Penge · Bromley
Home Care in Penge
Visits for personal care, medication, meals and company across SE20, from Penge High Street and Beckenham Road to the streets by Crystal Palace Park.
Yes, we provide home care in Penge. SE20 is one of the closest parts of Bromley to our Lewisham office: the 75 bus runs between Lewisham and Penge, so visiting care is realistic here, subject to having a carer free for your times. We start with a free assessment at home and agree a written care plan before any care begins.
Is home care in Penge free?
Not automatically. Unlike NHS treatment, social care is means-tested. Bromley Council assesses the person's needs first, then their income and savings, and that decides whether the council pays some, all or none of the cost. Request an assessment on the council's care assessment page, by phone on 020 8461 7777, or by email to adultsocialcare@bromley.gov.uk. Care is free when someone qualifies for NHS Continuing Healthcare because their needs are primarily health needs, and some short-term care after a hospital stay is arranged without charge. Anyone paying privately gets a written quote from us after the assessment. For the borough-wide detail, see our Bromley page.
Terraces, conversions and the stairs problem
Penge feels more like inner south-east London than the rest of Bromley. The housing is mostly Victorian and Edwardian terraces, many converted into flats, with council-built and housing association blocks in between; the borough's former council homes are now owned by Clarion Housing Group. That shapes care in specific ways.
Upper-floor conversion flats often have a narrow, steep shared staircase and no lift, which makes getting out hard and can make it impossible to bring in a hoist or a hospital bed. Bathrooms in these flats are small, so a carer helping someone wash may need a shower seat or a strip-wash routine in place of a bath. In a terraced house, the usual pinch point is a single steep staircase with a bathroom at the top. When we assess, we look at all of this and tell you honestly if the home needs adaptations before care can be safe. Requests for equipment and adaptations go through the council.
Getting out of the flat. Isolation is a real risk for someone stuck at the top of a staircase. Crystal Palace Park runs along the western edge of SE20, and the High Street is close by. A companionship visit that includes a careful trip down the stairs and out for an hour can matter as much as help with washing. Age UK Bromley & Greenwich has run a Men & Women in Sheds group in Penge; check their site for what is on now.
Stations and buses
Penge West is on the London Overground Windrush line towards West Croydon and Highbury & Islington. Penge East and nearby Kent House have Southeastern trains to Victoria, Bromley South and Orpington. Bus routes include the 75, 176, 194, 197, 227, 354, 356 and 358. The Watermen's Almshouses, built in 1840–41 for retired Thames watermen and lightermen and their widows and now private homes, are a useful landmark when giving a new carer directions.
When live-in care will not fit
A live-in carer needs their own bedroom. In many Penge flats there is not one, and we will say so at the assessment. A full package of visits (morning, lunchtime, teatime and bedtime) is the usual alternative. Where there is a spare room, for example in a family terrace, live-in care works as it would anywhere else.
Support for family carers in SE20
If you are looking after someone in Penge, Bromley Well is the borough's carers' service (freephone 0808 278 7898), and the council offers its own carer's assessment. We can provide respite visits so you get a few hours back each week, or cover a short break.
What we can help with in Penge
- 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 Bromley
Home care pages for other parts of Bromley:
Our services
How we can help in Bromley
From a few visits a week to a carer who lives in, choose the support that fits.
Visiting care in Bromley
Regular visits for personal care, medication, meals and company.
Read more →Live-in care in Bromley
A carer who lives in, for one person or a couple.
Read more →Respite care in Bromley
Cover so a family carer can rest, recover or go away.
Read more →Supported living in Bromley
Our homes in Whitton, Kingston and Uxbridge.
Read more →Penge FAQs
Questions about care in Penge
Questions families ask us about Penge. If yours is not here, ask us directly.
Ask a questionMum's flat is on the second floor with no lift. Can she still have care at home?
Often, yes. Most personal care can happen inside the flat. The harder questions are getting her out safely and what happens if she needs a hoist. We will look at both at the assessment and suggest asking the council for an occupational therapy assessment if equipment is needed.
We are in a Clarion flat. Do we need the landlord's permission for care?
Not for carers to visit. Adaptations such as grab rails or a level-access shower are different: those normally need the landlord's agreement, so speak to Clarion and the council about them.
Do you cover Anerley and the Crystal Palace side of SE20?
Yes. We cover all of SE20, including Anerley and the streets up towards Crystal Palace Park.
He only needs someone to check he has taken his tablets. Is that enough for a visit?
Yes. Short visits for medication prompts are a common starting point, and the care plan can grow if more help is needed later.
Is a care visit free if Dad gets Attendance Allowance?
No. Attendance Allowance is a benefit paid to him, which he can use towards care, but it does not make care free. If the council arranges his care, it will take the benefit into account in the financial assessment.
Get started
Looking for care in Penge?
Tell us what is happening and we will tell you honestly whether we can help, and how.