How do I arrange a care needs assessment in Solihull?

Ask the adult social care team at Birmingham City Council for a care needs assessment. It is free and open to anyone who appears to need care, whatever their income or savings. A social worker will discuss the daily routine, mobility, memory, medication and the help already provided, usually at home or before a hospital discharge. The written outcome records what support is required and forms the basis of any support plan.

Will Birmingham City Council help with the cost of care at home?

It may, where the needs assessment identifies eligible needs and the financial assessment shows income and capital below the national thresholds. The value of the property a person lives in is not counted while care is delivered there. Anyone assessed as able to pay in full can still ask the council to arrange the care, and a direct payment allows a person to choose their own agency. Where the council contributes, an assessed amount is paid from income.

Which home care agencies in Solihull are listed on this page?

Fifty eight agencies registered with the Care Quality Commission to provide personal care in people's own homes appear here. Unique Senior Care is rated Outstanding, while Caremark Solihull, Bluebird Care, Orion Care Services, Sandant Care and Voyage are among those rated Good. Eighteen providers have registered recently and carry no published rating. Each profile shows the provider type and the current CQC position.

How does home care differ from a care home or a nursing home?

Home care brings trained carers to the person at agreed times, leaving them in their own home with their own routine. A care home provides accommodation with personal care and staff on site at all times, while a nursing home adds a registered nurse on duty around the clock. The providers on this page deliver care at home rather than accommodation. Where visits can no longer keep someone safe through the night, comparing the two is sensible.

How far ahead should we start arranging care?

Start once the hard parts of the day have become predictable rather than occasional, since agency capacity varies by area and by time of day. Assessment, contracting and the first care plan meeting usually take a fortnight or more between them. Beginning early leaves room to trial one provider and change if the fit is wrong. Reading the published reports in advance shortens every conversation that follows.

What should I ask an agency before the first visit?

Ask how many different carers would visit over a fortnight and whether the same team covers weekends and bank holidays. Ask about the minimum visit length, how lateness is communicated and who answers the telephone out of hours. Find out how staff are trained for the specific need involved, whether that is dementia, moving and handling or medication support. Ask to see a sample care plan and confirm when it would first be reviewed.

Home Care in Solihull

Solihull has 58 CQC registered home care agencies. 35 are rated Good, 1 Outstanding, 5 Requires improvement, and 17 have not yet been rated. 34 of the 58 were last inspected more than three years ago.

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

Solihull at a glance

What the numbers say about home care in Solihull.

Hourly care visits, West Midlands: £28.30 to £32.00 an hour. Middle half of prices from 8 agencies.
People aged 75 and over: 25,700. Rising to 27,700 by 2035, up 8%
Living with dementia, aged 65 and over (estimate): 3,300. Rising to 3,900 by 2035, up 17%
People aged 85 and over: 7,100. Rising to 9,800 by 2035, up 39%
Dementia diagnosis rate: 61%. The NHS ambition is 67%.
Agencies in Solihull, last 12 months: 1 opened, 3 closed

Powered by Orrery Intelligence. Market model built 22 October 2026 (ONS 2022 based population projections, CQC register), published care home prices, council planning records.

Arranging care at home in Solihull and paying for it

The care needs assessment

Support usually becomes easier to organise once there is an assessment in writing. It is free, anyone who appears to need care can ask for one whatever their savings, and it covers getting up and dressed, meals, medicines, mobility, continence and the help already given by relatives. The outcome records what is needed and how often, which is what the support plan and any funding decision are built on. Requests are made to Birmingham City Council Adult Social Care, the authority responsible for assessing need and arranging funded support.

Charges, contributions and choice

Agencies charge by the hour or the visit, with higher rates common at weekends, on bank holidays and for calls outside ordinary hours. The financial assessment compares income and capital with the national thresholds and sets the contribution towards eligible care. The value of the house a person lives in is disregarded while care is delivered there, which is a real difference from moving permanently into a care home. A direct payment lets someone choose their own agency while the council still contributes towards the cost.

Questions about money worth asking early

Ask for rates in writing, including the weekend and bank holiday figures, and check whether travel time or mileage is added to the bill. Ask what the minimum visit length is and how a missed or shortened call is credited. Ask what notice is needed to increase, reduce or stop visits. Clear answers at this stage say a good deal about how an agency is run.

