Live-in Care in Finchley

Yes, we arrange live-in care across Finchley, in N3, N12 and N2. Jackie, our registered manager, visits for a free assessment, we write the care plan with you, and then a carer comes to live in the house with your relative. Because the carer lives in the house, it does not matter that our office is in Lewisham.

Which Finchley homes have room for a live-in carer?

Most do, but not all. The test is simple: a bedroom the carer can sleep in, keep their things in and close the door on. A sofa in the lounge does not count, and neither does a room the family still uses on visits.

• Interwar semis in Church End and North Finchley. Usually three bedrooms, so once the children have moved out there is a room to spare. These are the most straightforward Finchley homes for live-in care.
• Victorian and Edwardian terraces around East Finchley. Often two bedrooms and a small third room at the back. A box room can work if a single bed, a chest of drawers and a little floor space fit in it. We measure it at the assessment.
• Flats along Ballards Lane and the High Road. The 1930s mansion blocks and purpose-built flats vary. A two-bedroom flat can work well, especially with a lift. A one-bedroom flat cannot take a live-in carer, so we would look instead at visiting care in Finchley, if we can staff it, or at short-term respite around a family member who stays over.

Stairs matter more for live-in care than people expect, because the carer will be using them many times a day too. If the person sleeps upstairs and the bathroom is up there as well, we talk through a stairlift, a hoist on the ground floor or a downstairs bedroom before the start date.

Changeover days on the High Barnet branch

A live-in carer works for a set period, then hands over to the next carer. On changeover day one carer arrives, usually with a suitcase, and the other leaves after a handover. Finchley makes this simple: Finchley Central, West Finchley, Woodside Park and East Finchley are all on the High Barnet branch of the Northern line, and the buses through Tally Ho Corner cover most of North Finchley.

Parking is the part to check. Controlled parking zones cover the roads near Finchley Central and East Finchley stations and around North Finchley's town centre at Tally Ho Corner. If a relative will drive the carer in, or park while they help with the handover, residents in a zone can buy visitor permits from Barnet Council. Get some before the first changeover so nobody is circling the block with luggage.

Where the carer takes a break in Finchley

Every live-in carer has a break each day, and the times go into the care plan. In Finchley there is plenty of good space within a short walk, which helps the carer come back properly rested.

Victoria Park, off Ballards Lane between Finchley Central and West Finchley, has gardens, a bowls and croquet club and a café. Cherry Tree Wood, opposite East Finchley station, is a pocket of old woodland with a café. For a quiet hour indoors, Barnet runs libraries at Church End on Regents Park Road, at North Finchley on Ravensdale Avenue and on East Finchley High Road.

The same places work for outings with the person. Age UK Barnet, based at the Ann Owens Centre on Oak Lane in East Finchley, runs dementia day sessions in East Finchley. If your relative goes, the carer gets them ready, sees them off or walks them over, and is there when they come home.

After a hospital stay

Finchley households are usually admitted to the Royal Free in Hampstead or to Barnet Hospital, both run by the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust. Follow-up clinics are often at Finchley Memorial Hospital on Granville Road. A live-in carer can go with the person to those appointments, which saves a relative taking time off each time. Ring us as soon as a ward raises discharge, so the assessment can happen in time. See how our hospital discharge support works.

Paying for live-in care in Finchley

We quote in writing after the free assessment, and we do not give figures over the phone. If you want help from Barnet Council, you start with a needs assessment from Social Care Direct, followed by a means test. Where someone's needs are mainly health needs, NHS Continuing Healthcare may pay instead. The council route, direct payments and couples' care are covered on our Barnet live-in care page, and the wider picture is on our London live-in care page.

What we can help with in Finchley

• 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