Live-in Care in Whitechapel

Yes, we provide live-in care in Whitechapel, E1, and it can be arranged around a discharge from the Royal London Hospital across the road. A carer moves into the person's home, in their own room, and gives personal care, medication support, meals and company through the day, with a daily break and an unbroken night. We start with a free assessment, which can begin while the person is still on the ward, and a written care plan.

Can a live-in carer be in place for a Royal London discharge?

It can, if the planning starts early. The journey home is short, but the flat has to be ready for someone weaker than when they left. The order we work in:

1. Tell the ward. Let the ward staff and the council's hospital social work team, which is based at the Royal London, know that the family is arranging a live-in carer. The council's leaving hospital page explains its part, including the four weeks of NHS-funded care for new needs.
2. Assess. We talk to the family and, with consent, the ward about mobility, medication and nights, then visit the flat to see the carer's room, the bathroom and the way in.
3. Equipment first. Anything the occupational therapist orders, such as a commode, a bed or a frame, should be delivered before the first night.
4. The first day. The carer is at the flat to settle the person in, check the medication against the discharge letter and get the first meal on.

Once the person is home, East London NHS Foundation Trust's Urgent Community Response service, which runs from 8am to 6pm every day, works alongside the Royal London's Transfer of Care Hub on getting people home and supporting them afterwards. The GP and district nurses remain the first contacts, and in an emergency the carer calls 999. Our hospital discharge support page covers the wider picture.

A room for the carer in a Whitechapel flat

Homes within walking distance of the hospital are mostly flats, many of them shared with family, so two things decide whether live-in care is possible.

The first is a bedroom that can belong to the carer. In a family flat where grown-up children or grandchildren share rooms, this is often the sticking point, and it is better faced before discharge than after. The second is washing. After an operation, someone may not be able to get in and out of a bath for weeks, so ask the ward's occupational therapist before discharge what equipment is needed, and plan strip washes until it arrives.

If there is no spare room, a live-in carer is not the answer, however close the hospital is. Visiting care in Whitechapel, the council's extra care housing, or a stay with a relative who has room are the alternatives we will talk through with you.

Sharing a home that has its own rhythm

A live-in carer in Whitechapel may join a large household with its own routine of family, prayer and food. Before anyone moves in, we want to know who else lives there, which rooms are shared, when the family eats and prays, and whether a woman carer is needed for personal care. The person may also want to keep going to the East London Mosque on Whitechapel Road once they are strong enough, and an escorted walk there can go into the plan. We will try to match the carer to the home and tell you plainly if we cannot.

The carer's time off around Whitechapel Road

Daily breaks are part of every live-in plan, and somebody, family or a relief carer, covers them if the person cannot be left. For the carer, a break in Whitechapel can mean Idea Store Whitechapel, the library on Whitechapel Road by the market, or Altab Ali Park on the corner of Adler Street, the old churchyard of St Mary Matfelon, the white chapel that gave the area its name. Both are also close enough for the person to visit with the carer when they feel up to it.

Paying for live-in care after a hospital stay

The NHS-funded weeks after discharge are arranged by the hospital team, and the review at the end is when longer-term care is usually decided. For the council's means test, direct payments and NHS Continuing Healthcare, see our Tower Hamlets live-in care page. If you pay privately, we quote in writing after the assessment. Live-in care in London explains how the arrangement works day to day.

What we can help with in Whitechapel

• 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