Home Care in Custom House, E16

Yes, we provide home care in Custom House. We start with a free assessment in your home, write a care plan with you, and then arrange visits at agreed times or a live-in carer. We have no office in Newham, but Custom House is one stop from Woolwich on the Elizabeth line, which makes it one of the more practical parts of the borough for our carers to reach.

Is it easy to get a carer to Custom House?

Easier than much of Newham. From Lewisham, carers come by train or DLR to Woolwich and take the Elizabeth line one stop north under the river, or travel by DLR and Jubilee line to Canning Town and change for the DLR towards Custom House or Prince Regent. Either way the trip is roughly 30 to 40 minutes. Even so, whether we can cover early or late visits every day depends on carer availability, so tell us the times on the first call.

For carers who drive, check which zone you are in. The Custom House parking zone runs Monday to Saturday, 8am to 6.30pm. Most of the Prince Regent zone, nearer ExCeL, runs every day from 8am to 10pm, according to the council's parking zone list. Residents receiving care at home can buy one Residential Carer permit from the council for visiting carers.

Estate homes and what they mean for care

Most of Custom House is post-war council housing: low-rise blocks, maisonettes and small houses on the estates either side of Freemasons Road, with newer flats near the station and ExCeL. The area is in the middle of a long regeneration.

• Maisonettes. The bedroom and bathroom are often upstairs inside the flat, so the stairs become the problem before anything else. We may suggest moving the bed downstairs for a while, or asking the council about a stairlift.
• Lifts. A broken lift can leave someone stuck indoors, so we note the stairs and route in.
• A planned move. If a regeneration move is coming, tell us early so the care plan, key safe and equipment move too.

Doctor, hospital and getting there

Custom House Surgery is at 16 Freemasons Road (E16 3NA), and the NHS website showed it accepting new patients when we checked. The local hospital is Newham University Hospital on Glen Road, Plaistow, and the 304 bus runs from Custom House station to stops outside its emergency department and main reception.

On the ward, ask whether the person has been referred to the Integrated Discharge Hub, and whether reablement or the Home and Settle Service has been arranged. The council explains these on its help leaving hospital page. Call us before the discharge date, and see our hospital discharge support.

How do I get Newham Council to help pay for care in Custom House?

Start with a needs assessment. Call the Access to Adult Social Care Team on 020 8430 2000, option 2, or use the online form on the council's contacting adult social care page. If the person is eligible, a financial assessment follows; Newham says people with savings over £23,250 may have to pay in full. A council direct payment can be used to pay us. For private care, we quote in writing after the home assessment. The wider picture is on our home care in Newham page.

When visits are not enough

Live-in care suits someone who needs help at night or cannot be left for long. The carer needs their own bedroom, which can be the hard part in a smaller estate flat. One carer can support a couple. If you are the main family carer, respite care gives you planned time off. Newham Carers Community, run by Age UK East London from the Stratford Advice Arcade (020 3954 3143), offers free advice and support to unpaid carers; the council's carer's assessment is the route to funded breaks.

What a carer can do in Custom House

• Personal care: getting up, washing, dressing and help with the toilet
• Medication support, recorded at every visit
• Home help: shopping on Freemasons Road, meals, laundry and cleaning
• Companionship and trips out
• A sit-in service while you go out
• Complex care and palliative care at home

What we can help with in Custom House

• 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