How to get assessed for care in Wiltshire

Contacting Wiltshire Council

• Who: any adult who seems to need support, or a relative for them.
• How: Ask for an assessment online or call adult social care on 0300 456 0111.
• Wording: name the Care Act 2014 and ask for a needs assessment.

Call the Advice and Contact Team on 0300 456 0111, or make a referral for yourself or someone else at any time using the online Adult Social Care referral form. Out of hours, the Emergency Duty Service is on 0300 456 0100.

What the data shows for Wiltshire

Home care in Wiltshire: 147 agencies on the CQC register, 110 of them rated, and 90% of those rated Good or Outstanding, ahead of England (88%). 37 home care agencies and 7 care homes in Wiltshire have no published rating yet, often because they registered recently.

Of Wiltshire's 163 care homes, 156 have a CQC rating; 89% of those are Good or Outstanding, against 83% for England. Of these, 48 provide nursing, which is 29% of homes in the area. Over the last 12 months CQC published 62 ratings for services in Wiltshire (13 moved to a higher rating, 10 were first ratings), most recently on 2 October 2026.

New in the past year: 10 agencies and 10 care homes joined the CQC register in Wiltshire. The key question that most often falls short for agencies in Wiltshire is Safe (14 of 110 below Good). 3 of 110 agencies are rated Outstanding for Caring, a higher share than for any other area.

Source: our analysis of CQC data (Oct 2026).

Support for the people who care

Even before the person you look after is seen, Wiltshire Council must assess you as a carer if you ask, at no cost. Wiltshire Council: support for carers. Nearby help for carers: Carers Together Wiltshire (led by Age UK Wiltshire).

On the day

A social worker or occupational therapist, in most cases, talks with the person (and family, if they want) about everyday tasks: contact with others, eating and drinking, using the toilet, keeping the home fit to live in, dressing, personal hygiene and moving about without risk. They check whether needs meet the national eligibility criteria: that they are caused by an illness or impairment, physical or mental, prevent at least two of the listed outcomes, and significantly affect the person's wellbeing.

Some councils start with a phone conversation and offer short-term help, such as reablement or equipment, before a full assessment. Reablement is free for up to six weeks.

How to prepare

• Describe a bad day, not a good one. People often say they manage when they do not.
• Get the written record and the plan sent to you.
• Write down, over an ordinary week, the tasks that cause trouble and what goes wrong without help.
• Note every prescription, condition, fall and spell in hospital.
• Ask for a relative or friend to be there, or for an independent advocate if there is no one.

If you disagree with the decision

1. Request written reasons and a review.
2. Still unhappy? Make a formal complaint to the council.
3. Finally, take it to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, at no charge.