Live-in care in Buckinghamshire

Our care, where you live

Our live-in care in Buckinghamshire

Live-in care means one-to-one support in your own home: personal care, medication support, meals, help around the house, getting out and about, and someone close by at night. Whether it suits the person, and whether one carer can support a couple, is worked out at the free assessment. Read more in live-in care explained and how it works day to day.

How we arrange live-in care in Buckinghamshire

Day and Nightcare provides fully managed live-in care across Buckinghamshire, from £1,550 a week. One main carer lives in the home; a relief carer covers their holidays and time off, and a manager is on call. Care starts with a free assessment, a written quote and a written care plan.

Care can be paid for privately, by Buckinghamshire Council (including direct payments) or by NHS Continuing Healthcare. We have provided Discharge to Assess (D2A) care since 2014. If someone is in hospital, tell us the expected discharge date when you call (see care after hospital). Our care team is on 01865 715780.

Arranging care and funding in Buckinghamshire

Buckinghamshire Council, a unitary council since 1 April 2020, runs adult social care and collects council tax; Milton Keynes has its own council. The care needs assessment is called a Better Lives Assessment. Call 01296 383 204 or refer yourself or someone you care for online through Care Advice Buckinghamshire. After a first conversation, a social care worker arranges a visit at a time that suits you, and a friend, family member or advocate can be there. If the council arranges care, it usually reviews it within six weeks of the start and then every year, and you can ask for a review at any time. For an emergency out of hours, call 0800 999 7677.

Read more: arranging care and funding in Buckinghamshire

The money rules. With savings or capital over £23,250 you are expected to pay the full cost. Between £14,250 and £23,250, the council charges £1 a week for every £250 above £14,250. Your home is not counted when care is at home, and disability-related costs such as extra personal care, mobility costs and equipment maintenance can be listed. If you contribute, an invoice comes every 28 days.
Direct payments. The council’s direct payment support team (01296 382 527) helps with managing a budget or employing personal assistants.
Carer’s assessment. Free and confidential, for carers aged 18 or over whatever their finances: request it online or on 01296 383 204.
Equipment and small adaptations. The council’s Occupational Therapy team (01296 387 024) can advise, give a voucher for an approved seller, order equipment, pay for equipment or minor changes up to £1,000, or apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant. Millbrook Healthcare has supplied the equipment since August 2025 (repairs: 01296 840317).
Council tax. Someone certified by a doctor as severely mentally impaired, for example through dementia, who gets a qualifying benefit such as Attendance Allowance, can have a discount (100% if they live alone). A carer who lives with the person, gives at least 35 hours of care a week and is not their spouse, partner or child under 18 is disregarded if the person gets a qualifying benefit. There is also a disabled band reduction. You apply for each.

Urgent care and leaving hospital in Buckinghamshire

Minor injuries and illnesses: the GP-led Urgent Treatment Centre at Wycombe Hospital is open 8am to 8pm every day. Walk in, or book a time through NHS 111; it aims to see everyone within four hours. It is not an A&E.
A&E: the Emergency Department at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Aylesbury is open 24 hours. Its Frailty Same Day Emergency Care unit, open daily 8am to 8pm, treats older people who do not need admission, if they meet its criteria.
Near the borders: Wexham Park Hospital in Slough and Milton Keynes University Hospital also have 24-hour A&Es.

Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust plans discharge from the day someone arrives. Families are asked to arrange transport home (unless the team says hospital transport is needed), outdoor clothes, keys, heating and food. Its medicines helpline is 01296 838220 (weekdays, 9am to 4pm).

Free short-term help after a stay:

Home First (NHS): up to four weeks of care and therapy at home for Buckinghamshire residents; ward referral only. 01296 322400, 8am to 4pm every day.
Home Independence: the council’s reablement, up to six weeks by professional referral. 0300 777 2002.
Rapid Response and Intermediate Care (NHS): urgent care at home in a health crisis, for patients of a Buckinghamshire GP, by professional referral.
Age UK Buckinghamshire’s Hospital Discharge and Community Support Service (free, 01296 256132): its discharge team takes people home from Stoke Mandeville, Amersham, Wycombe or Wexham Park and helps them settle in, on referral by NHS staff, so ask the ward; its community team gives short-term help with shopping, prescriptions, light housework and laundry, and you or a carer can call it directly.

