Help from your council
Adult social care in St. Helens: how to get help
Every adult in St. Helens who looks as though they need care can ask St Helens Borough Council to assess them. Money makes no difference to that right. Adult social care: 01744 676767.
Checked against St Helens Borough Council's website on 15 October 2026.
1. Get assessed
Which daily tasks are hard, and do they meet the national threshold? That is the question the assessment answers. It is free, a statutory right, and carries no obligation to take council services.
Request an assessment from St Helens Borough Council; alternatively, 01744 676767.
The Contact Cares team takes calls from 8am to 10pm, 365 days a year, and can also be emailed at contactcares@sthelens.gov.uk. An online financial assessment tool gives an estimate of what you may pay towards your care.
2. What you pay towards care
Next, finances, if needs qualify. Staying at home? Then the property they live in is ignored. Moving into residential care? Property normally counts unless it is still home to a partner or to certain relatives, from week 13 of a permanent stay. Capital over £23,250 means the person usually pays the full cost, under £14,250 savings are not counted at all, and in between tariff income is used.
What care could cost in St. Helens
Here are local price ranges. The calculator below uses them to split the cost between the person and the council; swap in a real quote if you have one.
| Type of care | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| Visiting care | around £32–£34 an hour |
| Live-in care | around £1,540–£1,610 a week |
| Residential care home | £1,100 a week |
| Nursing home | £1,400 a week |
Typical 2026 prices across England · Average 2026 self-funder fees in North West · Lottie Care Index, Q3 2026 · Which?, self-funder fees (Lottie data, January 2026).
This calculator follows the 2026/27 English charging rules (GOV.UK charging circular): £23,250 upper limit, £14,250 lower limit, tariff income of £1 a week per £250, a £241.45 weekly minimum income guarantee for a single pensioner, and a £31.80 weekly personal expenses allowance. It gives an estimate only; the council's assessment is what counts, and some councils charge less.
3. Direct payments
Council funding, whether partial or full, can be paid to you so that you organise support yourself, with the agency of your choice.
Help for carers
Looking after someone? You can be assessed separately, free.
St Helens Borough Council: support for carers. Carers' service locally: St Helens Carers Centre.
Useful from the council
- Local care and support directory: The Livewell Directory
St. Helens in numbers
St. Helens has 2 Outstanding care homes; 11% of its rated care homes (4) sit below Good, compared with 17% nationally. In the last 12 months, St. Helens gained 1 newly registered home care agencies and 1 new care homes.
How recent are the ratings? For care homes in St. Helens, the median age is 69 months (47 for England as a whole); 22% are under two years old. Home care in St. Helens: 40 agencies on the CQC register, 31 of them rated, and 90% of those rated Good or Outstanding, above England (88%).
CQC published 8 ratings for services in St. Helens in the last 12 months, and 1 went up, 1 moved to a lower rating, 1 was new services getting a first rating. The most recent was on 3 September 2026. The largest provider company in St. Helens by number of services is TRU (Transitional Rehabilitation Unit) Ltd, with 4 care homes and 1 home care agency. The second largest is Bright Futures Care Limited (3 services).
Of St. Helens's 41 care homes, 37 have a CQC rating; 89% of those are Good or Outstanding, against 83% for England. Nursing homes make up 14 of the total, or 34%.
Based on the register as of Oct 2026.
Guides for St. Helens
- Care prices in St. Helens
- Funding care in St. Helens
- Getting a care needs assessment in St. Helens
- Dementia care in St. Helens
- Learning disability care in St. Helens
- Mental health care in St. Helens
- Physical disability care in St. Helens
- Sight and hearing loss care in St. Helens
- St. Helens: best rated care homes
- Top rated home care agencies in St. Helens
- St. Helens nursing homes compared
St. Helens is in St. Helens. Home care across St. Helens · Care homes across St. Helens · Top rated in St. Helens
Free download
Visiting care homes? Take this 40-point checklist
Print it before visiting: three columns, 40 questions on care, staffing, rooms, costs and the contract.
Towns in St. Helens
Newton-le-Willows
Haydock
St Helens
Rainford
Care in St. Helens: common questions
How many care homes are there in St. Helens?
There are 41 care homes registered with CQC in St. Helens, with 1,412 beds in total (CQC register, Oct 2026). 89% of those with a published rating are Good or Outstanding. Best rated care homes in St. Helens.
How many home care agencies are there in St. Helens?
40 home care agencies registered with CQC are based in St. Helens (Oct 2026). 90% of those rated are Good or Outstanding. Agencies based nearby may also cover the area.
How good are care homes in St. Helens?
89% of rated care homes in St. Helens are Good or Outstanding, above the England figure of 82.6%. 2 are rated Outstanding and 4 Requires improvement or Inadequate. How every council area compares.
How much does a care home cost in St. Helens?
A care home in St. Helens costs a typical £1,260 a week for someone paying for themselves: about £1,210 for residential care and £1,580 for nursing care. Our Care Fees and Quality Index (Q4 2026) models these prices; real quotes will vary. See what you might pay.
How much does home care cost per hour in St. Helens?
Home care in St. Helens costs a typical £33.50 an hour for someone paying privately (Q4 2026). Expect higher rates for evenings, weekends and bank holidays, and check the shortest visit each agency offers.
Which care homes in St. Helens are rated Outstanding?
Haydock Lodge and Parr Care Home are rated Outstanding by CQC.
How many care homes in St. Helens offer nursing or dementia care?
14 care homes in St. Helens are registered to provide nursing care and 20 list dementia as a specialism. The two often overlap. Nursing homes in St. Helens.
Is it hard to find a care home bed in St. Helens?
St. Helens has 35.9 care home beds for every 1,000 people aged 65 and over, against 43.0 across England, which ranks 110 of 151 council areas. Fewer beds usually means fewer vacancies to choose from, so start looking early. Care Access Gap.
How old are care home ratings in St. Helens?
59.5% of rated care homes in St. Helens were last rated more than four years ago, and the typical rating is 69 months old. Note the rating date and ask the home what is different now.
How do I ask St Helens Borough Council for a care needs assessment?
Contact St Helens Borough Council adult social care on 01744 676767. The assessment is free for anyone who appears to need care, whatever their savings, and is a legal right under the Care Act 2014. Request an assessment online.
Which care groups run the most care homes in St. Helens?
The largest providers in St. Helens are TRU (Transitional Rehabilitation Unit) Ltd (4), Bright Futures Care Limited (3) and Making Space (2). CQC rates every home on its own.
Paying for care in St. Helens? One short form reaches up to three providers that handle enquiries through The Care Panel. Your details go only where you say.
Ask about availabilityWhere this comes from
- www.sthelens.gov.uk/article/10581/Social-Care-Assessments-for-Adults-in-St-Helens-Borough
- www.sthelens.gov.uk/article/4025/Direct-Payments
- www.sthelens.gov.uk/article/1686/Get-help-support-or-social-care
- www.sthelens.gov.uk/article/11040/The-Livewell-Directory
- www.sthelens.gov.uk/article/11018/Can-we-help-with-the-costs-of-Social-Care
- www.sthelens.gov.uk/article/11246/St-Helens-Carers-Centre
- gov.uk: Care Act statutory guidance
Register information from CQC as at Oct 2026; Open Government Licence v3.0 applies. We do not deliver care ourselves.