Respite Care
Cover for family carers who need a break, a holiday, or a hospital stay of their own. Days, weeks, or one-off.
Most family carers reach a point where they have to step away. A holiday they need to take. A hospital stay of their own. A wedding to attend. A weekend that is supposed to be theirs.
Respite is the cover that makes that possible without anyone feeling guilty. We send a trained carer (or a live-in carer for longer periods) into the home, and we keep the routine the same. The family carer can leave the house knowing the kettle will go on at the right time, the medication will be given on schedule, and the dog will be walked.
We do planned respite (booked in advance) and emergency respite (when something goes wrong suddenly). Both work. The planned version is calmer because we get a proper handover.
What’s included
- Daytime visits, overnight cover, or full live-in respite
- Detailed handover with the family carer to capture routines and preferences
- A familiarisation visit before respite starts where possible
- All personal care, medication, meals, and household tasks
- Daily updates to the family carer if they want them, silence if they do not
- Walks, outings, and visits to family or friends as planned
- Pet care, plant watering, and post collection
- A clean, ready home when the family carer returns
How it works
We meet you in your home and walk through everything: the morning routine, the meals, the medication, the small habits, the things that go wrong if you do them in the wrong order. We document it all so the carer arriving has a real picture, not a generic plan. For longer respite we recommend a familiarisation visit so the client meets the carer beforehand. The handover when you return is just as careful, with notes on how the week went and anything we noticed.
The people we tend to support with this.
Family carers who are exhausted and need a real rest
Spouses going into hospital who need cover for their partner at home
Adult children who provide most of a parent's care and need a holiday
Talk to a human.
A real conversation, no obligation, no pressure.
Things families ask us most.
How quickly can you arrange respite? +
For planned respite (a holiday in three weeks, a hospital admission next month) we set up the carer team a few weeks in advance and run a familiarisation visit before the family carer leaves. For emergency respite (a sudden hospital admission of the family carer) we can usually start within 24 to 48 hours.
Will my parent cope with a different person looking after them? +
We plan for this. Where possible we arrange one or two short visits before the respite period so your parent meets the carer in advance. We also write a detailed handover with the family carer covering routines, food preferences, and the small things that matter. The transition is the work, not an afterthought.
Can respite be done in our home, or only as live-in? +
Either. We do daytime visits, overnight cover (sleeping or waking), full live-in for a week or two, and combinations of the above. Most respite weeks are live-in because the family carer wants to switch off completely and not be on standby.