First week with a live-in carer: printable checklist

The first week with a live-in carer goes best when the room is ready before they arrive, routines and house rules are written down, breaks are agreed from day one, and there is a clear handover and safety plan. This checklist covers each step. Live-in carers who are workers are legally entitled to rest breaks, daily rest and time off, so plan cover for those hours.

In short

• A live-in carer needs their own bedroom; agree food, Wi-Fi, bathroom use and storage before day one.
• Under the Working Time Regulations 1998, workers get a 20-minute break when working over 6 hours, 11 hours’ rest between working days, and 24 hours off a week or 48 hours a fortnight.
• If you employ a live-in carer directly as a domestic worker, the 48-hour average weekly limit does not apply, but the rest rules still do.
• Genuinely self-employed carers found through an introductory agency are not covered by those rules, but tired carers are still a safety risk.
• A live-in carer looking after someone who is not their partner or child may be “disregarded” for council tax, which can protect a single person discount.
• Most workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday a year, so plan holiday cover early.

New to live-in care? Start with what live-in care is and what a live-in carer does. This checklist is for the week the carer moves in.

The first week checklist

Before the carer arrives: the room and the house

• Prepare a private bedroom with a proper bed, clean bedding, wardrobe space, a lamp and a mirror.
• Make sure the room is warm and has a lock or at least a door that closes.
• Agree which bathroom the carer will use and when.
• Set up Wi-Fi access and share the password.
• Agree how food is handled: who buys it, whether the carer eats with your parent, and any dietary needs.
• Set up a household spending float with a book or app for receipts.
• Arrange keys, and a key safe for relief carers.
• Tell the home insurer that a live-in carer is moving in.
• Ask the council whether the carer can be disregarded for council tax.
• If the carer will drive your parent’s car, check the insurance covers them.

Day one: the house tour and handover

• Show the stopcock, fuse box, boiler controls, smoke alarms and fire exits.
• Show where spare bulbs, batteries, torches and the first aid kit are kept.
• Walk through the care plan together, including what your parent can still do alone.
• Hand over the medicines and the current list, and agree who orders repeat prescriptions.
• Show where any DNACPR form or advance decision is kept.
• Show how equipment works: hoist, commode, bed rails, pendant alarm.
• Put a list of contacts by the phone: family, GP, pharmacy, agency, neighbour, NHS 111.
• Share a one-page life story: family names, past work, food, faith, music, what upsets them.

Routines and house rules

• Write down the daily rhythm: getting up, meals, rest, washing, bedtime.
• Agree how personal care is done, in the order and way your parent prefers.
• Agree rules on visitors, smoking, alcohol, phone calls and the TV.
• Agree which rooms are private, for your parent and for the carer.
• Tell the carer about any cameras in the home before they start.
• Agree how laundry, cleaning and cooking are shared.
• Agree what the carer should do if your parent refuses care.

Breaks and time off

• Agree a fixed daily break time, and who sits with your parent during it.
• Confirm the weekly time off and the rota for the relief carer.
• Check that nights are normally undisturbed. If your parent needs help most nights, discuss night cover.
• Ask the agency how long each placement lasts and who covers holidays.
• Keep a simple log of nights when the carer was woken.

Handover notes and safety

• Set up a daily notes book or app: food, drinks, toileting, mood, sleep and medicines.
• Agree a handover routine for when carers change over.
• Agree a weekly call between the family and the carer.
• Check rugs, cables and lighting using our falls prevention guide.
• Agree what counts as an emergency: when to call the family, the GP, NHS 111 or 999.
• Agree what happens if the carer is ill or has to leave suddenly.
• Book a review with the agency or carer at the end of week one.

Print this checklist

Why each stage matters

The room is the carer’s home for weeks at a time. A cramped or cold room makes a long placement hard to sustain.

The handover moves knowledge out of family heads and onto paper. Medicines need particular care: see our guide to medication management at home.

Breaks are a legal right as well as a safety issue. GOV.UK rest break rules give workers a 20-minute break in a shift over six hours, 11 hours’ rest between working days and a weekly day off, or two days a fortnight. Regulation 19 of the Working Time Regulations removes the 48-hour weekly limit for domestic workers employed by a private household, but not those rest rights. Many agencies also build a longer daily break into the contract, so check what yours says. If you are the employer, you also take on pay, tax, holiday and pension duties: our guide to agency versus private carers explains more.

House rules written down early avoid awkward conversations later. They protect your parent’s privacy and the carer’s.

Safety planning matters because a live-in carer is often alone with your parent. If you ever worry about the standard of care, read signs of neglect by a carer and how to complain about home care. If live-in care stops working, compare live-in care with a care home.

Frequently asked questions

How many hours break does a live-in carer get?

Live-in carers who are workers are entitled to a 20-minute break when they work more than 6 hours, 11 hours’ rest between working days, and 24 hours off each week or 48 hours each fortnight under the Working Time Regulations 1998. Many agencies also build a longer daily break into the contract. Check yours and arrange cover for those hours.

Does a live-in carer need their own room?

Yes. A live-in carer needs a private bedroom with a proper bed, storage and somewhere to rest during breaks. Agencies usually require one before a placement starts. Agree access to a bathroom, the kitchen and Wi-Fi in advance, and make sure the room is warm and has a door that closes.

Do you pay for a live-in carer’s food?

It depends on the agreement. Many families provide food or a weekly food allowance, and some agencies set this in the contract. Agree the arrangement in writing before day one, including whether the carer eats with your parent, any dietary needs, and how shopping and receipts are recorded in the household spending log.

Does a live-in carer affect council tax?

It can help. GOV.UK lists a live-in carer looking after someone who is not their partner, spouse or child under 18 among people who are “disregarded” for council tax, if conditions are met. That means your parent may keep a single person discount. Contact the council when the carer moves in and ask what evidence it needs.

What should be in a handover for a live-in carer?

Include the care plan, medicines list and ordering routine, the daily rhythm, likes and dislikes, health conditions and warning signs, equipment instructions, emergency contacts, the location of any DNACPR form, and house rules. Add where the stopcock, fuse box and boiler controls are. Keep it in one folder and update it at each carer changeover.

Sources

• Working Time Regulations 1998, regulation 19 (legislation.gov.uk)
• Rest breaks at work (GOV.UK)
• Holiday entitlement (GOV.UK)
• Council Tax: who has to pay (GOV.UK)
• CQC: exceptions and exemptions from registration
• Help at home from a carer (NHS)

General information, not legal or financial advice. Figures for 2026/27, checked October 2026.

Reviewed by The Care Panel team on 29 October 2026. This guide is general information about care in England, not legal, medical or financial advice. Rules and rates change; check with your council or an adviser before making decisions.