How to Choose the Right Home Care Provider for Your Loved One
Understanding Your Loved One's Care Needs
The most important thing when choosing a care provider for your loved one is to ensure you always keep them at the centre of the process. It’s challenging for families when the pressure is on and care needs must be met, but losing sight of what is best for the person will only lead to upset and upheaval later on. Knowing what the person wants, and asking questions, if possible, such as ‘do you want to remain at home for your care?’ or ‘would you prefer to move into residential care?’ will give loved ones answers about what type of care would best suit them.
Receiving care in their beloved home is often the first choice for many people, but their loved ones don’t always realise it’s an option. With Helping Hands, you get tailored support focused on helping you live as independently as possible in the home you love.
Key Factors to Consider When Choosing a Home Care Provider
When choosing a primary care provider, it’s important to ensure the company has sufficient expertise and infrastructure to support you, as well as compassionate, knowledgeable staff who will help you make an informed decision. Other key factors to consider include:
Fully regulated care service
Unlike many home care providers, Helping Hands is fully regulated by both the Care Quality Commission and the Care Inspectorate Wales. This demonstrates our dedication to always delivering the very highest standards of home care to all of our customers.
Clear and simple billing process
We’ll design your package of care after a comprehensive assessment in the location of your choice. Once we’ve got to know your needs, we’ll personalise a quote for you that encompasses all of your costs in one clear, detailed, easy-to-follow monthly statement.
All carers employed directly
Our carers are loyal because we support them as well as we support our customers. We offer paid holiday, above industry average pay and training and development opportunities. That’s how we retain carer loyalty and motivate them to be the very best carers they can.
Trusted home care provider
It’s no surprise that we’re the UK’s most trusted home care provider, considering we’ve been supporting people across England and Wales since 1989. We’re knowledgeable about all aspects of care at home and will always put you first.
Types of Home Care Services Available
With visiting care, our carers will visit you at home as little or as often as you need - whether that’s a couple of times per week, or several times per day.
Visits from 30 minutes a week
Flexible Support
Condition-led Care
Live-in care will see one of our fantastic carers come to live with you in your home to provide round-the-clock support and companionship.
24-hour care
Life on your own terms
Handpicked carer
Carer Qualifications and Experience
Our carers are amazing at what they do, but it’s no surprise when you consider how carefully we choose the people who come to work for us. We build on their existing experience and offer them opportunities for development that reflect their career goals. We also offer:
Supportive environment
All of our carers receive our comprehensive training, and have access to our Employee Assistance Programme
Paid travel time
We always pay for our carers travel between care visits as we don’t want them to be left out of pocket
Competitive pay rates
We’re proud to pay our carers an hourly rate that’s well above the national care industry average
Progression and training
We offer our carers opportunities to undertake relevant qualifications and progress in their careers
Personalised Care Plans and Flexibility
Whether you’re struggling with your daily routines, unwilling to move to a care home, requiring mobility support, living with a complex condition or feeling lonely and isolated, our carers at Helping Hands will make sure you get to live the best quality of life possible in the home you love. Remaining living at home for your care gives you the best of both worlds — both physical and emotional support — which is why your wellbeing is always at the forefront of everything we do. We’ll devise you a personalised care plan that contains every aspect of your daily routine, such as:
- Personal care
- Housework
- Mobility support
- Assistance with medication
- Looking after pets
- Getting out of the house
Cost and Funding options
The price of your home care will vary depending on how often you require support and how complex your needs are. You should always speak to a financial adviser if you’re planning for future care, as well as your local authority to discover what options are funded locally. We’ll devise you a personalised quote when we learn your requirements but as a rule our home care begins at the following prices:
Visiting Care
You may need us for an hour or two a week or several times a day, but regardless of how often, we’ll ensure you’ll receive the highest standards of care every day. Visiting Care varies in price per hour but begins at £31.00 per hour, plus a call-out charge per visit of £4.50.
Live-in Care
When your carer lives in your home with you, you’ll receive exceptional support with your daily routine with the reassurance of continuous companionship as well. Live-in care for an individual begins at a competitive £1,595 per week, and for a couple it’s even better value compared to a care home.
Reviews and Reputation
Communication and Support
Our local care teams cover the length and breadth of England and Wales, offering unrivalled support for every condition. We support people who are living with age-related frailties, life-limiting conditions and at the end of their lives, and at all times, we are professional and responsive; after all, your health is our priority. Our superb carers are knowledgeable and offer the best care possible, frequently going above and beyond to make sure our customers live their highest-quality life at home. We provide dedicated visiting and live-in care that offers not only practical support but also emotional support and companionship. We listen at Helping Hands, making sure that you’re always at the centre of your care experience. Our friendly customer care advisers will answer all of your questions and advise you on how we can help, so call us for a chat and we’ll walk you through the entire process.
Using Helping Hands for Personalised Home Care
You’ll never feel hurried with Helping Hands. From the first moment you or your loved ones contact us, you’ll feel like one of the family. That’s because we began as a family business and still have family values at the heart of everything we do. We’ve built our reputation over decades of superlative care to become the UK’s most trusted home care provider. We own all of our 150 branches across England and Wales, unlike many home care providers who sell franchises. By owning and managing them ourselves, we can maintain the very highest standards at all times, offering a consistency of care that is unrivalled in the industry.
Talk to your local branch team or call our friendly customer care advisors, seven days a week to learn more about our homecare services, fully regulated by the Care Quality Commission and the Care Inspectorate Wales.