How do I arrange a care needs assessment in Saltash?

Contact the adult social care team at Cornwall Council, the authority responsible for assessments in this area. The request can come from the person needing care, from a relative or friend acting for them, or from a professional such as a general practitioner or hospital discharge team. The assessment looks at what someone manages alone and where support is needed, and it is free regardless of income or savings. If a relative provides regular unpaid care, ask for a carer's assessment at the same time.

Can Cornwall Council fund home care in Saltash?

It can, where a care needs assessment identifies eligible needs and a financial assessment shows the person qualifies for support. The financial assessment considers income, savings and capital, and anyone with assets above the national threshold is normally expected to pay for their own care. Support may be taken as a direct payment, letting the family choose the provider, or arranged as a package the council commissions. Asking about both routes early is sensible, since they offer quite different amounts of choice.

Which home care providers in Saltash are listed here?

Seven providers match this search for Saltash, and they are Pure First Care Services, Columba Health Care Services, Carol Spinks Homecare, United Care Concepts, Glassmoon Services, Rowan House Domiciliary Care and Clear Thinking Care in Cornwall. Each has a profile setting out registration details and its current Care Quality Commission rating where one has been given. Four of the seven are awaiting a first inspection. Capacity to take on new work changes from month to month, so contact your shortlist directly.

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

A care home is registered to provide personal care, meaning help with washing, dressing, medication, meals and the routine of the day. A nursing home provides that same personal care with a qualified nurse on duty at all times, which matters where someone has clinical needs such as wound care, a feeding tube or an unstable long term condition. Home care differs from both, because the support travels to the person rather than the person moving. A care needs assessment will help establish which of these arrangements actually fits.

How far in advance should home care be arranged?

Where support is planned rather than urgent, four to six weeks gives room to request an assessment, speak to providers and settle a schedule that works. The care needs assessment is often the slowest stage, so putting that request in early tends to be the most useful first move. After a hospital admission, care can usually be arranged within days, though the choice of provider and visit times will be narrower. With much of this field lacking a published rating, allowing time to ask questions properly matters more than usual.

What should I ask a home care provider in Saltash before choosing?

Ask how many different care workers would visit over a fortnight and what happens when a regular worker is away. Find out how visits are recorded, how the family is kept informed and who can be telephoned outside office hours. Where a provider has not yet been inspected, ask how long it has operated, who supervises the staff and what the manager's previous experience is. It is also worth asking how the care plan is written and how often it is reviewed.

Home Care in Saltash

Saltash has 7 CQC registered home care agencies. 3 are rated Good, and 4 have not yet been rated. 3 of the 7 were last inspected more than three years ago.

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

Saltash at a glance

What the local numbers say about home care in Saltash, to help you judge the options below.

Hourly care visits, South West: £28.75 to £34.94 an hour. Middle half of prices from 10 agencies.
People aged 75 and over: 81,100. Rising to 96,000 by 2035, up 18%
Living with dementia, aged 65 and over (estimate): 10,300. Rising to 13,300 by 2035, up 29%
People aged 85 and over: 20,200. Rising to 32,300 by 2035, up 60%
Dementia diagnosis rate: 60%. The NHS ambition is 67%.
Agencies in the borough, last 12 months: 6 opened, 4 closed. 104 registered today.
Choice of agencies: 21 within 10 miles. In a typical neighbourhood. The nearest is under a mile away (0.9 miles).
Compared with the rest of Cornwall: Fewer agencies. Cornwall has fewer agencies than average for the size of its older population.

Powered by Orrery Intelligence. Market model built 22 October 2026 (ONS 2022 based population projections, CQC register), published care home prices, council planning records.

Arranging care in Saltash and covering the cost

Requesting an assessment

The route into funded support runs through a care needs assessment, which Cornwall Council carries out for adults living in this area. It can be requested by the person needing care, by a relative or friend acting on their behalf, or by a professional such as a general practitioner or a hospital discharge team, and there is no charge whatever the household income. The assessment records what someone manages independently and where help would make a difference, and it is the document that establishes how much support is needed each week. Where a relative gives regular unpaid support, ask for a carer's assessment at the same time.

Costs and contributions

Where eligible needs are identified, a financial assessment establishes the council's contribution and the person's own. Savings and capital above the national threshold ordinarily mean paying privately, with the rate agreed directly with the provider. Home care is charged by the hour or by the visit, and visit length matters as much as the hourly figure, since a very short call achieves far less than a half hour one. Ask how travel time is treated, what happens if a visit overruns, and whether evening or weekend calls cost more.

Direct payments

A council contribution can be taken as a direct payment, which lets the family choose the provider rather than accepting one the council commissions. It brings more administration but considerably more say over who visits and when.

Choosing the right provider in Saltash and what to look for

When most of the field has no rating

Three providers here are rated Good and four have not yet been inspected. For the three with a rating, open the report rather than stopping at the word, looking in particular at what inspectors recorded about punctuality, missed calls, continuity of staff and whether care plans were followed. For the four without one, the absence is not a warning, but the evidence has to come from elsewhere. Ask how long the provider has operated, who supervises the care workers, how rotas are built and what happens when someone calls in sick, and ask for the answers in enough detail to be checkable.

