Home Care in Colliers Wood

Yes, we provide home care in Colliers Wood, SW19, and it's one of the parts of Merton where regular visiting care is most realistic for us, because the Northern line runs straight there. Whether we can start depends on having a carer free for the times you need, so we check that first. A free home assessment and a written care plan come before any care begins.

Why Colliers Wood works for visiting care

We have no office in Merton; ours is on Lewisham High Street. From there, a carer takes the train to London Bridge and the Northern line south to Colliers Wood, a trip of roughly 45 to 55 minutes with no change of bus at the end. That direct line is the difference between Colliers Wood and the western edge of the borough, and it's why we can more often offer morning, lunchtime and evening calls here.

The station is on the High Street, and buses including the 57, 131, 152, 200 and 219 stop nearby. The 470 starts at Colliers Wood station and runs down to Morden. Streets around the station are covered by the Colliers Wood controlled parking zones, so a carer who drives needs a visitor permit from you, or Merton's annual carer parking permit if the person is housebound or holds a Blue Badge.

New flats by the station, older terraces behind

Colliers Wood has two kinds of home. Close to the station and the High Street are newer flats and towers, many with lifts and level access. Where the flat has a level-access shower, personal care is usually simpler: a wheelchair moves more freely, and the bathroom is on the same floor as the bedroom. Space can be tight, though, and a one-bedroom flat has no room for a live-in carer.

Behind the High Street, the side roads are mostly Victorian and Edwardian terraces, with the bathroom upstairs and narrow stairs to reach it. Here the plan may have to work around a downstairs bed or a commode for a while, and ask the council's occupational therapists about rails or a stairlift.

Coming home from St George's

Most Colliers Wood residents go to St George's Hospital in Tooting, one stop north on the Northern line at Tooting Broadway, or a short bus ride on the 57, 131 or 219. That closeness helps with outpatient appointments, which a carer can come along to.

When someone is ready to leave a ward, Merton Council's Hospital to Home Team arranges short-term support, which can include the council's reablement service for up to six weeks. If you think ongoing care will be needed after that, call us while the discharge is still being planned. Our hospital discharge support page explains how we work alongside it.

Your GP and local services

Colliers Wood Surgery is at 58 High Street, SW19 2BY. If you are starting care, let the practice know, and tell us about district nurse visits so they fit the care plan. Merton Council's Leyton Road day centre, in Colliers Wood, is for adults with learning or physical disabilities; the council's centre for older people is Eastway, in Morden.

Can I get a council assessment for care in Colliers Wood?

Yes. Contact Merton's Adult Social Care First Response Team on 020 8545 4388 (weekdays 9am to 5pm) or at ASCFirstResponse@merton.gov.uk. Merton doesn't use an online form for this. If the council agrees the person is eligible, you can take the funding as a direct payment and choose us as the provider. Family carers can ask for their own carer's assessment through Carers First on 0300 303 1555.

How much does home care cost in Colliers Wood?

It depends on how many visits are needed and how long each one is, so we give a written quote after the assessment and don't publish prices. If the council is involved, a financial assessment decides what the person pays; our Merton home care page covers that, and NHS Continuing Healthcare, in more detail.

Live-in care and respite

Around-the-clock help usually means a live-in carer, and in Colliers Wood that tends to work in the terraces behind the High Street, where a back bedroom is free, more often than in the compact flats by the station. Family carers who need a break can have one covered with visits, which are more realistic here than in most of Merton, or a short live-in stay; see respite care in Merton.

Services in Colliers Wood

• 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 Colliers Wood

• 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