Whether you need someone to spend time with your loved one while you work, attend medical appointments, or just take some personal time, respite care is good for you and the person you support. It's crucial to have a break from caring.
You shouldn’t feel guilty about taking breaks. Having regular time away from your caring responsibilities can help you be a better carer in the long run.
In this guide, we’ll look at how you can get a break from caring, different types of respite care, how much it costs, and where you can find help as a family carer.
Looking for care urgently? Find Your Room can help. Simply search for a local care service and filter by availability.
What is respite care?
Respite care is where someone else looks after your loved one, while you take a break.
It might last for a few hours while you pop to the shops or an appointment, or be a longer-term arrangement while you’re in hospital or on holiday.
There are several different types of respite care. You might prefer someone to come and support your loved one in your home, or it might be easier if they could go somewhere else for a short while.
Types of respite care:
- Respite home care, where a carer supports the individual in their own home
- Residential respite care, where the individual goes to stay in a care or nursing home for a short time
- Day centres, where the individual spends some time at a day programme with trained staff, and returns home at the end of the day
- Befriending services, where a volunteer comes and spends time with your loved one while you leave the house
- Support from friends and family, where they help your loved one while you’re unavailable
Let’s look at these options in more detail, so you can decide which is right for you and your family.
Respite home care
Respite home care is where a professional care worker or nurse comes to support your loved one in their home.
Home care might include personal care, help with housework or meal preparation, support taking medication, companionship, or even going out on trips together.
Care at home can be a good solution for lots of people. If your loved one is autistic, or has a learning disability or dementia, they might appreciate staying in a familiar environment and keeping to a similar routine.
Respite home care is also often cheaper than a residential placement.
Residential respite care
Some care homes and nursing homes offer short-term placements for people who need respite care. Usually, they aren’t specifically respite care homes – just standard care homes who also offer respite stays.
This can be a good choice for people who require 24-hour care and supervision, or those who are at risk of isolation when their usual carer is unavailable. If you’re considering a care home placement for your loved one in future, a short-term stay can also help them get comfortable with the idea.
It can be difficult to find care homes with availability. Find Your Room can help you here – simply go to our care home search, and filter by care services with vacancies.
If you know in advance that you’ll be unavailable, you can sometimes book a respite care home in advance. This is often a good idea if you want to book a holiday or you know that you’ll be going into hospital.
Find out more about how to choose a care home that’s right for your loved one.
Day centres
Day centres usually offer a programme of activities and support for people with care needs. They’re usually staffed by experienced care workers, so you can be reassured that your loved one will be in good hands.
Some day centres cater solely for older people, young adults, people with learning disabilities, or autistic people. They may run life skills workshops, offer exercise and art classes, or even plan day trips for their clients.
Some people go to their day centre every day, whereas others might just attend once a week or when their main carer is unavailable.
If you can’t find any standalone day centres near you, you could contact local residential facilities. Some care homes and supported living schemes run day programmes, or have activities that are available to members of the public.
Befriending or sitting services
If your loved one doesn’t need constant medical care, you could look for a befriending or sitting service so you can have a short break. Usually, a volunteer befriender will visit your loved one in their home, or support them to go out.
Befriending services are ideal if your relative doesn’t want to be alone for long periods of time, but you need to work or go out.
Age UK runs a range of telephone and face-to-face befriending services, or there may be a local volunteer group near you.
Support from friends and family
You may have friends or family members who can support your loved one while you take a break.
How much does respite care cost?
The cost of respite care will vary a lot, depending on what type of care you choose, your location, and your loved one’s needs. If you get help from a friend, family member, or volunteer befriender, respite care might be free. However, if your loved one needs specialist medical care or a residential placement, you might pay more than £1,500 for a week’s care.
Who pays for respite care?
You may need to pay for respite care yourself, or you may be entitled to funding from your local authority for a carer’s break. Depending on your circumstances, you may also be eligible for respite grants.
