Hammersmith · Hammersmith and Fulham
Home Care in Hammersmith, W6
Visiting care where we can staff it, and live-in care across the W6 streets between the Broadway, King Street, Ravenscourt Park and the river.
Yes, we provide home care in Hammersmith: personal care, medication support, companionship and live-in care, all planned after a free home assessment by Jackie, our registered manager. We are based in Lewisham, about an hour away, so regular visits depend on having a carer who can reach W6 at the times you need. Live-in care is the option we can offer most reliably.
How do I get free home care from Hammersmith & Fulham Council?
Start here before you pay anyone. H&F is the only council that doesn't charge for the home care it arranges, so a needs assessment comes first. Phone Adult Social Care free on 0800 145 6095 (8.45am to 5pm, Monday to Friday) or use the council's online contact form. A GP or community nurse can also refer. The council's offices are on King Street, at 145-155, but contact by phone or the form first.
Free doesn't mean unlimited: you get the hours the assessment says you need, and you have to meet the national eligibility criteria. A private agency can add longer or extra visits, a sit-in, or help while the assessment is pending. We charge for our own care and give you a written quote after our assessment. If the council agrees ongoing care, you can ask for a direct payment and choose who provides it. Our Hammersmith and Fulham home care page sets out the whole council route.
Broadway, King Street and the riverside
Hammersmith is the borough's working centre: the flyover, the Broadway interchange, the Lyric and the long shopping run of King Street, where the Polish cultural centre POSK has stood for decades. The homes fall into three kinds, and each shapes care differently.
- Victorian terraces and mansion blocks, many now flats. Check for a lift, and whether a wheelchair or a frame fits it, before planning any equipment.
- Council blocks near the Broadway and Queen Caroline Street. Most work well for visits once a key safe is fitted at the door.
- New flats at Fulham Reach along the river. These have lifts and level access, but the concierge needs a list of who the carers are.
South of the A4, the riverside walk along the Malls is flat, which makes it a good outing for a companionship visit with someone who is slower on their feet.
Worried about memory? The NHS Cognitive Impairment and Dementia Service for H&F is in Hammersmith itself, at St Vincent's, 49 Queen Caroline Street. It is usually reached through the GP. We can work alongside it once a diagnosis or care plan is in place: see our dementia care page.
Getting a carer to W6
Hammersmith has two Tube stations: one for the District and Piccadilly lines and one for the Hammersmith & City and Circle lines. Ravenscourt Park and Stamford Brook on the District line serve the western streets. From Lewisham the usual route is Southeastern into London Bridge or Victoria and then the District line, which takes about an hour door to door. Visits close to the stations are easier for us than those out towards the Chiswick edge.
Almost every street is in a controlled parking zone. A carer who drives needs you to book them in on RingGo with a virtual visitor permit, which is discounted for Blue Badge holders. Hammersmith Bridge is closed to motor traffic, so anyone driving from Barnes or further south-west has to go round by Putney or Chiswick bridge.
Coming home from Charing Cross Hospital
Charing Cross on Fulham Palace Road is the local A&E and the hospital most W6 residents are discharged from. The council lists a community and hospital assessment service for Charing Cross and Hammersmith hospitals on 020 3311 1844. Ring us while the ward is still planning discharge, not on the morning itself, so we can tell you whether we can cover the visits. More on our hospital discharge support.
Live-in care and short breaks
A live-in carer needs a bedroom of their own. Whole houses around Ravenscourt Park and Brook Green usually have one. Converted one- and two-bedroom flats near the Broadway often don't, and there visits are the realistic choice. A husband, wife or grown-up child who does most of the caring can ask Adult Social Care on the same number for a carer's assessment. Carers Network (020 8960 3033) is the council's named first contact for unpaid carers. When you need a week or two away, a live-in carer can cover it as respite care.
Care we provide in Hammersmith
- 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 Hammersmith
- 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
Elsewhere in Hammersmith and Fulham
Home care pages for other parts of Hammersmith and Fulham:
Our services
How we can help in Hammersmith and Fulham
From a few visits a week to a carer who lives in, choose the support that fits.
Visiting care in Hammersmith and Fulham
Regular visits for personal care, medication, meals and company.
Read more →Live-in care in Hammersmith and Fulham
A carer who lives in, for one person or a couple.
Read more →Respite care in Hammersmith and Fulham
Cover so a family carer can rest, recover or go away.
Read more →Supported living in Hammersmith and Fulham
Our homes in Whitton, Kingston and Uxbridge.
Read more →Hammersmith FAQs
Hammersmith questions
Questions families ask us about Hammersmith. If yours is not here, ask us directly.
Ask a questionCan I just walk into the council offices on King Street to ask for care?
The quickest route is the Adult Social Care freephone, 0800 145 6095, or the online contact form. Both start the assessment. Calling also gets you through to the right team instead of a general reception.
My father lives in a mansion flat off Fulham Palace Road with no lift. Can he still have care at home?
Yes, as long as the stairs are still safe for him on the days he goes out. At the assessment we look at the stairs, the bathroom and the front door, and if getting out has become the problem we will suggest asking the council's occupational therapist about it.
Mum is Polish and goes to POSK most weeks. Can care fit around that?
Yes. Tell us her routine and we will plan visits around it, including help getting ready and out of the door. We can try to match a carer to her language and food, but we won't promise a Polish-speaking carer unless we have one available.
We live on the riverside near the bridge. Does the bridge closure affect carers?
Only carers who drive in from the south-west, who have to go round by another bridge. A carer coming from south-east London by Tube is not affected. The bigger riverside issue is the walk down from the Broadway past the flyover, so tell us which side of the A4 you are on and where the nearest crossing is.
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Other areas near Hammersmith
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