How to choose a care home

Choosing a care home is a huge decision as you need a care home where your relative or friend will be happy, cared for and treated with respect.

The care home must have everything you or your loved one requires in terms of mobility support and care needs, as well as be in a suitable location and be at an affordable price.

Tips for finding a care home

Your care home options depend on:

• Location: What care homes are in your chosen area?
• Funding: What is your financial situation to fund care home costs?
• Care: What type of care do you require?
• Availability: What are the current care home vacancies?

When it comes to choosing a care home, not everyone will have a wide range of care homes to pick from. It is important to be aware that your choices might be limited.

How can I find a care home?

Here is a video with five tips to help you with your care home search.

Work out your budget

Around a half of care home residents aged 65+ fund themselves and are referred to as self-funders. The other half of older people needing residential care are state-funded and are paid for by the local authority. 

The amount you pay towards your care will depend on where you live in the UK. 

You should take time to find out more about care home fees and how much you could pay.

Work out what type of care home suits you  

The type of care home that suits you may may offer nursing care or specialist care for a specific illness or disability. For example, you can find out about nursing care, respite care, convalescence care, dementia care, mental health care, bariatric care or end of life care. 

You may also find it useful to read answers to frequently asked questions about care homes.

Create a shortlist of care homes

To help you come up with a shortlist, look for care homes in your desired location. You can also visit carehome.co.uk and enter your location and required type of care into the search bar.

Call the Care Help Team 01488 502358

carehome.co.uk’s Care Help team can assist you with your care home search by offering a free, personalised shortlist of care homes matched to your needs.

You can chat to an expert for free who is trained in drawing up a shortlist of care homes suitable for older people, their needs, interests, location and budget.

Everybody’s needs are different. The Care Help team will ask you some questions to understand exactly what you are looking for. The team use carehome.co.uk’s extensive care home database and its close links with care homes to draw up a shortlist of care homes for you.  

You can ring the Care Help team on 01488 502358 Monday to Friday between 9 am and 5 pm (standard call charges apply) or request a call back .

Here is a video explaining what the Care Help team is and how it can help people find the right care home.

Check reviews about individual care homes

As well as asking friends and family members for recommendations, you can check reviews of individual care homes on carehome.co.uk.

There are over 16,700 care homes in the UK. carehome.co.uk has over 300,000 care home reviews written by care home residents, their friends and relatives.

People looking for a care home can get a real insight into what a care home and its staff are like. The reviews reveal the quality of care, standard of facilities, type of activities and nutrition as well as if the care home is value for money.

Check the care regulator’s report for the care home

To find a care home’s latest care regulator inspection report, visit your care regulator’s website.

• England’s care regulator: Care Quality Commission (CQC).
• Scotland: Care Inspectorate. 
• Wales: Care Inspectorate Wales. 
• Northern Ireland:Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA).

Visit care homes on your shortlist 

Book tours to view care homes you’re interested in. Request a brochure and cost details from the care homes on your shortlist. Spend time looking around the care home and asking questions of the care home’s manager and staff and talking to residents.

You can also get an insight into what a care home is like during Care Home Open Week.

Have a checklist of questions to ask care homes

When looking for a care home consider the facilities available. Make sure you ask questions relating to your individual needs. This includes specific types of care, dietary/cultural needs, visiting policy and what’s included in the care fees etc.

Here is a checklist of questions to ask care homes when you visit them. You can download and print the handy PDF version of this form to use when visiting care homes.

Trial your care home  

A person needing support can move into a care home temporarily to enable a person caring for them to take a break. This is known as respite care. Such a temporary short stay in a care home can be used to trial a care home and allow someone to spend time in the new environment, try activities and socialise with others.

Once a care home has been chosen, you should:

• Request a copy of the care home’s contracts and/or terms and conditions. 
• Make sure the care home has vacancies or establish how long their waiting list is.
• Consider additional costs that may not be covered in your residential fees, such as medical aids, professional visits, occupational therapists, hairdressers, chiropodists and day trips.