Home Care in Camberwell and Denmark Hill

Coming home from King's or the Maudsley

Camberwell is where south London goes to hospital. King's College Hospital, one of London's largest teaching hospitals, stands on Denmark Hill. The Maudsley, the South London and Maudsley trust's psychiatric hospital, is close by. For a Camberwell resident, a stay in hospital usually ends with a short trip home, and the first days back are when care at home matters most.

The ward team decides when someone is ready to leave and writes a discharge plan with them. Southwark Council's going into hospital guidance explains that its reablement service then usually provides free short-term support at home, on average for three to four weeks and for up to six. Reablement is designed to help people do things for themselves again. If more help is needed after it ends, or if you want care in place from the first evening, that is where we can help with a hospital discharge package. Call us as soon as a discharge date is being discussed. If we cannot staff the package, we will say so plainly, so you can look elsewhere in time.

Georgian Grove, estates off Camberwell Road

Camberwell's housing ranges widely in a short distance. Camberwell Grove, Grove Lane and Addington Square have well-preserved Georgian houses. They are tall, narrow and built over several floors, and most have been converted into flats. Their bathrooms are often half a flight up from the bedrooms, which is awkward for anyone unsteady at night. Towards Camberwell Road and Wyndham Road there are large post-war council estates, with tower blocks and walk-up maisonettes. Mansion-style blocks stand along the main roads.

For care, this means the questions differ from street to street. In a Grove conversion, we ask where the bed and the toilet are in relation to the stairs. In an estate block, we ask whether the lift is working, whether there is a key safe and how a carer will get through the door entry system early in the morning. We settle these at the assessment.

No station, plenty of buses

Camberwell has no Tube or rail station of its own. Its old stations closed in 1916 as a wartime economy and never reopened. Denmark Hill station, opposite King's, has London Overground Windrush line, Southeastern and Thameslink services. Otherwise the area depends on its bus network, including the 12, 36, 171, 185 and 436 along Camberwell Road, Denmark Hill and Camberwell Church Street. The 436 runs direct from Lewisham, where our only office is, so visiting carers can reach Camberwell. Whether we can cover regular visits at your times depends on carer availability, so please ask. Live-in care is not affected by the journey.

Is my Camberwell address in Southwark or Lambeth?

The western part of Camberwell is in the London Borough of Lambeth, so an SE5 postcode alone does not tell you which council to contact. Check your council tax bill. If it says Southwark, contact the Older People and Physical Disabilities team through the council's online referral page or on 020 7525 3324. Our Southwark home care page explains the rest of the borough's route. If it says Lambeth, see our Lambeth home care page.

Who pays for home care in Camberwell?

There are three routes. You can pay privately, and we give you a quote after the free assessment. The council can fund care after a needs assessment and a means test. Or the NHS can fund it through Continuing Healthcare, which is not means-tested, for people whose needs are mainly health needs. Our paying for care guide explains each route.

Live-in care and short breaks

Many Camberwell flats are small, but the larger Georgian and Victorian houses often have the spare bedroom a live-in carer needs. For family carers, respite at home can be occasional sitting visits or a carer staying for a week or two.

Our services in Camberwell

• Personal care
• Medication support
• Home help
• Companionship
• Sit-in service
• Live-in care
• Respite care
• Dementia care
• Complex care
• Palliative care
• Hospital discharge
• Nail care

What we can help with in Camberwell

• Personal care, washing and dressing
• Medication prompting and support
• Meals, laundry and home help
• Companionship and getting out
• Dementia care at home
• Support after a hospital stay
• Short breaks for family carers
• Live-in care when needs grow