Who Pays for Respite Care and How Does it Work?
Respite care allows carers to take a break from their caring responsibilities. While they take a break, someone else will look after the person they care for.
In this post we’ll list the different types of respite care available and discuss who pays for it.
The Different Types of Respite Care Options
There are many different types of respite care. Here are some of the most common types:
- Home Respite Care – This means that someone will visit your home to look after the person you care for. They can support with many essential tasks, including cooking, cleaning, taking the person you care for on outings, helping them get dressed, or even just sitting and talking with them.
- Day Care – This means that the person you care for will spend some time at a day care centre, sometime these are specialised in some diagnosis such as Dementia. The centre can pick up the person you look after from your home and drop them off at the end of the day. They can then spend their day doing activities, taking part in workshops, or just spending time with their friends.
- Residential Care – The person you care for can spend an extended period at a residential care home, the staff there will look after all your loved one’s needs whilst they are there. This can give you a longer break, which could mean you could take a short holiday or go further afield to see family or friends.
Who Pays for Respite Care?
There are three options:
- Some councils fund respite care in their local area, Surrey County Council offer a voucher to put towards care services
- Certain charities offer means-tested funded respite care support
- You can also pay for the respite care yourself
How Much Does Respite Care Cost?
According to the UK Care Guide, respite care can cost around £750 a week. But certain types of home care, along with stays in residential care homes, could cost up to £1,500 a week.
How to Apply for Respite Care from your Council
First, you will have to apply for a needs assessment and a carer’s assessment – for you and for the person you care for.
If you qualify for respite care, the council will then carry out a financial assessment. This will determine whether you need to pay for the full cost of respite care, or whether the council will provide a voucher worth £300 to help with the cost.
If the council offers you a voucher to help pay for your respite care, you have two options for how to arrange it:
- The council can arrange everything for you
- The council can give you the voucher, allowing you to arrange all the care yourself.
How to Apply for Respite Care from a Charity
Some charities are funded to provide respite care for unpaid carers.
In some cases, you will need to apply for a grant, or a discount, which will allow you to make your own respite care arrangements. The Carers Trust and Turn2us can provide more information about the sort of grants you can apply for.
Crossroads Care Surrey are no longer funded to provide certain respite care services in our area, however donated charitable funds may be used to support those who need it most. Get in touch to find out more.
How to Self-Fund Respite Care
Self-funding respite care means that you pay for the respite care yourself. In short, you’ll pay a specialist provider for the services of a trained carer, or you’ll pay for the person you care for to spend some time in a day centre or a residential care home.
You can get the respite care you need in Surrey with our Crossroads Direct service, whether you’re looking for care at home for adults or children, companionship services, home help, or a short respite break or live-in care services.
We offer a range of discounts for new clients, and our dedicated team will work closely with you to design a bespoke care plan that meets your specific needs.
Find out more and get in touch for a free care and support consultation today.
