24-Hour Care in Hedge End: Costs, Funding and 183 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 £1,555 a week.

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.

Help paying for 24-hour care

Hampshire 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. Asking Hampshire council for an assessment.

What the register shows for Hedge End

15% of agencies covering Hedge End have a CQC rating from the last two years, against 16% across Hampshire. Compare Hedge End's 88% Good or Outstanding with 90% for the rated agencies among the 721 we list in Hampshire. Of Hedge End and the 6 nearest towns we cover, Hedge End ranks 2nd for the share of all listed agencies rated Good or Outstanding (45%); Southampton is highest at 46%. Hampshire has 17 Outstanding agencies in total; covering Hedge End the figure is 3. One rating goes back to January 2018: Dimensions Portsmouth Domiciliary Care Office. Ask what has changed since. In Hedge End, 75% of agencies support people with dementia (137 of 183); the Hampshire figure is 82%. By specialism, 151 of 183 list physical disabilities, 92 of 183 list learning disabilities and 104 of 183 list mental health conditions. CQC registered Pilarstone Care Ltd in October 2026, the newest on this list.

Paying for 24-hour care in Hedge End: typical prices

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

What the council pays (Hampshire County Council): £25.90 an hour for home care (2025/26 average paid to agencies); £1,245 a week for residential care (2025/26 average, over-65s); £1,365 a week for nursing care (2025/26 average, over-65s) (source).

Hourly rates vary between agencies more than between regions; ask each agency for its full price list, including weekend and bank holiday rates. Homecare Association figure for 2026/27: a sustainable council rate for home care in England starts at £34.42 an hour. Source: Lottie Care Index, Q3 2026. Tools: weekly cost calculator and what would we pay?

Home care agencies covering Hedge End

Not confirmed for 24-hour care, so ask. Listed by CQC rating and rating date, then distance.

All 183 home care agencies covering Hedge End →

Questions about 24-hour care in Hedge End

Which agencies provide 24-hour care in Hedge End?

183 agencies on the CQC register have an office within 7 miles of Hedge End, and 83 hold a Good or Outstanding rating. Which of them provide 24-hour care is not recorded by CQC: ask them.

How much does 24-hour care cost in Hedge End?

Typical 2026 prices across England: 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 Hampshire 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.

What CQC ratings do agencies covering Hedge End have?

CQC rates 83 of 94 as Good or Outstanding, or 88%. Recent evidence: 27 rated or inspected in two years. Dementia specialists: 137.

24-hour care in Hedge End

Live-in care or waking nights?

When 24-hour care is needed

Help paying for 24-hour care

What the register shows for Hedge End

Paying for 24-hour care in Hedge End: typical prices

Home care agencies covering Hedge End

Questions about 24-hour care in Hedge End

Looking for 24-hour care in Hedge End?

Other care in Hedge End

24-hour care around Hedge End

Cookies on The Care Panel