Choosing between the home care agencies in Solihull

What the ratings do and do not settle

Unique Senior Care holds the single Outstanding rating on this list, and thirty five agencies are rated Good, among them Caremark Solihull, Bluebird Care, Orion Care Services and Sandant Care. Four have been told they require improvement, and the report will explain whether the concern was about timekeeping, medicines recording, training or management. Eighteen agencies carry no grade because inspection has not yet happened, which is common after a recent registration but leaves you without independent evidence to lean on.

Continuity, timing and communication

Ask how many different carers would attend over a fortnight and whether the same faces cover weekends. Ask what happens when a carer is delayed and who telephones the family. Ask how the office is staffed in the evening and at weekends, because that is exactly when things go wrong. Ask how medicines are administered and recorded, and how the agency investigates a visit that did not happen.

Trial, then judge

Begin with a short trial and review it properly after a fortnight rather than letting an unsatisfactory arrangement drift. Ask to see a blank care plan, check how specific it is about tasks and times, and confirm when it would be revisited. Each profile on this page carries the published inspection findings, which makes it far quicker to decide who deserves a first conversation.

58 home care in Solihull (showing 1–50)

3Belle.Ami Health · Birmingham, Solihull
Acer Healthcare · Birmingham, Solihull
Advance Healthcare (Saxon Court) · Birmingham, Solihull
Angels Healthcare · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
Autism West Midlands · Birmingham, Solihull
Auxilio Care · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
Business Park · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
CarePassion · Birmingham, Solihull
DomCare · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
ECS Main Office · Birmingham, Solihull
First Care Healthcare · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
Glorious Light Care · Birmingham, Solihull
KE 247 Support Services · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Requires improvement
Kelso Care Consortium Supported Living Services · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
Leaf Complex Care Midlands · Birmingham, Solihull
L.I.S.T Care Services · Birmingham, Solihull
Nurseline Community Services Midlands · Birmingham, Solihull
Sandant Care · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
Social Life Opportunities (SoLo) · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Requires improvement
Steps to Independence · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
Transforming Support · Birmingham, Solihull
United Homecare · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
Voyage (DCA) · Birmingham, Solihull · CQC Good
Plan-it Homecare · Coventry, Solihull · CQC Good
Social Care Academy - Warwickshire · Coventry, Solihull · CQC Good
A Star Care Services · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Advance Healthcare- Hampton House · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Advance Healthcare- Phoenix House · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Advance Healthcare- Trinity Apartments · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Alina Homecare · Solihull, Solihull
Bluebird Care (& Birmingham West) · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Bright Dawn Home Care · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Care Affair · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Care - 2Care4You Home & Community Care · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Care Services · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Care4Now · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Caremark · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Community Support Service · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Dixon Dunn Care · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Dove Home Care Agency · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Requires improvement
Elite Assistance · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Helping Hands · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Home Care · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Homecare For You · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Meadow Home Care Services · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Requires improvement
Office · Solihull, Solihull
Omnia Support · Solihull, Solihull
Orion Care Services · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Good
Real PCS · Solihull, Solihull · CQC Requires improvement
Right at Home · Solihull, Solihull

What home care costs

Type of care	What it costs
Hourly care visits, West Midlands Middle half of prices from 8 agencies. Median £32.00. Shown for West Midlands because too few Solihull agencies publish a rate.	£28.30 to £32.00 an hour
What Solihull pays Average hourly rate, October 2026.	£25.05 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

Care Services, 14 September 2026, Good
YourLife (Shirley), 20 August 2026, Good
Dove Home Care Agency Limited, 13 July 2026, Requires improvement

Longest since a report

White Doves, 31 October 2017, Good
Voyage (DCA) Solihull and Birmingham, 9 March 2018, Good
Meadow Home Care Services Ltd, 21 March 2018, Requires improvement

Frequently asked questions about home care in Solihull

How many home care agencies are there in Solihull?

Solihull has 58 CQC registered home care agencies: 1 Outstanding, 35 Good, 5 Requires improvement, 17 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 Solihull?

Hourly care visits, West Midlands: £28.30 to £32.00 an hour. Middle half of prices from 8 agencies. Median £32.00. Shown for West Midlands because too few Solihull 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 Solihull were inspected most recently?

Care Services (14 September 2026), YourLife (Shirley) (20 August 2026) and Dove Home Care Agency Limited (13 July 2026) have the most recent CQC reports.

Local care news in Birmingham

New 68 bed care home registered with CQC in Birmingham: The Orchards (5 November 2026)

More local care news for Birmingham