Home Care on Greenwich Peninsula, SE10

From gasworks to lift-served flats

For more than a century the Peninsula was gasworks, then derelict ground until regeneration began in 1997. Now there is Greenwich Millennium Village, designed by Ralph Erskine, and the towers by The O2 and along the river, part of a masterplan for around 15,000 homes. In the Census ward, 84% of homes are purpose-built flats and almost a third have one bedroom.

For care, that is mostly good news. Lifts, wide corridors, level thresholds and wet rooms are normal, so a hoist, a shower chair or a wheelchair usually fits with no building work.

Fobs, concierges and which entrance

What changes is getting in. Many blocks have a concierge, fob entry or a locked car park, and large developments have several entrances on the same SE10 0 postcode. At the assessment we write down the building name, the entrance, the concierge desk number and the agreed way in, whether that is a key held at the desk, a key safe or a fob for each carer. Some buildings allow keys at the desk and some do not; we follow the building's rules.

Parking: why bus or Tube is usually easier

The council says many new developments in the borough are car-free, and an address under that planning condition cannot get a council parking permit, carer permits included. Most residential car parks here are private. For visits by car, ask the managing agent about visitor bays. Public transport is usually simpler: the 108 and 129 run from Lewisham to the Millennium Village and North Greenwich, and North Greenwich station has lifts down to the Jubilee line. At the 2021 Census nearly two-thirds of households in the ward had no car at all.

The GP, the hospital, and coming home

The local surgery is the Greenwich Peninsula Practice in the Millennium Village Health Centre on Schoolbank Road, listed by the NHS as step-free. A carer can go with someone or collect prescriptions.

An admission from here could be to Queen Elizabeth in Woolwich or to University Hospital Lewisham. Either way, Royal Greenwich is the council that assesses for care afterwards, and its short-term help at home may cover the first weeks. From North Greenwich the 161 and 486 both run to Queen Elizabeth. If you want our visits ready for the day of discharge, tell the ward early and call us.

Arranging help: privately, through the council, or both

Privately, ring us and Jackie, our registered manager, assesses at the flat, free. Through the council, ask the Royal Borough for a needs assessment online or on 020 8921 2304; eligible needs lead to a financial assessment and possibly a direct payment to spend with us. For a younger disabled adult, the council's assessment covers personal assistants and equipment too. We quote in writing after our visit.

What visits here usually involve

With a wet room and level floors, a carer can help with a proper shower, not a strip wash, once the right chair is in place. Beyond personal care, it is medicines, meals, shopping and getting out: The Tide, Central Park, the Ecology Park, or the cable car with a wheelchair. In a two-bedroom flat, live-in care on the Peninsula is straightforward.

If a husband, wife or adult child is doing most of the caring, our Greenwich respite page covers the free sitting scheme and paid breaks.

Everything our carers can help with →