a good care home guide
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help and info
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organisations
Age Concern England
Tel: 020 8765 7200
Info Line: 0800 00 99 66 (every day 8am-7pm)
Website: www.ageconcern.org.uk
Organisation dedicated to working with older people to improve their quality of life. Provides practical information and advice to older people and their families and factsheets on a range of issues that affect older people in the UK. The website has a bookshop filled with useful and stimulating literature, an online magazine and an online chatroom. The website also features advice about health and keeping active as well as local services and social groups in your area. Age Concern has partner organisations offering a similar service tailored to people in the other UK countries (see below).
Age Concern Scotland
Helpline: 0845 125 9732 (Mon-Fri 10am-4pm)
Helpline Textphone: 0845 226 5851 (Mon-Fri 10am-4pm)
Info Line: 0800 00 99 66 (every day 7am-7pm)
E-mail: enquiries@acscot.org.uk
Website: www.ageconcernscotland.org.uk
Provides support, care and companionship to make the lives of older people in Scotland better.
Age Concern Cymru (Wales)
Tel: 029 2043 1555
E-mail: enquiries@accymru.org.uk
Website: www.accymru.org.uk
Provides support, care and companionship to make the lives of older people in Wales better. The website is available in both English and Welsh.
Age Concern Northern Ireland
Tel: 028 9024 5729
Advice line: 02890 325 055 (Mon-Thurs 9.30am-1pm)
E-mail: info@ageconcernni.org
Website: www.ageconcernni.org
Provides support, care and companionship to make the lives of older people in Northern Ireland better.
Alzheimer's Society
10 Greencoat Place
London SW1P 1PH
Helpline: 0845 300 0336 (Mon-Fri 8.30am-6.30pm)
Tel: 020 7306 0606
Website: www.alzheimers.org.uk
Provides information and education, support for carers, and quality day and home care. Also funds medical and scientific research and campaigns for improved health and social services and greater public understanding of dementia. Their confidential national helpline is for anyone with concerns about Alzheimer's disease or any other form of dementia. The trained advisors can provide information, support, guidance and referrals to other appropriate organisations.
Alzheimer Scotland: Action on Dementia
22 Drumsheugh Gardens
Edinburgh EH3 7RN
Helpline: 0808 808 3000 (24 hours)
Tel: 0131 243 1453
E-mail: alzheimer@alzscot.org
Website: www.alzscot.org
Scotland's leading dementia charity provides services and campaigns to help people with dementia, their families and carers. The website can help answer an array of questions about dementia, caring for sufferers and sources of support. It can also advise about diagnosing dementia, including explaining other reasons for memory loss and the tell-tale signs of senile dementia
Carers UK
20-25 Glasshouse Yard
London EC1A 4JT
Tel: 020 7490 8818
CarersLine: 0808 808 7777 (Weds and Thurs 10am-12pm and 2pm-4pm)
E-mail: info@carersuk.org
Website: www.carersuk.org
Membership organisation of carers which aims to changes carers' lives by campaigning for a better deal and providing them with a voice to win the recognition and support they deserve. Their website contains links to local and national support.
Counsel and Care
Twyman House
16 Bonny Street
London NW1 9PG
Advice Line: 0845 300 7585 (Mon-Fri 10am-12 and 2-4pm except Weds)
Tel: 020 7241 8555 (general enquiries)
E-mail: advice@counselandcare.org.uk
Website: www.counselandcare.org.uk
Charity giving advice and information to older people, their relatives and carers across the UK. They specialise in free advice for people over 60, their friends, carers and relatives on a range of practical issues, such as housing needs, paying for care and applying for grants. They give advice by telephone, letter and email and have the capacity to support you through the problem until it is resolved.
Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI)
Helpline: 0845 015 0120
E-mail: enquiries@csci.gsi.gov.uk
Website: www.csci.org.uk
The CSCI was established in 2004 to regulate and inspect social care services in England and to promote improvement in their quality. As part of this remit, they regulate and inspect all care homes and the inspection reports are available on their website. You can also contact the CSCI if you have concerns about a friend or family member in a care home, or if you are in a care home yourself.
