Live-in Care in Tower Hamlets

Yes, we arrange live-in care anywhere in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, from Bethnal Green down to Island Gardens. A trained carer moves into the home, has their own bedroom, and helps with personal care, meals, medication and company through the day. It starts with a free assessment visit, usually with Jackie, our registered manager, and a written care plan.

Estate flats, lifts and the second-bedroom problem

The first question in Tower Hamlets is rarely the care itself. It is whether the home can take a second adult. The borough has one of the highest shares of social housing in England, and most older residents live on council or housing association estates in Stepney, Poplar, Bethnal Green and Bow, where second bedrooms are small and often already in use.

A live-in carer needs a room with a door that closes; a sofa bed in the living room does not work for long. If the only spare space is a box room, we will look at it at the assessment and tell you honestly whether it will do.

The lift is the other check. A live-in carer makes a broken lift less of a crisis, but a walk-up block with no lift still limits getting out and getting a hospital bed or hoist delivered. Riverside blocks in Wapping and Limehouse usually have lifts and step-free access; the Victorian houses near Tredegar Square have stairs inside instead. Equipment normally comes through an occupational therapist, and we plan the care around it.

Visiting care or a carer who lives in?

Unlike most boroughs north of the river, Tower Hamlets is close to our Lewisham office: the DLR runs straight to the Isle of Dogs, Poplar and Limehouse, so visiting care is often possible too, subject to which carers are free (see home care in Tower Hamlets). So the choice comes down to need. Live-in care fits someone who cannot safely be left alone between visits or whose family is worn out covering the gaps. The carer travels once and then stays, so for live-in care it makes no difference whether the flat is on the Isle of Dogs or at the top of Bethnal Green.

Food, prayer and how the household runs

Many older residents are Bangladeshi-heritage elders whose first language is Sylheti or Bengali, alongside long-standing East End families and Somali households. A live-in carer shares the kitchen and the daily rhythm of the home, so the match matters even more than it does for visits. Tell us at the assessment about language, halal cooking, prayer times, Ramadan routines, modesty during washing, and whether a female carer is needed. We will do our best to match, and say so before anyone moves in if we cannot.

Keeping a couple under one roof

One live-in carer can support two people in the flat they share: full personal care for one partner, and for the other the shopping carried up from Chrisp Street or Roman Road, meals for two and a hand on the stairs. The alternative is often two care home places, which may not be in the same home or even the same borough.

When the carer is off duty

A live-in carer takes a proper break each day and needs a full night's sleep. If someone needs help several times a night, one live-in carer is the wrong arrangement and we will say so. Family nearby can cover the daily break; if not, we plan it in. For holidays and changeovers we arrange the replacement in advance.

Live-in care, extra care housing or a care home in Tower Hamlets

When someone can no longer manage alone, the council may talk about extra care supported housing. These are self-contained flats on assured shorthold tenancies, with an on-site care team round the clock, for adults who need at least three hours of care a week. Shipton House is one of the schemes. A Tower Hamlets social worker makes the referral, or TH Connect if there is no social worker.

Extra care suits people ready to move who want staff on site; a care home suits needs beyond what one carer can manage. Live-in care is for the person who wants to keep their own tenancy, their neighbours on the landing and the same front door. It needs the spare room, and we compare the options honestly at the assessment.

How is live-in care paid for in Tower Hamlets?

If you pay yourself, we give a written quote after the assessment. It depends on the level of care, whether it is for one person or two, and whether night support is involved, so we do not quote figures by phone.

Council help starts with a Care Act assessment through Tower Hamlets Connect (0300 303 6070, or its online self-assessment form). The council's paying for care page says that if savings and assets are below £23,250 you are eligible for means-tested support, and above that you pay the full cost of chargeable care. If the council funds care, it can pay it as a direct payment onto a prepaid card or into a managed account. The TH Direct Payment Support Service (020 7364 4166) helps with the set-up.

Where needs are mainly health needs, ask the GP or ward about NHS Continuing Healthcare. In this borough it is assessed by ELFT's Tower Hamlets continuing healthcare service, and if someone qualifies the NHS pays in full. Our guide to paying for care in London explains each route.

Dementia and end-of-life care at home

Memory assessment here is at ELFT's Diagnostic Memory Clinic at Mile End Hospital, by GP referral. After a diagnosis, one consistent carer in a familiar flat can make evenings calmer than a rota of visitors (see dementia care). Live-in care also lets someone die at home, alongside the GP, ELFT district nurses and, where involved, St Joseph's Hospice (see palliative care).

What we can help with in Tower Hamlets

• 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