Choosing a care home that’s right for you means balancing comfort, quality care, and peace of mind.
Below are some practical ways to search for a care home and help you decide which one feels right for you or your loved one.
Page contents
At a glance
- Budget: Understand what you can afford, what funding is available and whether you will need to pay for all of the care yourself
- Care needs: Identify the type of care you will need now and in the future
- Shortlist: Narrow down your options using care home reviews, recommendations and inspection reports
- Visits: See the care homes you like in person to get a feel for the environment and meet the staff and residents
Top tips for finding and choosing a care home
When choosing a care home, it helps to focus on a few key factors.
- Location – what’s available in your preferred area
- Funding – what you can afford or what financial support is available
- Care needs – the level and type of care you will require now and in the future
- Availability – whether the care homes you are interested in have vacancies
In some areas, choice can be rather limited and you may not have a wide range of care homes to pick from. It can help to focus on what matters most to you rather than trying to find a perfect option.
You can watch our video with five tips on choosing the right care home
Work out your budget for a care home
Around half of care home residents aged 65+ pay for their own care, while others receive support from their 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 as that will help with planning and making a confident decision.
Think carefully about the type of care you will need
Different care homes provide different levels of support. Your care needs will affect how much your care costs and will determine the kind of home you choose.
If you are unsure about your care needs it may help to get a care needs assessment. This is free and is carried out by your local authority. They can help you understand what level of care you need now and how that may change over time.
Different care options include:
- Residential care
- Nursing care
- Dementia care
- Respite or short-term care
- Specialist support (e.g. mental health or physical disabilities)
You will need to think about both your current needs and how these might change over time.
Create a shortlist
Many people start by searching for care homes in their preferred location and narrowing down their options based on their care type and their budget.
It is a good idea to look at online directories such as carehome.co.uk as they list care homes in your area, along with their prices and details such as if they accept pets or offer specialised dementia care.
Family, friends and health professionals involved in your care may also be able to recommend suitable homes.
carehome.co.uk also run a free helpline. If you’d like extra support, the Care Help team can help you create a shortlist based on your needs and budget.
Read reviews
carehome.co.ukalso has genuine reviews of the care homes so you can read about what the residents and their families really think of the home
It lists over 16,000 care homes in the UK and has over 400,000 care home reviews written by care home residents, their friends and relatives.
Reviews can give you a useful sense of what daily life is like in a care home.
They can highlight things like:
- Quality of care
- Staff attitudes
- Activities and facilities
- Food and environment
Reading a range of reviews can help you get a good picture of what a care home is really like
Check inspection reports
Care regulators regularly inspect care homes to assess safety standards and the quality of care they provide.
You can find reports online:
- England: Care Quality Commission (CQC)
- Scotland: Care Inspectorate
- Wales: Care Inspectorate Wales
- Northern Ireland: RQIA
These reports can help you understand how well a home is performing and whether it is right for you.
Visit care homes
If possible, visiting in person can make a big difference as choosing a care home is a life changing decision.
While you’re there, it can help to:
- Have a thorough look at the inside and outside of the home
- Speak to staff and residents
- Ask about daily routines and activities
Take your time while you visit as this will give you a real understanding of whether the care home is right for you.
You can book tours to view care homes you’re interested in on carehome.co.uk.
You can also get an insight into what a care home is like during Care Home Open Week.
What questions should I ask?
It’s worth preparing a few questions before you visit so you go away feeling fully informed about the care home.
Some questions that are good to ask include:
- What care is included in the fees?
- What types of care are given at the home?
- What activities are available?
- What is the visiting policy?
This can help you compare your options more easily.
We have compiled a checklist of questions to ask care homes when you visit them. You can download and print the handy PDF version of this form.
Consider a trial stay
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.
You can also have a temporary short stay to trial the care home. This allows you to spend time seeing if it suits your needs, try out the activities and socialise with others.
What to do next
Once you’ve chosen a home, it helps to:
- Confirm availability or waiting lists
- Look at the contract and terms carefully
- Check what is included in the fees
- Ask about any additional costs such as chiropodists and hairdressers
Finding the right care home can take time, and it’s normal to take your time to think about your options before making a decision. Taking things step by step, asking lots of questions and getting the right support where it is needed can help you feel more confident in your final choice.
FAQs
How can I find a care home in my area?
Once you have an idea of what sort of care your loved one needs and their weekly budget, you can search for care homes using the carehome.co.uk search feature. There are additional filters available in the Advanced Search feature, such as languages spoken by staff, facilities, CQC review score and registered care categories.
What should you do after you find a care home?
When you have found a care home that suits your needs, request a copy of its contracts and/or terms and conditions. Check if the home has vacancies or how long its waiting list is.
It is important to also find out if there will be additional costs which may not be covered in your residential fees, such as professional visits, therapists, hairdressers etc.
How do you find a good dementia care home?
It is highly recommended to visit the care home and ask questions about what level of training staff have received and what level of qualification they hold. Take notice of how the home’s design allows for easy access throughout and whether it has a sensory garden with free-flow access.
Looking for a care home?
Search for care homes near you, compare fees, and read reviews from families to help you choose.
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