Companionship Care at Home in Newark

Where are you up to?

Planning ahead

Nothing urgent, but you want to know what is possible.
What care costs, and what help with paying for it exists.

See what care costs

Urgent: Leaving hospital soon

A discharge date, or one expected this week.
Care that can start the day someone comes home.
Forms received outside our office hours are reviewed when we open at 8am Monday to Saturday. For urgent matters relating to hospital discharge, use our fast-track form and we’ll respond within a few hours.

Use the discharge fast-track

Things have changed at home

A fall, a hospital letter, or managing less well than before.
A free assessment, usually within a few days.

Request a care assessment

The short answers

What we do

Visits of an hour or more for conversation, a hobby, a walk outdoors, or help with meals and drinks where that is in the plan. Carers also run welfare checks and tell the family about anything that concerns them.

Who it's for

An older person who spends most of the day on their own. It is also how care often begins, because a parent who resists the word carer will usually accept a regular visitor who comes for a cup of tea.

Cost

£31 per hour, or £17 for a 30-minute visit, plus a £2.50 flat travel charge per visit. Care is exempt from VAT. Full costs and funding.

Who will come

A core team of up to four familiar carers wherever possible, because the point of the visit is the relationship. Everyone is directly employed. We never use agency staff. How we keep care familiar.

Why companionship matters

Age UK research identifies loneliness as a serious health concern in later life. It is linked to a higher risk of depression, cognitive decline and poorer physical health.

For many older people, contact fades slowly. A partner dies. Friends become less mobile. Driving stops. Children are busy. What starts as a quiet week becomes a quiet month, and then a pattern.

A regular companionship visit brings something steady: a person who comes at a set time and wants to hear what your Mum or Dad has to say. Someone who shares a cup of tea, and notices how they are.

What a companionship visit involves

Visits are flexible and built around the person. Alongside conversation, a walk or a meal, a carer might help with reading, letters or a favourite pastime.

Companionship as a first step

For many families, companionship is how care begins. Over time, as trust builds, more support can come in naturally. Many clients who started with companionship later added personal care, medication support or other help. The familiarity was already there.

Welfare checks as a standalone visit

If you mainly want to know your Mum or Dad is safe and well, a shorter welfare check can be arranged. A carer visits, checks the person is well, makes a drink, checks medication and reports back to the family.

It suits families who live far away, or who want a midday check while they are at work.

If you are new to arranging support for a parent, our guide to caring for an ageing parent sets out what to organise first.

Keeping families informed

Carers log notes after each visit, and agreed family members can see them in the Birdie app. Read more about how we keep families updated.

Costs

Companionship visits are charged at our standard visiting care rates. Most families pay privately for companionship visits. Direct Payments can also be used if the council has assessed the person as having eligible needs. Full costs and funding detail.

We provide companionship care in Newark, Grantham, Bingham, Retford, Ollerton, Southwell, Collingham and North Hykeham, and the surrounding villages.

Call 01636 646915, email hello@helpingathome.co.uk, or request a care assessment to talk through what regular visits could look like.

Frequently asked questions

Is companion care the same as companionship care?

Yes, they are two names for the same thing: regular visits from a familiar carer for someone who would otherwise spend most of the day alone. A visit is typically an hour or more, and can include a meal, a walk, a lift into town or a welfare check. From £31 an hour, or £17 for a 30-minute visit, plus a £2.50 travel charge per visit.

What is companionship care?

Companionship care is regular visiting support focused on company, routine and wellbeing, rather than personal care tasks. Familiar, directly employed carers make the visits.

Is companionship care suitable for someone with dementia?

Yes. Regular, familiar visits can be reassuring for people with dementia, giving routine and a friendly face. Companionship visits can be combined with personal care or memory support as part of a wider dementia care plan. Read more about our dementia-informed care.

Can companionship care be an alternative to a move into a care home?

For many people, yes. Regular visits, combined with other support where needed, can help someone stay safely at home for longer. We talk through whether it is right at the care assessment.

Will the same carer come each time?

We aim to give each client a core team of up to four carers, with introductions before care starts wherever possible. In companionship care the relationship is the point, so we work to protect it.

Can a companionship visit include practical help as well?

Yes. Medication prompts, help with a meal or light personal care can be built into the care plan. We agree what each visit covers at the assessment.

Companionship Care at Home