24-Hour Care in Caversham: Costs, Funding and 110 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

Reading 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 Reading council.

What the register shows for Caversham

Dementia appears on 84 of 110 registrations here (76%), compared with 77% in Reading as a whole. Registered specialisms here: 92 of 110 list physical disabilities, 57 of 110 list learning disabilities and 54 of 110 list mental health conditions. Norton Nurses Second Office is the most recently registered, joining the CQC register in May 2026. Compare Caversham's 85% Good or Outstanding with 85% for the rated agencies among the 132 we list in Reading. Reading has the highest share of listed agencies rated Good or Outstanding nearby (52%); Caversham, at 50%, is 3rd of the 7 towns compared. New Support Solutions has the oldest rating still in force, from September 2017.

Paying for 24-hour care in Caversham: typical prices

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

What Reading Borough Council pays providers: £23.56 an hour for home care (2025/26 average paid to agencies); £993.02 a week for residential care (2025/26 average, over-65s); £1,067.76 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. 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?

Questions about 24-hour care in Caversham

Where can I find 24-hour care in Caversham?

110 agencies on the CQC register have an office within 7 miles of Caversham, and 55 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 Caversham?

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 Reading 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 Caversham well rated?

55 of the 65 rated agencies (85%) are Good or Outstanding; 84 list dementia as a specialism and 8 were inspected or rated in the last two years.

Looking for 24-hour care in Caversham?

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Other care in Caversham

24-hour care around Caversham

24-hour care in Reading 2.1 mi
24-hour care in Woodley 3.4 mi
24-hour care in Twyford 4.4 mi
24-hour care in Henley-on-Thames 4.6 mi
24-hour care in Wokingham 6.8 mi
24-hour care in Burghfield Common 6.8 mi
24-hour care in Arborfield Garrison 7.2 mi
24-hour care in Bracknell 10.3 mi

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Data: CQC register, Oct 2026, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0. We are an independent directory and do not provide care.

24-hour care in Caversham