Catford · Lewisham
Live-in Care in Catford
Yes, we provide live-in care in Catford and across SE6. A carer moves into the spare room and looks after one person, or a couple, at home, with the council offices at Laurence House and University Hospital Lewisham both close by. Jackie carries out a free home assessment first and agrees a written care plan with the family.
Leaving Lewisham Hospital for a house in SE6
Catford is about a mile down the road from University Hospital Lewisham, so most people here come home from its wards. The short distance means the house can be assessed while the person is still on the ward.
Raise live-in care early if the person is going home to a terrace with the only toilet upstairs, lives alone, or has a spouse who cannot manage nights alone. The council may first offer free enablement for up to six weeks, visits that help people relearn daily tasks. If more will be needed, a live-in carer can follow on, or start straight away if the family chooses to pay privately. Tell us the expected discharge date as soon as you have one; we will be honest about whether we can have a carer in place for it.
Will a live-in carer fit in a Catford home?
The carer needs a bedroom of their own. In Catford the answer depends less on the street than on whether the person has a whole house or a flat.
- A whole terraced house south of the South Circular or out towards Hither Green usually has a second or third bedroom upstairs, so the question is not space but which room the carer takes. Putting them on the same landing as the person keeps help close at hand.
- A two-bedroom flat in Milford Towers or another post-war block also works. A carer who already lives in the flat means a broken lift no longer leaves the person without help for the day.
- A one-bedroom flat, common in the newer blocks near the two stations, cannot take a live-in carer. Visiting care is the option there; see home care in Catford.
Catford's all-day parking zones and a carer who drives
At a changeover, most live-in carers arrive by train. Catford station has Thameslink services on the Catford Loop towards Blackfriars, and Catford Bridge, next door, is on Southeastern's Hayes line, with trains via Lewisham into London Bridge, Cannon Street and Charing Cross.
Arriving by car is harder. Rushey Green East, West and South, Catford West, Milford Towers, Mountsfield Park and several more Catford zones all run Monday to Friday, 9am to 7pm. Two of the council's schemes are relevant:
- A carers' permit, free with medical evidence that daily care is needed, gives a visiting carer a maximum of four hours' parking per day. That suits a relief carer who comes to cover the live-in carer's break.
- Visitor permits come as hourly vouchers or half-day, day and week permits, registered online to the visitor's car. A week permit suits a live-in carer who brings a car. Residents over 60 who get council support and hold no other annual permit receive 10 hours of free visitor credit.
Driving a carer and their luggage in? With the South Circular and the A21 both running through the middle of Catford, a car changeover can take longer than the distance suggests. A train to Catford or Catford Bridge is often the simpler handover.
Keeping a couple together in an SE6 terrace
A Catford terrace with two or three bedrooms can hold a couple and a carer. The couple keep their own room, or the partner who needs care moves to a bed downstairs, and the carer has the spare. When one of them has had a stroke, a fall or a diagnosis of dementia, that layout lets both stay in the house: the carer gives personal care to the partner who needs it and cooks and keeps house for both. We price a couple's care after meeting both of them.
Where a live-in carer takes their break in Catford
A live-in carer has a protected break every day. In Catford, within a few minutes' walk:
- Catford Library on Winslade Way, inside the Catford Centre, opens seven days a week and has free Wi-Fi.
- Mountsfield Park has a bandstand, an ornamental garden and views west to Crystal Palace. If the person goes too, note that the toilets only open on Saturdays and Mondays.
- The shops and cafés along Rushey Green and round the Broadway.
The break can also be the person's own outing. The Calabash Centre on George Lane is a council-commissioned day centre for older people with long roots in Lewisham's African and Caribbean communities, and the council runs a dementia day service at the Ladywell Centre, a short drive away. Ask the council about places, and the carer can do the drop-off and collection.
Can Lewisham Council help pay for live-in care in Catford?
It can, if the person has eligible needs and their finances qualify. After needs and financial assessments, the council can pay its share as a direct payment, which may be spent on live-in care. NHS Continuing Healthcare may fund the whole package where needs are mainly health needs. Our Lewisham live-in care page covers the charging rules and thresholds. Everyone gets a written quote from us after the free assessment. For how live-in care works day to day, see live-in care in London.
What we can help with in Catford
- A carer living in, with their own room
- Care for one person or a couple
- Personal care through the day
- Medication support
- Cooking, housekeeping and laundry
- Dementia support at home
- Company, outings and appointments
- Cover arranged for the carer's breaks
Live-in care elsewhere in Lewisham
Live-in care pages for other parts of Lewisham:
Our services
How we can help in Lewisham
From a few visits a week to a carer who lives in, choose the support that fits.
Visiting care in Lewisham
Regular visits for personal care, medication, meals and company.
Read more →Live-in care in Lewisham
A carer who lives in, for one person or a couple.
Read more →Respite care in Lewisham
Cover so a family carer can rest, recover or go away.
Read more →Supported living in Lewisham
Our homes in Whitton, Kingston and Uxbridge.
Read more →Catford FAQs
Catford live-in care questions
Questions families ask us about Catford. If yours is not here, ask us directly.
Ask a questionDad is coming home from Lewisham Hospital to a terrace off Brownhill Road, and his bathroom is upstairs. Can a live-in carer manage?
Usually, with the right set-up. That may mean a commode or a bed downstairs for the first weeks, then a stairlift or rails once the occupational therapist has assessed him. The carer can sleep in the second bedroom and be there when he wakes.
Mum's flat in Milford Towers has two bedrooms. Is that enough?
Yes, a second bedroom is the main requirement. We will also look at the lift, the bathroom and how she gets in and out of the block, and plan for the days the lift is out of service.
The carer covering the daily break will drive over. Which permit do we need on a Rushey Green street?
A Lewisham carers' permit covers a visiting carer for up to four hours a day, which is usually enough for a break. Apply early, because it needs a medical letter. For a longer stay, a visitor permit is the alternative.
Can Mum still go to the Calabash Centre with a live-in carer?
Yes, if she has a place there. The carer can take her and collect her, and use the time in between for their own break.
My parents both need some help, and only one spare room. Is that a problem?
No. One spare room is enough for one carer supporting both. We assess each parent's needs so the plan covers them both.
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