Respite Care in Northwood: Costs, Funding and 30 Local Agencies (Oct 2026)

Types of respite care

There are three main routes. A carer can come to the home for a few hours while you get out, or live in for days or weeks (live-in respite) while you are away. A care home can offer a short stay, usually a week or two and often booked well in advance for holidays. Of the 31 CQC-registered care homes in Northwood, ask which accept short stays. Or there are day centres run by charities or the council.

Paying for respite yourself

Paying privately? Check each agency's shortest visit and how much notice it needs, and ask care homes if they hold rooms for short stays. Visit the home first, and pass on the care plan, the list of medicines and daily routines to help the stay go well.

Ask for a carer's assessment

Funded breaks, personal budgets for carers and other support can all follow from a carer's assessment. As a carer you are entitled to one from the London Borough of Hillingdon, free and apart from any assessment of the person you look after; it focuses on how caring affects your life. For advice, call Carers UK free on 0808 808 7777. How to ask the London Borough of Hillingdon for an assessment.

What the register shows for Northwood

Dementia appears on 24 of 30 registrations here (80%), compared with 81% in London as a whole. By specialism, 27 of 30 list physical disabilities, 16 of 30 list learning disabilities and 18 of 30 list mental health conditions. Ruby Grange Homecare Limited has the oldest rating still in force, from January 2018. 7% of agencies covering Northwood have a CQC rating from the last two years, against 33% across Hillingdon. Compare Northwood's 100% Good or Outstanding with 89% for the rated agencies among the 2,452 we list in London. No nearby town we list has a higher share of its listed agencies rated Good or Outstanding than Northwood (70%); Pinner follows at 66%. GoodOaks Homecare – Northwood and Ruislip is the most recently registered, joining the CQC register in November 2025.

Respite care prices in Northwood

Typical 2026 prices in London
Visiting care	£30–£40 an hour
Sleeping night	£190–£230
Waking night	£240–£320
Live-in care	£1,300–£1,800 a week
Residential care home	£1,615 a week
Nursing home	£1,850 a week

Council rates in London Borough of Hillingdon: £20.25 an hour for home care (2025/26 average paid to agencies); £1,168.65 a week for residential care (2025/26 average, over-65s); £1,173.62 a week for nursing care (2025/26 average, over-65s) (source).

Homecare Association figure for 2026/27: a sustainable council rate for home care in England starts at £34.42 an hour. Work out a weekly cost · What would we pay?

Questions about respite care in Northwood

Which home care agencies offer respite care in Northwood?

30 agencies on the CQC register have an office within 3 miles of Northwood, and 21 hold a Good or Outstanding rating. Which of them provide respite care is not recorded by CQC: ask them.

Can respite care be paid for by the council?

Start with a carer's assessment from the London Borough of Hillingdon: eligible carers can have breaks arranged or funded. Separately, look for sitting services from carers' centres and charities that are free or cheap.

How far ahead should we book respite in a care home?

Give several weeks where possible, more around school holidays. Ask on the first call whether the home holds rooms back for short stays, as not all do.

How are agencies covering Northwood rated?

Of 21 agencies with a CQC rating, 21 (100%) are Good or Outstanding. Dementia is a specialism for 24, and 2 have a rating or inspection from the past two years.

Respite care in Northwood: ask who can help

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

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Source for provider details: CQC, Oct 2026 (Open Government Licence v3.0). The Care Panel is a comparison site, not a care company.

Respite care in Northwood