The council’s discharge teams are on 01296 316 631 (North and East) and 01494 475 056 (South and Central). For NHS Continuing Healthcare, NHS Thames Valley ICB’s team (0118 982 2900) arranges full assessments for Buckinghamshire residents.

Local help in Buckinghamshire

Carers' services, dementia support, transport, befriending and other local help, with phone numbers.

Read more: local help in Buckinghamshire

Carers. Mobilise runs the free all-age carers service for the council, in person, by phone, online and in groups: 0300 131 21 21.
Memory worries. The GP refers to Oxford Health’s Memory Assessment Service (01865 901296), based at the Whiteleaf Centre in Aylesbury, with clinics in Amersham, High Wycombe and at Thame Community Hospital. Dementia Support Bucks, a free service from Age UK Buckinghamshire and Age UK Hillingdon, Harrow and Brent, runs memory information sessions before and after a diagnosis and has dementia support workers; families can refer themselves. Helpline 01280 505028, weekdays 9am to 5pm.
Getting about. The Community Transport Hub (0800 085 8480 or 01844 348 834, weekdays 9am to 12.30pm) advises on community transport near you but cannot book it. The Chilterns Dial-a-Ride runs door-to-door accessible trips on weekdays, 8.30am to 5pm, for members in the Chiltern, High Wycombe and South Bucks areas (£20 a year; book at least four days ahead on 01494 766123). Volunteer Driver Service (0300 3030 125, weekdays 9am to 4pm) takes people to essential appointments for a mileage fee, counted from the driver’s home, plus a small admin fee.
Hospice care. Florence Nightingale Hospice, on the Stoke Mandeville site, has the only inpatient hospice unit in Buckinghamshire, for symptom or pain control, rehabilitation or end-of-life care (01296 332 600). Its free FNH@Home team, including overnight, cares for people at home in their final weeks, usually on referral by the GP, district nurse or hospital consultant. Butterfly House in High Wycombe (01494 552750) kept its name when South Bucks Hospice merged into the charity in October 2025. Rennie Grove Peace provides Hospice at Home to patients of certain GP practices; Bucks Single Point of Access (01296 32 13 41) can check yours.
Staying independent. Age Better Bucks, from Age UK Buckinghamshire, gives free, short-term support to people aged 65 and over: a visit and a personal plan to stay well and independent. It is not for people who already have council-arranged care or who have used it this calendar year. You can refer yourself, or a relative can, on 01296 846099.
Advice. Age UK Buckinghamshire gives free information and advice to older people and their families, including help with benefits such as Attendance Allowance: 01296 431911 (phone line 9.30am to 12.30pm).

Useful local contacts

Useful contacts in Buckinghamshire

The councils, NHS teams, hospitals and local services you are most likely to need in Buckinghamshire, with links to their official pages. Open any heading for the details.

Councils and care assessments

Adult social care in Buckinghamshire is arranged by Buckinghamshire Council. Anyone who appears to need care can ask for a free care needs assessment, whatever their savings. If the council funds care, you can usually take it as a direct payment and use it for live-in care from us.

Buckinghamshire Council: ask for a care needs assessment (telephone 01296 383 204); carer's assessment.

Our guide to reducing the cost of care and funding checker explain every route.

NHS Continuing Healthcare

When someone's main need is a health need, the NHS pays for all of their care through NHS Continuing Healthcare, and it is not means-tested. In Buckinghamshire it is arranged by NHS Thames Valley Integrated Care Board (Continuing Healthcare information). We already support people whose care is funded by NHS Continuing Healthcare. See our NHS Continuing Healthcare guide.

Hospitals

If someone is in hospital, tell us the expected discharge date as early as you can, and we will work with you and the discharge team on when live-in care can start.

Stoke Mandeville Hospital, Aylesbury (leaving hospital information)
Wycombe Hospital, High Wycombe (leaving hospital information)
Amersham Hospital, Amersham (leaving hospital information)
Buckingham Community Hospital, Buckingham
Chalfonts and Gerrards Cross Hospital, Chalfont St Peter
Marlow Community Hospital, Marlow
Thame Community Hospital, Thame

Local support and charities

Mobilise (Buckinghamshire All-Age Carers Service): Carers' support
Dementia Support Bucks: Dementia support
Age UK Buckinghamshire: Age UK
Florence Nightingale Hospice Charity: Hospice
Rennie Grove Peace Hospice Care: Hospice
Healthwatch Bucks: Healthwatch: your independent voice on health and care
Buckinghamshire Adults Care Services Directory: Local services directory
Home First (Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust): Other

Council tax and equipment

Council tax discounts for people with a severe mental impairment, for disabled people and for some carers are claimed from the local council: Buckinghamshire Council. See council tax discounts for care.