The questions that separate providers

Ask how many different care workers would visit over a typical fortnight, because continuity affects the experience more than almost anything else. Find out how the family is told if a visit will run late, who can be telephoned outside office hours, and how visits are recorded. Carol Spinks Homecare, United Care Concepts and Glassmoon Services each carry a profile here with registration details and current rating.

Before agreeing to anything

Check the notice period, how rates are reviewed and what the arrangement is for missed visits. Ask for the name of the person who will supervise the care and how often they visit in person to see how it is going.

7 home care in Saltash

Pure First Care Services · The Q Store Forge Lane, Saltash, Cornwall, PL12 6LX
Home care · Run by Pure First Care Services Limited
Pure First Care provides home care to adults in Saltash and the surrounding part of Cornwall. We support older people and younger adults, people living with dementia, people with physical disabilities, and people who have sight or hearing...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults
Columba Health Care Services · Luxus House, Saltash, Cornwall, PL12 6LX
Home care · Run by Columba Health Care Services Ltd
Columba Health Care provides care and support to people in their own homes in Saltash and the surrounding parts of Cornwall. We support older people, including many living with dementia, and younger adults who need help to manage day to...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Younger Adults
Rowan House Domiciliary Care · 125 Callington Road, Saltash, Cornwall, PL12 6EB
Home care · Run by M & C Care Limited
Rowan House Domiciliary Care is a home care agency in Saltash, supporting people in their own homes across this part of Cornwall. We visit older people and younger adults, people living with dementia, people with a physical disability and...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults
Carol Spinks Homecare · 12-14 Fore Street, Saltash, Cornwall, PL12 6JL
Home care · CQC Good · Run by Carol Spinks Homecare Ltd
We at Carol Spinks Homecare are proud to provide compassionate home care across Saltash and the surrounding Cornwall communities, supporting people to live well and safely in the place they know best: their own home. As a dedicated home...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Learning Disability / Autism, Mental Health, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults
United Care Concepts · First Floor Offices, Saltash, Cornwall, PL12 6BA
Home care · CQC Good · Run by United Care Concepts Limited
United Care Concepts provides care and support at home across Saltash and the surrounding parts of Cornwall. The people we visit are varied: older adults needing help with daily living, people living with dementia, younger adults, people...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Learning Disability / Autism, Mental Health, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults, Eating Disorders, Alcohol / Drug Misuse
Glassmoon Services · Q Store Business Centre, Saltash, Cornwall, PL12 6LX
Home care · CQC Good · Run by Glassmoon Services Limited
Glassmoon supports adults in their own homes and in supported living across Cornwall, working from our base in Saltash. We work with younger adults, people with a learning disability or autism, people living with mental ill health, people...
Specialisms: Learning Disability / Autism, Mental Health, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults
Clear Thinking Care · Q Store Business Centre, Saltash, Cornwall, PL12 6LX
Home care · Run by Clear Thinking Care Limited
Clear Thinking Care in Cornwall supports people in their own homes in Saltash and across the county. The people we visit include older people, adults living with dementia, autistic adults and people with a learning disability, people...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Learning Disability / Autism, Mental Health, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults, Eating Disorders, Alcohol / Drug Misuse

What home care costs

Type of care	What it costs
Hourly care visits, South West Middle half of prices from 10 agencies. Median £32.96. Shown for South West because too few Cornwall agencies publish a rate.	£28.75 to £34.94 an hour
What Cornwall pays Average hourly rate, October 2026.	£27.34 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

Glassmoon Services Limited, 2 September 2022, Good
United Care Concepts Limited, 18 May 2019, Good
Carol Spinks Homecare, 26 March 2019, Good

Longest since a report

Carol Spinks Homecare, 26 March 2019, Good
United Care Concepts Limited, 18 May 2019, Good
Glassmoon Services Limited, 2 September 2022, Good

Frequently asked questions about home care in Saltash

How many home care agencies are there in Saltash?

Saltash has 7 CQC registered home care agencies: 3 Good, 4 not yet rated. Counts come from the CQC register and are kept up to date as ratings change.

How much does home care cost in Saltash?

Hourly care visits, South West: £28.75 to £34.94 an hour. Middle half of prices from 10 agencies. Median £32.96. Shown for South West because too few Cornwall agencies publish a rate. Published prices come from agencies that publish rates, so treat them as a guide. Ask the agency for its own price.

Which home care agencies in Saltash were inspected most recently?

Glassmoon Services Limited (2 September 2022), United Care Concepts Limited (18 May 2019) and Carol Spinks Homecare (26 March 2019) have the most recent CQC reports.

Local care news in Cornwall

New 34 bed care home registered with CQC in Cornwall: Windmill Court (5 November 2026)

More local care news for Cornwall

Home Care near Saltash

Plymouth