assistance moving about safely, arranged as anything from one call a day to a package built around several visits. Working out precisely which of those tasks matter, and at which hours, gives you a far sharper basis for comparing twenty agencies than a general wish for someone to help.

Making sense of the published ratings

Fourteen of the agencies listed for Mitcham currently hold a Good rating and six have not yet been rated. An unrated service is generally one that registered recently and has not had a first inspection, so the absence of a rating says little in itself, though it does put more weight on the questions you ask directly. Where a report has been published, look at what inspectors said about the reliability of visits, how medicines are managed and whether staff felt properly supported, and check when the inspection took place.

The questions that show how an agency really works

Continuity is what families notice most once care begins, so ask how many different carers would come over a fortnight and whether a small regular team is realistic. Establish what happens when a carer is off sick, how late or missed calls are dealt with, and who to ring outside office hours. Ask who supervises the carers and how often, and what training staff receive for the specific conditions involved. Agencies including Polly Care Services, Advance Home Care Ltd, Homecare Southlodge and Rainbow Medical Services Ltd appear here holding a Good rating, though the right fit still depends on the routine you are trying to support.

Getting an assessment and sorting out funding

The care needs assessment

A care needs assessment is free and open to anyone who appears to need care and support, whatever their savings, and it is the sensible first step even for families who expect to pay privately. London Borough of Merton Adult Social Care is responsible for carrying out that assessment for people living in Mitcham, along with the financial assessment that follows. A practitioner will look at personal care, mobility, medication, nutrition, risks around the home and how much relatives are already doing. The written outcome sets out the level of support required, and agencies will find it useful when quoting for a package.

What home care costs and who pays

Following the financial assessment, the council may fund the support in full, contribute a share, or conclude that the family should meet the cost themselves. Where care is arranged privately, the contract sits between the family and the agency, and charges vary with the length of each visit, the time of day, weekend and bank holiday cover, and whether two carers are required for safe moving and handling. Ask for the complete schedule of rates in writing before committing, along with the notice period. Anyone eligible for council support who would rather choose and manage the agency themselves should ask about a direct payment.

Related searches

• Care Homes in Mitcham
• Nursing Homes in Mitcham

Home Care near Mitcham

• Morden
• Thornton Heath
• Carshalton
• Wallington
• Sutton
• Croydon
• Worcester Park
• New Malden
• South Croydon
• Kingston Upon Thames