Respite care: how it works and how to arrange it
Respite care gives family carers a break by arranging for someone else to look after the person they care for. Options include day care, a paid carer at home, a short stay in a care home and sitting services. Councils fund respite only after a carer's assessment and a care needs assessment, and families can also arrange and pay for it privately.
What is respite care?
Respite care is a planned break from caring. Someone else looks after your relative for a few hours, a day or a longer stay, so that you can rest, keep up your own health or simply have time for yourself. It is not a sign that you are failing as a carer. It helps carers avoid becoming exhausted.
Types of respite care
- Day care: your relative attends a day centre for a few hours or a full day.
- Homecare: a paid carer visits the home. See our home care guide.
- Short stay in a care home: your relative stays for days or weeks. See residential care and nursing care.
- Live-in carer for a short period: a carer stays in the home for the duration of your break. See live-in care.
- Sitting services and respite holidays: a volunteer or paid sitter, or a holiday arranged with care support.
- Help from friends and family for shorter breaks.
How to get respite care funded
Local councils fund respite only for people they have assessed as needing it. That means you should ask for a carer's assessment for yourself, and the person you care for should have a care needs assessment. Whether the council pays all, part or none of the cost depends on the assessed needs and a financial assessment. Read our guides to local authority assessments and support for family carers. If your relative's needs are primarily health-related, see NHS Continuing Healthcare.
What does respite care cost?
Cost depends on the type. Home care is usually charged per hour, and a short stay in a care home is generally charged at the home's daily or weekly rate. For typical weekly fees by type of care, see our UK care costs guide. Whatever you arrange, ask for a written quote showing what is included and any extra charges, and ask whether a minimum stay applies.
How to choose a respite provider
- Check the provider's most recent inspection rating on the regulator's website.
- Share an up-to-date summary of medication, routines, mobility and dementia needs.
- Visit a care home before a short stay, or arrange a trial visit.
- Agree who to contact in an emergency and how you will be updated.
- Use our care home viewing checklist or our questions to ask a homecare agency.
Respite care for dementia
Short breaks can be harder to arrange when someone has dementia, because change can cause distress. Plan visits in advance, share a short life-history and routine sheet with staff, and consider starting with day care or a short stay before a longer break. See our dementia care guide.