Arranging care in Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire County Council is the upper-tier authority for much of the East of England county, covering Cambridge, Ely, March, Wisbech, Huntingdon, St Ives and St Neots, along with close links to neighbouring Peterborough. As a county council, it holds responsibility for adult social care across these towns and the surrounding villages and Fens, working alongside district councils that handle housing and council tax.
If you or a relative in Cambridgeshire are starting to think about support, the first step is to contact the adult social care team at Cambridgeshire County Council and ask for a needs assessment. This assessment is free, regardless of income or savings, and looks at daily tasks, mobility, mental wellbeing and the support already in place from family or neighbours. If the assessment shows eligible needs, a separate financial assessment then looks at income, savings, and property to determine how much, if anything, you would contribute towards the cost of care.
Choosing a care setting locally
Cambridgeshire has a broad care market, with around 275 CQC registered care homes spread between the historic city of Cambridge, market towns like St Neots and Huntingdon, and the Fenland communities around March and Wisbech. That means families usually have a genuine choice among home care in a familiar setting, residential care homes for those who need daily personal support, and nursing homes where a registered nurse is on-site around the clock.
Paying for care
Funding in Cambridgeshire typically comes from one of three routes: council-funded support after a financial assessment, NHS Continuing Healthcare for those with primarily health-related needs, or self-funding where savings and assets sit above the national capital threshold. As a rough national guide, home care tends to cost around £20 to £30 an hour, residential care homes average roughly £900 to £1,200 a week, and nursing homes are usually £1,100 to £1,500 a week, with Cambridge and the south of the county generally at the higher end.
Cambridgeshire County Council can also point families towards direct payments, reablement after a hospital stay, and independent financial advice, so it is worth making that first call early rather than waiting for a crisis.
