Woolwich · Greenwich
Live-in Care in Woolwich
Yes, we arrange live-in care in Woolwich, SE18. The carer lives with your relative in their own flat or house, in a bedroom set aside for them, and helps one person or a couple through each day and night. Jackie visits first for a free assessment and writes the care plan with you.
Much of Woolwich's housing is flats: new blocks at Royal Arsenal Riverside and around the Elizabeth line station, and older council blocks on the estates. In a flat the live-in questions change. The deciding factors are the number of bedrooms and whether the lift works, and stairs matter less.
Can a live-in carer manage in a Woolwich flat?
Yes, if the flat has two bedrooms. The carer needs a private room with a door that closes, a proper bed and space for a suitcase's worth of belongings. They share the kitchen and bathroom.
- Riverside new-build. Lifts, wide corridors and level thresholds mean a hoist, a profiling bed and a wheelchair all move freely. Where the flat has a walk-in shower, bathing with a carer is far easier than in a Victorian bathroom.
- Older estate blocks. Check the lift record. If the only lift is out of action for a week, someone who cannot manage stairs is stuck indoors, carer or not. Tell us the floor and the lift situation at the assessment, and tell the housing officer that a carer will be staying.
- Terraces on the hill towards Woolwich Common. These usually have the spare room. The problem is the stairs and the front steps, which we look at on the visit.
A one-bedroom flat rules live-in care out. A sofa bed in the living room is not acceptable for a carer who is there for weeks at a time. The alternatives are visiting care in Woolwich, or a move to a two-bedroom home if the landlord can offer one.
Changeover day by Elizabeth line and DLR
Live-in carers work in rotations, so every few weeks one carer arrives with a suitcase and the other leaves. Woolwich is one of the easiest places in south-east London to do that by public transport. Woolwich station is on the Elizabeth line, with direct trains through Canary Wharf to central London. Woolwich Arsenal has the DLR and Southeastern trains. Woolwich Dockyard, to the west, is on the same Southeastern line.
Driving is harder. The town centre zones, Woolwich Arsenal (WA), Woolwich B (WB) and Woolwich M (WM), all run Monday to Saturday from 8:30am to 6:30pm, according to the council's Woolwich Arsenal zone page. Woolwich Dockyard (WD) runs weekdays only, 9am to 5pm. A carer who brings a car into one of the Saturday zones will need visitor vouchers bought by the household. The council's carer parking permit is meant for carers who visit. Ask the council whether it applies before you rely on it for a live-in carer's car.
From the ward to the flat. Most Woolwich patients leave hospital from Queen Elizabeth, the borough's main acute hospital, up the hill from the town centre on Stadium Road. A flat with a lift and a spare room is well suited to coming home with a live-in carer, because the first nights are when falls, missed tablets and confusion are most likely. If the ward suggests a care home, tell the discharge staff you want care at home considered, and call us. Our hospital discharge page explains how we plan it.
Where the carer takes their break
Every live-in carer has a protected break each day, when someone else covers or the person is safe on their own. In Woolwich the carer can walk the Thames riverside at the Royal Arsenal or browse Beresford Square market. Woolwich Centre Library at 35 Wellington Street is in the same building as the council's Contact Assessment Team.
Getting out matters for the person being cared for too. With a carer beside them, many people can still get to Powis Street, to the library, or to a place of worship. The Gurdwara Sahib on Calderwood Street was built as a Methodist chapel in 1814 to 1816 and has been a gurdwara since the late 1970s. Tell us about faith, food and routine at the assessment so they go into the care plan.
Two people in one flat
A couple in a two-bedroom flat can share one live-in carer, provided the second bedroom goes to the carer and the couple share a room. That is a conversation to have honestly as a family before the assessment. Where one partner needs a hoist or two people to move them safely, one live-in carer may not be enough on their own, and we will say so.
Funding and the next step
The free assessment comes first, and we put our quote in writing afterwards. The council route, the means test and the treatment of the home are explained on our Greenwich live-in care page. If the person's needs are mainly health needs, ask about NHS Continuing Healthcare, which can fund the whole package. For how live-in care works across the city, see live-in care in London.
What we can help with in Woolwich
- 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 Greenwich
Live-in care pages for other parts of Greenwich:
Our services
How we can help in Greenwich
From a few visits a week to a carer who lives in, choose the support that fits.
Visiting care in Greenwich
Regular visits for personal care, medication, meals and company.
Read more →Live-in care in Greenwich
A carer who lives in, for one person or a couple.
Read more →Respite care in Greenwich
Cover so a family carer can rest, recover or go away.
Read more →Supported living in Greenwich
Our homes in Whitton, Kingston and Uxbridge.
Read more →Woolwich FAQs
Woolwich live-in care: common questions
Questions families ask us about Woolwich. If yours is not here, ask us directly.
Ask a questionDad's block at Royal Arsenal Riverside has a concierge. Does the carer need a fob?
Usually, yes. Ask the building management for a fob or key for the carer, and plan for the changeover carer too. We sort out key handovers between carers as part of each changeover.
Mum's flat is on the eighth floor of an estate block. Is that a problem?
Not if the lift is reliable and there is a spare room. We ask about lift breakdowns because they decide whether she can get out, and whether equipment such as a hoist or a new bed can be delivered.
Can the carer take Mum to the gurdwara?
Yes, if it is in her care plan. A carer can go with her, help with the walk or the wheelchair, and wait. We cannot promise a carer who shares her faith or language, but we ask about both and match as closely as we can.
Will the relief carer on a Saturday get a parking ticket?
In the WA, WB and WM zones the restrictions run on Saturdays too, so a driving carer needs a visitor voucher until 6:30pm. A carer who arrives by train, DLR or the Elizabeth line avoids the issue.
Get started
Looking for care in Woolwich?
Tell us what is happening and we will tell you honestly whether we can help, and how.