24-Hour Care in Exeter: Costs, Funding and 33 Local Agencies (Oct 2026)

Live-in care or waking nights?

Live-in care is usually the most affordable way to have someone there day and night: one carer lives in, but needs about two hours off each day and an unbroken night's sleep. Waking nights put a carer in the home who stays awake all night; combined with daytime visits, that covers all 24 hours. If help is needed most nights, one live-in carer is not enough: add waking nights or a second carer.

Typical local prices: live-in care around £1,540–£1,610 a week; a residential care home £1,445 a week.

Help paying for 24-hour care

Devon council must offer a free care needs assessment; if it finds eligible needs by day and night, care at home can be part of a council care plan, and the value of the home is not counted for care at home. Attendance Allowance pays its higher rate of £114.60 a week to people over State Pension age who need help both day and night, whatever their savings. When the main need is a health need, NHS Continuing Healthcare may pay in full. Requesting an assessment from Devon council.

When 24-hour care is needed

Families usually look for it after a hospital stay, when dementia means someone cannot be left alone or wanders at night, after repeated falls, or at the end of life. A care home is the alternative to compare: for one person it often costs less than staffing every hour at home, but many people want to stay in their own home.

What the register shows for Exeter

Registered specialisms here: 25 of 33 list physical disabilities, 13 of 33 list learning disabilities and 16 of 33 list mental health conditions. Most recent to register: Kinderways Ltd- Matford Business Centre Exeter (June 2026). Oldest rating on the list: Social Care Reablement, June 2018. The share registered for dementia is 67% in Exeter (22 of 33) and 73% across Devon. Ranked against the 6 closest towns on our site by the share of every listed agency that is rated Good or Outstanding, Exeter comes 6th of 7 (39%), with Ottery St Mary top at 82%. Outstanding ratings: 2 covering Exeter, 14 across Devon. 24% of agencies covering Exeter have a CQC rating from the last two years, against 15% across Devon. Compare Exeter's 87% Good or Outstanding with 92% for the rated agencies among the 183 we list in Devon.

24-hour care prices in Exeter

Typical prices across England in 2026
Visiting care	around £32–£34 an hour
Live-in care	around £1,540–£1,610 a week

What Devon County Council pays providers: £28.08 an hour for home care (2025/26 average paid to agencies); £1,110.34 a week for residential care (2025/26 average, over-65s); £1,363 a week for nursing care (2025/26 average, over-65s) (source).

Agencies differ more than regions do on hourly rates, so request a complete tariff from each one, covering weekends and bank holidays too. For 2026/27, the Homecare Association says council-funded home care in England is only sustainable at £34.42 an hour or more. Source: Lottie Care Index, Q3 2026. Estimate the weekly cost or see what you might pay

Questions about 24-hour care in Exeter

Where can I find 24-hour care in Exeter?

CQC does not record which agencies provide 24-hour care. 33 CQC-registered home care agencies have an office within 7 miles of Exeter; 13 are rated Good or Outstanding. Ask each whether it provides 24-hour care.

How much does 24-hour care cost in Exeter?

Typical prices across England in 2026: live-in care typically costs around £1,540–£1,610 a week. Covering every hour with separate day and night carers costs much more, because each hour is paid.

Is 24-hour care the same as live-in care?

Not quite. A live-in carer is there day and night but needs a daily break and a full night's sleep. If help is needed through the night most nights, true 24-hour care means adding waking nights or a second carer.

Can the council pay for 24-hour care at home?

It can, if Devon council's care needs assessment finds eligible needs by day and night and care at home is a suitable way to meet them. A financial assessment follows; for care at home the home is not counted. NHS Continuing Healthcare pays in full when the main need is a health need.

Are home care agencies in Exeter well rated?

13 of the 15 rated agencies (87%) are Good or Outstanding; 22 list dementia as a specialism and 8 were inspected or rated in the last two years.

24-hour care in Exeter: ask who can help

Describe what's needed in one form, and as many as three agencies that accept enquiries via The Care Panel email you back.

Get prices from 3 providers

Related care pages for Exeter

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Get prices from 3 providers View agencies

CQC register data (Oct 2026), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. The Care Panel is independent of every provider listed.

24-hour care in Exeter