Equipment such as hoists, hospital beds and bathing aids is provided after an assessment through Community Equipment Services (Buckinghamshire Council), supplied by Millbrook Healthcare. See equipment and home adaptations.

Coverage

Towns we cover in Buckinghamshire

We provide live-in care everywhere in Buckinghamshire, including:

Your questions

Questions about live-in care in Buckinghamshire

Who do I call in Buckinghamshire to ask for a care assessment?

Call Buckinghamshire Council's adult social care team on 01296 383 204, or refer yourself online through Care Advice Buckinghamshire. The needs assessment is free, and anyone can ask for one. The council calls its care assessment a Better Lives Assessment. After a first conversation, a social care worker arranges a visit at a time that suits you, and a friend, family member or advocate can be with you. For an emergency out of hours, call 0800 999 7677.

What is the difference between Home First and Home Independence in Buckinghamshire?

Both are free and short-term. Home First is run by Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust: up to four weeks of care and therapy at home after a hospital stay, and only the ward can refer. Home Independence is the council's reablement service: up to six weeks, free of charge, for adults who live in Buckinghamshire, have a professional referral and can work towards clear goals. Its team is on 0300 777 2002.

Who supports unpaid carers in Buckinghamshire now?

Mobilise has run Buckinghamshire's all-age carers service for the council since 1 July 2026. It is free: call 0300 131 21 21 or register online. Carers Bucks no longer takes new referrals, so older leaflets may point to the wrong place. The carer's assessment itself is done by Buckinghamshire Council, free and confidential: request it online or on 01296 383 204.

Does Buckinghamshire Council cover Milton Keynes?

No. Milton Keynes has its own council, Milton Keynes City Council, which runs adult social care there, and it is in a different NHS area, NHS Central East ICB. The rest of Buckinghamshire is covered by Buckinghamshire Council and NHS Thames Valley ICB, so the council numbers on this page do not apply in Milton Keynes.

How much does live-in care cost in Buckinghamshire?

Live-in care with Day and Nightcare costs from £1,550 a week anywhere in Buckinghamshire, the same as everywhere in England, for one person with a carer who rests at night. That includes our care team's management (the assessment, care plan, reviews, supervision and the on-call manager) and the carer's food; break cover and the carer's travel are extra. For a couple it is from £1,800 a week, where one carer can safely meet both partners' needs. You receive a written quote after a free assessment.

Can the council help pay for live-in care in Buckinghamshire?

Yes, if the person's care needs meet the national eligibility criteria and their savings are below £23,250 (2026/27). Adult social care in Buckinghamshire is arranged by Buckinghamshire Council. Ask for a care needs assessment; if you are eligible, council funding can usually be taken as a direct payment and used for live-in care from us.

Who arranges NHS Continuing Healthcare in Buckinghamshire?

NHS Continuing Healthcare in Buckinghamshire is arranged by NHS Thames Valley Integrated Care Board. When someone's main need is a health need, the NHS pays for all of their care, including live-in care at home. Ask the GP, social worker or hospital discharge team for a CHC checklist assessment.

Can live-in care start when someone leaves Stoke Mandeville Hospital?

It can. Tell us the expected discharge date as early as you can, and we will work with you and the ward's discharge team on when live-in care can start. We can often start within 24 to 48 hours of the assessment, depending on carer availability, and we confirm the start date once a carer is arranged. We have provided Discharge to Assess (D2A) care since 2014.

How would live-in care be supported in Buckinghamshire?

Our care team supports every live-in placement, wherever it is in England: a free assessment, a written care plan, regular contact and reviews, one main live-in carer, with a relief carer covering holidays and time off, and a manager on call outside office hours. Your carer works alongside the person's own GP, community nurses and any hospice team already involved in their care.

Sources and further information

Show the 48 official sources for this page

Local information checked 31 October 2026. Links go to the official council, NHS and charity pages.