Can Surrey County Council pay towards care at home?

It can, where a needs assessment identifies eligible needs and the financial assessment shows capital and income below the national limits. Support may come as care the council arranges or as a direct payment you use to engage an agency yourself. Many households fund their own care and still make use of the council's advice on choosing a provider. Ask Surrey County Council to set out in writing how any contribution has been calculated before visits begin.

How do I arrange a care needs assessment in Oxted?

Contact Surrey County Council and request an adult social care needs assessment, which you can ask for on a relative's behalf with their agreement. A general practitioner, district nurse or hospital discharge team can also refer, and that is usually the quicker route when someone is already being seen. The assessor looks at daily tasks, mobility, medication and safety, then records which needs qualify for support. Finances are assessed separately afterwards.

How far ahead should we start looking?

Arranging care before a crisis gives considerably more choice than organising it from a hospital ward. A few weeks of lead time allows you to compare rates, read the inspection reports and let your relative grow used to the idea. Early morning calls are the hardest slots to secure, so flexibility over timing widens the field. Beginning with two or three visits a week and building up is usually easier to accept than a full package immediately.

Which home care agencies cover Oxted?

Three registered agencies serve the Oxted area: IRC Care Services Limited, Surrey Hills Home Help Services Limited and Mettle & Bond Care Ltd. Each has a profile on Care Assura setting out its registration details and inspection history. The list reflects current Care Quality Commission registration data for this area and for care delivered in people's own homes. Checking each profile will confirm which agencies cover the outlying villages.

What should I ask an agency before agreeing a package?

Ask how many carers would attend, whether the same small team can be kept, and how sickness and holidays are covered. Check hourly rates against weekend and bank holiday charges, minimum call lengths, travel costs and the notice needed to change visits. Find out who answers the telephone out of hours, how families are told when a call will be late, and how often the care plan is reviewed. It is fair to ask what the last inspection praised and what it asked the agency to improve.

What is the difference between care at home, a care home and a nursing home?

Home care brings trained carers to your relative's own address at agreed times, so they remain in familiar surroundings. A residential care home provides a permanent room with meals and personal care available throughout the day and night. A nursing home offers all of that plus registered nurses on site at every hour for people with clinical needs. Home care frequently works well until needs grow too frequent or too unpredictable to meet in scheduled calls.

Home Care in Oxted

Oxted has 3 CQC registered home care agencies. 3 are rated Good. 2 of the 3 were last inspected more than three years ago.

Source: Care Quality Commission register, kept up to date as ratings change.

Planning and paying for care at home in Oxted

Ask for a care needs assessment first

Requesting an assessment costs nothing and is the sensible starting point, and a relative may ask for one on someone's behalf with their consent. It is worth doing even where a family expects to meet the cost privately, because it records eligible needs in writing and frequently brings in equipment, minor adaptations or a community alarm alongside the visits. Contact Surrey County Council adult social care to request one, or ask a general practitioner or hospital discharge team to refer. The assessor considers washing, dressing, meals, medication, mobility and risk.

Where public funding may apply

A financial assessment is handled separately and looks at income and savings. Where capital falls below the national thresholds the council may contribute, either by commissioning care itself or through a direct payment that lets you choose and engage an agency yourself. Households above the thresholds pay their own way, though they can still draw on the council's information and advice. Attendance Allowance and Pension Credit are worth examining too, as neither turns on the financial assessment.

Hourly rates and the detail behind them

Home care is charged by the hour, with premium rates at weekends and on bank holidays, and short calls often represent poor value for the time delivered. Ask all three agencies for written rates covering minimum visit lengths, calls needing two carers, travel charges and the notice required to cancel. Establish when rates were last increased and by how much, so a budget set now is realistic a year from now.

Choosing a provider and what to check

Look underneath three identical grades

IRC Care Services Limited, Surrey Hills Home Help Services Limited and Mettle & Bond Care Ltd all hold a Good rating, so the grade itself will not decide anything. The inspection reports will: when each visit took place, what was said about recruitment, training and supervision, how medicines were recorded, and how the agency responded when someone raised a concern. Weight a recent report more heavily than an older one.

Continuity of carers

Ask how many different carers would attend over a fortnight and whether a consistent team can be maintained, which matters a great deal to anyone being helped to wash and dress. Find out how sickness and annual leave are covered, how promptly the office telephones when a call will run late, and who answers outside office hours. Ask for your relative to meet the carers before visits start.

Specify the package precisely

Work out how many calls a day are needed and at what times, and say plainly which involve bathing, lifting or prompting medication, since those drive both staffing and cost. An agency that questions you closely at the enquiry stage usually builds a rota that holds together.

3 home care in Oxted

IRC Care Services · The Council Offices, Oxted, Surrey, RH8 0BT
Home care · CQC Good · Run by IRC Care Services Limited
IRC Care supports people in their own homes in Oxted and the surrounding villages of Surrey. We work mainly with older people and adults living with dementia, and we also support younger adults who need help to manage day to day life. Our...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Younger Adults
Hills Home Help Services · Vector House, Oxted, Surrey, RH8 0RP
Home care · CQC Good · Run by Surrey Hills Home Help Services Ltd
Surrey Hills Home Help is based in Oxted and supports people in their own homes across this part of Surrey. We work with older people, people living with dementia, adults with a learning disability, autistic adults, people living with...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Learning Disability / Autism, Mental Health, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults, Eating Disorders
Mettle & Bond Care · 8 Station Road West, Oxted, Surrey, RH8 9EP
Home care · CQC Good · Run by Mettle & Bond Care Ltd
We are Mettle and Bond Care, a home care agency based in Oxted, Surrey. We support older people and younger adults in their own homes, including people living with dementia, people managing a mental health condition and people with a...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Mental Health, Physical Disability, Younger Adults

What home care costs

Type of care	What it costs
Hourly care visits, South East Middle half of prices from 24 agencies. Median £32.92.	£28.00 to £36.96 an hour
Homecare Association minimum price 2026 to 2027. The Association's estimate of the lowest price that covers the cost of delivering care. It is not a legal minimum.	£34.42 an hour
Live in care, England Middle half of prices from 62 agencies. Median £1,455.	£1,250 to £1,668 a week

Published prices come from agencies that publish rates, so treat them as a guide. Ask the agency for its own price. Powered by Orrery Intelligence.

Inspected most recently

Surrey Hills Home Help Services Limited, 1 June 2026, Good
Mettle & Bond Care Ltd, 16 March 2023, Good
IRC Care Services Limited, 21 January 2020, Good

Longest since a report

IRC Care Services Limited, 21 January 2020, Good
Mettle & Bond Care Ltd, 16 March 2023, Good
Surrey Hills Home Help Services Limited, 1 June 2026, Good

Frequently asked questions about home care in Oxted

How many home care agencies are there in Oxted?

Oxted has 3 CQC registered home care agencies: 3 Good. Counts come from the CQC register and are kept up to date as ratings change.

Which home care agencies in Oxted were inspected most recently?

Surrey Hills Home Help Services Limited (1 June 2026), Mettle & Bond Care Ltd (16 March 2023) and IRC Care Services Limited (21 January 2020) have the most recent CQC reports.

Local care news in Surrey

New 30 bed care home registered with CQC in Waverley: Bridge House Care Home (5 November 2026)
CQC register adds a new care home in Waverley: Cedar Court Care Home (5 November 2026)

More local care news for Surrey