Someone to help you to prepare meals
What’s available?
If you’re having problems preparing food and drinks, even with the help of equipment, you may need someone to provide extra support. This could be, for example, someone to visit you daily to support you with preparing meals and to ensure that you’re eating properly.
Once your practical needs have been assessed by one of our staff, we’ll tell you if you’re eligible for support or where you can get help. We’ll also let you know how much money you might be entitled to, which we call a Personal Budget, to pay for that support. You can choose whether you want us to arrange for an agency to send someone to visit you or you can organise it yourself.
What if I prefer to organise my own support?
Many people have someone they know who can offer support, such as a family member, friend, neighbour or local charity volunteer. Our priority is to support people who have no other option or need additional help. If you’re happy with the support you’re able to organise, you don’t have to contact Adult Social Care if you’d rather not.
Who’s eligible for support?
People over the age of 18, who live in Richmond and need practical support due to sight or hearing loss, physical or learning disabilities, frailty or illness. Take a look at our page on eligibility for more details.
What support can I get?
We’ll need to discuss with you what support you might need - we call this an assessment.
We may offer you short term assistance called Reablement to regain your independence or confidence. This service lasts for up to 6 weeks and is free.
After Reablement, we’ll discuss any ongoing needs you might have through a Self Directed Support (SDS) Assessment, where we’ll estimate the cost of your support and let you know whether we can make a financial contribution.
Can I get help with the cost?
You may have to contribute towards the cost of your support, depending on your level of savings, income and expenses.
We’ll help you to fill out a financial assessment form to see if you qualify for help. To get a rough idea of costs and how much you’ll pay, you can carry out a quick, confidential, financial self assessment online.
If we can make a contribution, we call this a Personal Budget. You can look after the money yourself and use it to arrange your own support, or you can ask the Council to hold the money and help you to find the support you need.
What if I don’t qualify for financial support?
If you don't qualify for financial help from us, you could arrange to employ someone directly, a Personal Assistant, to support you. Hestia, a local organisation, can help you to find someone.
The Money Advice Service, set up by government, provides free, unbiased and independent advice, including useful information on employing your own personal assistant.
You could also contact a private home care agency. Remember to take care to choose an agency that’s registered and inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Call 03000 616161 or email enquiries@cqc.org.uk. We maintain a list of care providers in the borough (January 2013)
(pdf, 267KB).
Please contact me about this service
If you’re still unsure you can contact the Adult Social Care Access Team