To find out if you’re entitled to local authority funding, you should contact your local Adult Social Care team to arrange a needs assessment for your loved one, and a carer’s assessment for yourself.
Find out more about paying for care, and how you can get funding support.
Will respite care affect my benefits?
Your benefits might be affected if your loved one stays in a care home or is away from you for more than 28 days. If you receive Carer’s Allowance, you can usually take up to four weeks away from your caring responsibilities in any six month period, without affecting your benefits. This is also true if you get the Carer’s Element of Universal Credit. However, you should get specialist advice to make sure that you aren’t being overpaid.
To find out if your Carer’s Allowance will be affected, you should contact the Carer’s Allowance Unit and explain your personal circumstances.
How do I get help with looking after someone?
If you need a break from caring, there are a few ways you can find respite care:
- Contact your local Adult Social Care team. They may be able to signpost you towards respite services, and help you arrange funding.
- Contact care homes or home care agencies directly. Find Your Room can help you find care services with availability. Simply filter your search by Short Term/Respite and Vacant, and you’ll find services that offer respite care and have availability.
- Talk to friends and family to see if they can help you.
- Search online or ask for local recommendations of befriending or sitting services.
Emergency respite care
Many people arrange respite care in advance. But if you’re suddenly taken ill or can’t look after your loved one, your loved one will need emergency respite care. This might be a placement in a care or nursing home, support from a friend or family member at home, or home care from a paid carer.
Emergency respite care can last for a few hours, days, or weeks, depending on your situation.
If you need emergency respite care, talk to your local Adult Social Care team, or use Find Your Room’s care search to find available services.
As a carer, you should make a plan for emergencies. Even if you’re not planning to be unavailable, consider who would support your loved one if you couldn’t be there. Talk to friends and family to see if they’re willing to provide emergency respite care, or take care of your loved one until a care home or home care placement can be arranged.
Things to consider when planning for emergencies:
- Make sure that your emergency contact has a key to your home.
- Make sure that your loved one knows the emergency contact and feels comfortable with them.
- Explain what the emergency contact will need to do when looking after your loved one – will they need to prepare meals, give medication, or simply provide companionship?
- Write down any key information about your loved one, such as allergies, medication, and GP details.
Your feelings about respite care
If you care for a family member or friend, you might feel guilty about needing a break. But it’s important to understand that taking regular breaks is a good thing.
The first time you try respite care, it might feel difficult. You may feel guilty, anxious, upset, lonely, or like you’re abandoning them. Your loved one may also find it hard, especially if you’ve cared for them alone for a long time.
However, you should try to persevere and make respite care a regular part of your routine, if possible.
There are lots of benefits to respite care, including:
- Improved mental health: Caring is a difficult job, even if you’re supporting someone you love. Carers are at increased risk of mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. Taking regular breaks can help you maintain your mental health and reduces the risk of burnout.
- Improved physical health: As a carer, it can be hard to find time to look after yourself. Eating properly, getting enough sleep, and attending medical appointments can all be neglected at times. Using respite care can help you take care of yourself.
- Improved relationships: Being a carer for a family member or friend can put strain on that relationship. Sometimes, you don’t feel like family, partners, or friends any more – you feel like you’re just a care worker. Letting someone else take on the caring role can help you get that old relationship back for a while.
- More time for other things: You may be trying to balance a career with your caring responsibilities, or looking after other dependents. You might just miss going to a yoga class or shopping by yourself. Respite care can help you find time for these activities.
- Reduced loneliness for your loved one: Many people with care needs are at high risk of loneliness and isolation. Spending time with other people, whether they’re paid carers, family members, or other residents in a care home, can help your loved one socialise and stay active.
- Reassurance in case of emergency: If you have respite care set up, you’ll have peace of mind that your loved one will be cared for if anything happens to you.
- Preparation for long-term care: Your loved one may need professional care in future, either residential care or support at home. Short-term respite care can help them get used to the idea of professional care.
Feeling ready to look for respite care? Find Your Room can help. Simply search for care services near you, and filter your search to look for Short Term/Respite options.
