For you as a carer, the emotional impact of planning to move the person you care for into residential care can be huge. You may feel emotions like guilt, loss, grief or isolation. Note link to other website area: We also run a counselling service for carers, which you can find more about by heading to Our services > Counselling.
Choosing a care home
There are many online directories where you can search for care homes in your area. In Edinburgh, you can use the list on Edinburgh Council’s website. In Midlothian, you can use the list on Midlothian Council’s website.
The Care Inspectorate is also a useful resource, as they provide information about how they inspect and regulate all care homes.
You can organise a visit to the care home(s) you are considering or have an employee from the home come to speak to you. It’s a good idea to write a list of the things you and the person you care for would like to have in the care home, such as:
- Location: Is it close to local amenities and your home?
- Atmosphere: What is your first impression?
- Staff: Are there enough staff? How are they treating residents? What professional qualifications do they have?
- Accommodation: Do residents get their own room? Toilet facilities?
- Facilities: Are there visiting hairdressers, chiropodists etc?
- Safeguarding: Are protections in place for vulnerable adults?
- Condition-specific information: Do they have other people of a similar age? Are staff trained to deal with specific conditions like dementia?
- Meals: Is there a choice of good quality, nutritious meals?
- Pets: Are pets allowed in the care home?
- Activities: What activities are provided by the care home?
- Keeping in contact: Do residents have access to a telephone or the internet?
- Feedback: How does the home handle feedback and complaints?
Paying for care
If the person you care for gets assessed as needing to live in a care home, their financial situation will also be assessed. This includes pensions, benefits, property, savings and investments. If they have joint ownership of any of these finances with someone else, then half of the amount will be considered. Care home residents can get 50% of their private pension paid to a spouse who continues to live at home.
There are upper and lower limits which define how much someone needs to pay. These change with inflation. The Scottish government’s Revised Guidance on Charging for Residential Accommodation (PDF) explains these, but this can be quite complex, so please contact VOCAL if you have any questions.
Useful Guides
Age Scotland provides useful guides on organising and paying for residential care:
