Live-in care in East Sussex

Live-in care through Medicare People in East Sussex starts from £1,090 a week paid to your carer, plus our weekly agency fee of £250, so about £1,340 a week in total. There is also a one-off registration fee of £250. Care for a couple starts from £1,350 a week plus the agency fee, and more complex needs, such as advanced dementia, cost a little more. The household provides the carer's food and a private room. We confirm your exact weekly cost after a free assessment call, and there are no long contracts.

Possibly. East Sussex County Council offers a free care needs assessment and a separate financial assessment. In England, people with savings and assets above £23,250 usually pay for their own care, those below £14,250 get the most help, and in between the council works out a contribution. Brighton and Hove residents are covered by Brighton & Hove City Council rather than East Sussex County Council. Attendance Allowance is not means-tested and can be put towards care, and NHS Continuing Healthcare may cover costs in full where needs are mainly health-related. Our funding guides explain each route, and we can talk them through on a call.

We can often have a matched carer in place anywhere in East Sussex within 48 hours, including when someone is coming home from hospital. We start with a free call to understand needs and routines, then shortlist and introduce carers, and you choose who feels right. Planned starts are usually arranged within one to two weeks, which gives time for a proper handover. For urgent discharges we work with the ward or discharge team to match their timetable.

Yes. Because the carer lives in, there are no visit rounds or travel times to fit around, so we can arrange care anywhere in East Sussex, including isolated villages, farmhouses and homes a long way from the nearest town. This is one of the main reasons rural families choose live-in care over visiting home care, which can be hard to find outside towns. We have local pages for 16 towns in East Sussex, and if your village isn't listed, call us and we'll confirm cover.

No. Our live-in carers are experienced care workers, not nurses. They help with personal care, washing and dressing, medication prompts, meals, light housework, getting out and about and, just as importantly, company. Clinical tasks such as injections, wound care and catheter care stay with the GP, district nurses and other health professionals, who carry on visiting as usual. The carer is there day and night to notice changes early and keep the family and health team informed.

A live-in carer needs a private bedroom, use of a bathroom and the kitchen, and ideally Wi-Fi so they can stay in touch with their own family. The household provides the carer's food, or a small food allowance. Carers take a daily break of around two hours, usually while your loved one rests or a family member is around, and we help you plan it. When the carer has time off, we arrange a matched relief carer so there is no gap in care.

Yes. Many East Sussex families contact us when a loved one is ready to leave Bexhill Hospital or Conquest Hospital but can't safely manage alone yet. We can liaise with the ward or discharge team, agree a start date that fits the discharge plan, and have the carer ready at home to help with settling in, meals, personal care and medication prompts. Clinical follow-up stays with district nurses and the GP. Live-in support often makes an earlier, safer discharge possible.

Medicare People currently provides introductory live-in care services. We have submitted our application to the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and intend to introduce a fully managed live-in care service following registration. As an introductory agency, we find, check and introduce self-employed carers, and the family agrees the day-to-day care with the carer directly. We still carry out right-to-work, DBS and reference checks before any introduction, stay in touch throughout, and arrange a replacement carer if anything isn't working.