Support to stay in your own home

If you want to live as independently as possible, you may need support to stay in your own home. Your local Health and Social Care Trust can provide a wide range of services that can help.

Health and social care assessments

A range of support is available. For example, you might need help with cleaning, or you may find it useful if you had a bath rail fitted. You may be entitled to financial help to maintain your own home. To find out what sort of help you could get you will need to have a health and social care assessment from your local Trust. This is your opportunity to tell social services what will make your everyday life easier.

You may also be entitled to 'direct payments'. These are local Trust payments available for anyone who has been assessed as needing help from social services, and who would like to buy in services instead of receiving them from the local Trust. For example, direct payments could be used to pay a home help.

Direct payments - arranging your own care and services (people with disabilities section)

Health and social care assessments in your local area

You can find out about health and social care assessments in your area.

Find your local HSC Trust - Health & Social Care for Northern Ireland website

Care in your own home

Care in your own home is offered to people who require assistance with personal care like washing or dressing, or help with other daily domestic tasks such as cooking and cleaning, or in some instances, help in managing finances.

Making your home easier to live in

You may find making adaptations to your home useful: adding hand rails, draught excluders or bath hoists. You can get advice from your local Trust and, in some cases, receive financial assistance to alter your home.

Home and housing options (people with disabilities section)

Employing a carer or personal assistant

If you're looking for a care worker to help you live independently at home, you may get one through your local Trust or a home care agency or you may choose to employ someone directly.

Employing a professional carer or personal assistant (people with disabilities section)

Shopping and home deliveries

If shopping is difficult at times, you might want to consider internet shopping. Some supermarkets and shops deliver shopping to your door.

Support when caring for someone

If you are a carer, you may benefit from getting some help at home. Perhaps it would be useful if the person you care for visited a day centre for a few hours to let you have some personal time. You may also benefit from some home help like cleaning.