If you have decided that home care could offer the right support for you or your loved one, the next step is choosing a private care company that is right for you.
When it comes to finding the perfect private care company it’s important to ensure they can provide high-quality care that meets your needs, that the company aligns with your values, that you can put your trust in them and that the care fits within your budget or available funding. Although this may seem like a lot to ask, inviting someone into your home to provide care for you can be a big step, so it’s important you take the time to get it right.
To help, we’ve shared a step-by-step guide to choosing a private care company below. Plus, you’ll also find out about the questions you should ask potential private home care agencies to weigh up whether they are the right private care company for you.
What is a private home care company?
Before we delve into how to choose the right private home care company for your needs, it’s important you understand what a home care agency is and what they do.
A private home care company, like Trinity Homecare, employs carers and arranges for them to visit clients to provide a comprehensive range of services from home help tasks like helping prepare meals to light housework to medical management such as helping with medications.
In the UK, all home care companies must be registered with a care regulator, which regulates and inspects them regularly to ensure they provide safe and effective care for their clients. So considering care ratings is an important step to consider when choosing a private care company.
How to choose a private care company: A step-by-step guide
1. Think about your care needs
The first step to choosing the right private care company is to think about your care needs, as this will help you narrow down private home care companies that can support your needs.
It’s important you consider any medical needs you may have alongside any help you need around the home to ensure you get the support you need to continue living a full and meaningful life in the home you love.
One of the best ways to do this is to get an independent through your local social services. Having an independent assessment provides a non-judgemental assessment of your needs, so it’s important you are honest with the person assessing you to ensure you get the help you want and need.
Following a Care Needs Assessment, you will be provided with a Care Plan that will outline the kinds of activities you need help with. It may also indicate whether care can be provided best through visiting care when a carer pops in to see you a few times a day or week or nationwide live-in care with a carer on hand to provide support 24/7.
2. Consider how care will be funded
Another crucial step when choosing a private care company is thinking about budget and how the care will be funded. Fortunately, your local social services department should be able to help provide guidance on any funding available to you, whether that means-tested local authority funding or benefits you may be entitled to.
If you are not entitled to any financial support you can find more information about self-funding care options in our guide.
3. Research local home care agencies
After getting a clear idea about the type of care you need and the activities you require help with, you can start researching which home care agencies can meet your needs.
Your local authority social care team can help recommend local providers, but you can also Google local home care agencies or use sites like Homecare to find recommended providers.
4. Check the ratings of potential home care agencies
UK home care companies are all regulated, so before deciding on a home care agency, it’s a good idea to check their ratings first. This will help ensure the home care provider you choose can offer safe, high-quality home care.
There are different regulators in England, Wales, and Scotland, so it’s important to check the appropriate one depending on where you live:
- In England, you need to check Care Quality Commission (CQC)
- In Scotland, the regulator is the Care Inspectorate
- In Wales, the regulator is the Care Inspectorate Wales
It’s also a good idea to check out care companies’ testimonials from current clients on their website as well as independent reviews on sites like Google reviews and Trustpilot.
5. Contact suitable home care agencies
Once you have narrowed down the type of care you or your loved one needs and the care companies who can provide it, the next step is to contact the different agencies to find out more about them.
This is your chance to ask questions about the care agency and discover more about how their values align with yours.
Questions you should ask potential home care agencies
To make sure your shortlisted private care companies can provide reliable, supportive care that you can trust, it’s important to ask them any questions you have.
Some things to consider asking include:
- How the home care agency provides visits, what happens if your usual carer is ill or on holiday and how they manage an emergency.
- What kind of activities can the carer help with and how can they do this.
- How the carers the agency employs staff, including how they are recruited, what qualifications and experience they have, what the procedures are for checking their references and background, and what is the training process like.
- What are their charges and are there any terms and conditions you need to be aware of, like how often payments are taken or how to terminate care if it’s no longer required.
- How they’ll cater to your specific needs and ensure you get a carer who matches both your needs and your personality.
Questions a home care agency should ask you?
While it’s important you ask potential home care companies, a good home care company will also take an active interest in you as a person as well as your care needs.
As a result, they may pose some questions to you, including:
- What your care needs are, including details of your medical conditions and any medications you take?
- What is your existing routine?
- What are your likes and dislikes?
- If you have any dietary requirements?
- Whether you have family and friends living close by and how involved they are in your current care?
- Are there things you are particularly concerned about home care?
- Do you have any specific beliefs that need to be considered?
Trusted home care from Trinity
If you’re looking for a dedicated and trusted private care company, choose Trinity Homecare. For the past 25 years, we have provided the highest standards of care in the comfort of people’s own homes. We are dedicated to providing high-quality, cost-effective and bespoke care that ensures you or your loved one is able to continue living a full life in the home they love.
Trinity Homecare is a fully managed care agency with an ‘Outstanding’ CQC rating, placing Trinity amongst the top 4% of all nationwide care companies in England. With this in mind, you can rest assured that your loved one will receive the highest standard of care and specialist support.
If you have any questions about arranging home care, simply get in touch with our helpful and knowledgeable care team.
Arranging nationwide home care with Trinity is straightforward.
Simply follow these five steps:
- Call our care team
- Undergo a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss your care needs and arrange a care assessment
- After the assessment, a plan of care is created
- A well-suited carer is found and placed
- Care can be adapted at any time