Kensington · Kensington and Chelsea
Home Care in Kensington, W8
Care at home in the mansion blocks, squares and side streets around Kensington High Street and Kensington Church Street, from daily visits to a carer who lives in.
We can arrange home care anywhere in W8, either visiting carers for personal care, meals and medication, or a live-in carer. The first step is a free assessment at home with our registered manager, Jackie. High Street Kensington is on the Circle line from Victoria, so visits are possible from our Lewisham base, depending on carer availability. Live-in care doesn't depend on distance at all.
The council is on Hornton Street
Kensington is where the Royal Borough runs its services from. The Town Hall on Hornton Street, just behind the High Street, is where Kensington and Chelsea Adult Social Care is based, with Kensington Central Library next door on Phillimore Walk. You still apply by phone or online. You don't need to visit.
- Ask for a needs assessment. Use the People First request form or ring the Social Services Line on 020 7361 3013, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. A GP or hospital can refer too.
- The financial assessment follows. Council-arranged care in Kensington and Chelsea is means-tested, so people with savings or property above the national limits pay for their own care.
- Choose how care is provided. If the council funds care, you can ask for a direct payment and use it to pay a private agency.
- Carers get their own assessment. A spouse or adult child doing the caring can request a carer's assessment, which can lead to a carer's personal budget.
You can arrange private care first and approach the council at the same time. Either way, we'll put our fees in writing after the assessment. There's more on the council's role on our Kensington and Chelsea home care page.
Mansion blocks, squares and family houses
Behind the shops on Kensington High Street, the residential streets are a mix. There are Edwardian and Victorian mansion blocks, many with lifts and porters. There are period squares, such as Kensington Square and Edwardes Square. Around Phillimore Gardens, Abingdon Road and the streets off Kensington Church Street, there are terraced houses, some still whole and some divided into flats.
For care, mansion blocks are often the easiest homes in the borough. With a lift, a porter who knows the carers and rooms on one level, things like bathing and transfers are simpler. A whole house brings stairs, but usually also a spare room, which is what live-in care needs. The hardest places are the upper floors of converted houses without lifts, and we look carefully at those during the assessment.
Kensington Gardens is on the doorstep. The palace gardens and the Round Pond are a level walk from much of W8, with benches along the way. Holland Park is just north of the western end of the High Street. A short walk with a carer counts as care. See companionship visits.
Which hospital is nearest to Kensington?
W8 sits between two A&Es. Chelsea and Westminster Hospital on the Fulham Road covers the south of the borough. St Mary's in Paddington, run by Imperial College Healthcare, is reached across Kensington Gardens. Which one an ambulance goes to depends on where you live and on the emergency. Either way, discharge home works the same: ask the ward to involve us early, and we'll arrange an assessment before the discharge date if we can. The council's short-term reablement service may start first, and our care can follow it. See hospital discharge care.
Stations and buses
High Street Kensington is on the District and Circle lines. Notting Hill Gate, at the top of Kensington Church Street, adds the Central line. The 9, 27, 28, 49 and 328 stop outside High Street Kensington station. The 27, 28, 52, 70, 328 and 452 run up and down Kensington Church Street, and the C1 and 328 cover Earls Court Road and Pembroke Road. On-street parking is for permit holders, and the council doesn't issue visitor permits, so a carer who drives has to use a pay-to-park bay.
Live-in care in W8
A carer who lives in has a room of their own and is there all day, with agreed breaks. Kensington's family houses and larger mansion flats are often well suited. See live-in care in Kensington and Chelsea.
Short breaks
Respite can be a few days of live-in cover while a family carer has an operation, or a standing weekly sit so they can get out. Open Age runs activities and befriending for people over 50 in the borough, which can fill other parts of the week. More on respite care in Kensington and Chelsea.
What we can help with in Kensington
- 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 Kensington and Chelsea
Home care pages for other parts of Kensington and Chelsea:
Our services
How we can help in Kensington and Chelsea
From a few visits a week to a carer who lives in, choose the support that fits.
Visiting care in Kensington and Chelsea
Regular visits for personal care, medication, meals and company.
Read more →Live-in care in Kensington and Chelsea
A carer who lives in, for one person or a couple.
Read more →Respite care in Kensington and Chelsea
Cover so a family carer can rest, recover or go away.
Read more →Supported living in Kensington and Chelsea
Our homes in Whitton, Kingston and Uxbridge.
Read more →Kensington FAQs
Home care in Kensington: your questions
Questions families ask us about Kensington. If yours is not here, ask us directly.
Ask a questionOur mansion block has a porter. Can carers collect keys from him?
That can work if the managing agent agrees, but we usually prefer a key safe or an entry code, so access doesn't depend on the porter's hours. We'll agree the arrangement in writing at the assessment.
Mum is already waiting for a council assessment. Can private care start now?
Yes. You can arrange private care while the council assessment goes ahead. If the council later agrees to fund care, a direct payment can be used to carry on with the same agency.
Do you cover the Notting Hill Gate end of Kensington Church Street?
Yes. We cover all of W8, from Notting Hill Gate down Kensington Church Street to the High Street, and south through Edwardes Square and Abingdon Road to Cromwell Road.
Dad has early memory problems and lives alone near the High Street. Where do we start?
Start with his GP, who can refer him to the Kensington & Chelsea and Westminster Memory Service. Meanwhile, a daily visit to check meals and medication is a good first step, and we can increase it as needed. See dementia care.
Nearby
Other areas near Kensington
Get started
Looking for care in Kensington?
Tell us what is happening and we will tell you honestly whether we can help, and how.