Elderly Accommodation Counsel (EAC)
Advice line: 020 7820 1343
Website: www.eac.org.uk or www.housingcare.org
Charity which aims to help older people make informed choices about meeting their housing and care needs through a range of services. They maintain a database of all forms of accommodation for older people – sheltered housing for sale and rent, residential care homes, nursing homes and close care schemes.
Help the Aged
SeniorLine: 0808 800 6565 (Mon-Fri 9am-4pm)
In Northern Ireland only: 0808 808 7575 (Mon-Fri 9am-4pm)
E-mail: info@helptheaged.org.uk
Website: www.helptheaged.org.uk
Help the Aged has a range of services, many of them free, designed to help older people remain independent and feel safe in their own homes. The website has a topical news service and offers guidance to handling finances, staying healthy and local events. Their SeniorLine gives free telephone advice on a range of welfare rights issues. As well as the general UK site, Help the Aged's website also has pages for people living in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
IndependentAge
6 Avonmore Road
London W14 8RL
Tel: 020 7605 4200
Website: www.independentage.org.uk
National charity whose main aim is to help older people on low incomes to live independently with dignity and peace of mind by providing regular extra income, grants for emergencies, equipment to aid independence, the support and friendship of volunteers, nursing and residential care and help with fees.
The Relatives & Residents Association
Tel: 020 7359 8148
Helpline: 020 7359 8136 (Mon-Fri 9.30am-4.30pm)
E-mail: info@relres.org
Website: www.relres.org
Organisation that exists for older people needing, or living in, residential care and the families and friends left behind. They provide a listening ear and information about issues such as paying for care or complaining about quality of care. Their helpline provides support and information about care homes.
websites
Care Choices
www.carechoices.co.uk
Provides information for care of the elderly and the specialist care of disabled adults in all types of care home i.e. residential homes and nursing homes. Any of Care Choices publications can be purchased from this website.
Care UK.net
www.careuk.net
Website run by the Nursing Homes Fees Agency that aims to signpost individuals to some of the numerous sources of support, advice and information on long-term care for older people, available throughout the UK.
Department of Health Customer Service Centre
www.dh.gov.uk/Help/HelpFAQ/fs/en
The online portal for the Department of Health provides news of the government's health and social care policy, guidance and publications.
National Association for Providers of Activities for Older People (NAPA)
www.napa-activities.net
Membership organisation providing advice, information and support to activity providers in a range of settings for older people.
Selecting a care home
www.alzheimers.org.uk/Caring_for_someone_with_dementia/ ..
Factsheet from the Alzheimer's Society giving advice about long-term residential or nursing care if you or a relative are finding it difficult to manage at home due to problems caused by dementia.
reading
Choosing a Care Home: How to Arrange for the Satisfactory Long-term Care of an Elderly Dependent or Relative by Mary Goudge (How To Books, 2004)
This book presents practical advice on how to plan for the critically important move into long-term care to ensure that it works well for all concerned.
Get this book
Coping with Your Difficult Older Parent: A Guide for Stressed Out Children by Grace Lebow and Barbara Kane (HarperCollins, 1999)
Common-sense guide, filled with practical tips, on how to smooth communications with a difficult parent. Addresses difficult issues to help stop the vicious cycle of anger, blame, guilt and frustration.
Get this book
Choices for the Carer of an Elderly Relative by Marina Lewycka (Age Concern Books, 2004)
This book aims to help people make decisions about how to care for an elderly person, encouraging readers to assess their own circumstances and priorities. Included are sections on the legal and financial implications, and how to involve the whole family.
Get this book
Communication and the Care of People with Dementia by John Killick and Kate Allan (Open University Press, 2001)
This book argues that communication is at the heart of all approaches to dementia care, and is an in-depth exploration of ways of establishing and developing communication with people with dementia. It examines both the nature of dementia as a condition and the subjective experience of those affected.
Get this book
(resources updated March 2006)
Back to feature. Or read on for some personal stories about choosing a care home for a loved one, told from different perspectives.
