Visiting Care in Reading

Reading • Berkshire

Flexible visiting care at home in Reading

Visiting care in Reading is home care in short, planned calls: a Care Professional comes in at set times to help with washing, dressing, meals and medication prompts. Not everyone needs round-the-clock support. For many people in Reading, the right help is a familiar face dropping in at the right moments of the day, a hand with washing and dressing first thing, a prompt to take medication, a hot meal at lunchtime, or a friendly check-in before bed. That is what visiting care is for. We arrange flexible hourly care that fits around your life, from a single 30-minute call to several visits a day, so you can stay independent in your own home rather than moving into residential care. It is also known as domiciliary care.

Protocol Healthcare Services arranges care in Reading from our London office in Edgware, so we do not run a branch on Broad Street. What we do run is a service covering London and the Home Counties, coordinating vetted, background-checked Care Professionals wherever they are needed. Everyone we place completes enhanced DBS and right-to-work checks, references and training before they start. A consultant is available around the clock, so families in Caversham, Whitley or Woodley get the same reliable support as those near our offices.

What visiting care in Reading can include

• ✓ Short drop-in calls from 30 minutes
• ✓ Morning and bedtime personal care routines
• ✓ Medication prompts and reminders
• ✓ Meal preparation and help with eating and drinking
• ✓ Light housekeeping, laundry and shopping
• ✓ Companionship and welfare check-in visits
• ✓ Help getting out to appointments and clubs
• ✓ Several visits a day, built around your routine

Build a schedule that fits your day

The strength of visiting care is that it flexes. Some people in Reading start with one short morning visit and nothing more; others build up to four calls a day covering breakfast, lunch, teatime and settling at night. You might want a companionship visit twice a week to break up the isolation of living alone, or a daily welfare check-in for extra peace of mind while family are at work. Whatever the pattern, we agree it with you and adjust it as needs change, so you are never paying for more than you use.

Local knowledge across Reading

Reading spreads across the Thames Valley, and getting reliable visits to the right door at the right time takes local familiarity. We arrange visiting care north of the river in Caversham, Caversham Heights and Emmer Green, out west through Tilehurst, Southcote and Calcot towards Purley on Thames, and across the south and east of the town in Whitley, Coley, Katesgrove and the large estates of Earley, Lower Earley and Woodley. Wherever you live, from the streets around the Abbey Quarter and Forbury Gardens in RG1 to the newer suburbs in RG2, RG4, RG6, RG30 and RG31, we plan visits that keep you connected to the place you know.

Visiting care is also a gentle way to recover after a hospital stay. When someone comes home from the Royal Berkshire Hospital on London Road, run by the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, the first weeks matter. We can start with more frequent visits to help with medication, meals, mobility and personal care, then reduce them as strength returns, keeping families and community teams informed along the way. It is a practical way to regain confidence at home without the upheaval of a residential placement.

Funding and the cost of visiting care in Reading

Visiting care is charged by the hour or by the visit, so the weekly cost depends on how many calls you have and how long they last. We give you a clear quote before anything starts. Many Reading families pay for visiting care themselves, but you may also be entitled to help: Reading Borough Council, the unitary authority for the town, can carry out a free care needs assessment followed by a financial assessment. Our team is happy to explain how self-funded and council-funded routes work, and you can read more on our paying for care guide. We are registered with the CQC for personal care (provider ID 1-6591402702) and have not yet been inspected, so we have no rating. Our guide to arranging home care for a loved one sets out each step, from the needs assessment to the care plan.

If you run a care service in Reading, our staffing services page explains how we supply nurses and support workers as an REC-affiliated agency.

Council help at home in Reading

Reading Borough Council offers reablement after an illness or injury: a short spell of intensive support at home to help someone regain their independence. Its occupational therapy service can help with the everyday activities that have become difficult. The council also runs AskSARA, an online tool that gives tailored advice on equipment and daily living aids, and Technology Enabled Care to help keep people safe at home. If a relative in Caversham or Tilehurst has had a fall, the council's falls prevention advice is a good place to start. Visiting care can sit alongside any of these, filling the gaps once short-term help ends.

Areas of Reading we cover for visiting care

We arrange hourly visiting care across the town and its surrounding communities, including:

• Caversham
• Tilehurst
• Earley
• Lower Earley
• Whitley
• Southcote
• Emmer Green
• Calcot
• Purley on Thames
• Coley
• Katesgrove
• Woodley