Private Care at Home East Hertfordshire
Private care at home gives you the option to arrange personalised support in the place that feels safest and most familiar, your own home. With regular visits from carefully chosen Care Professionals, daily life can feel more manageable, with help that fits around existing routines rather than disrupting them.
Home Instead East Herts and Uttlesford supports older adults and their families across East Hertfordshire, offering flexible care that can range from a little extra help each week to several visits a day. We also support people in Sawbridgeworth, Bishop’s Stortford,Ware, Hertford and Buntingford.
Our private care at home service can include companionship, practical home support, help with personal care and specialist dementia support, all tailored to the person and their preferences.
Home Instead East Herts and Uttlesford is rated Good by the Care Quality Commission and has a 9.8 out of 10 rating on homecare.co.uk, which many families find reassuring when they are starting to explore options.
Looking into care for the first time can feel uncertain, emotional and sometimes overwhelming. Many families tell us they are not sure where to start, so we take things step by step and explain everything in plain language.
What Does Our Private Care Include?
Private care at home simply means that you arrange and fund support directly, rather than through the local authority, and that the care is provided through agreed visits to the person’s own home.
Support can be as light or as involved as needed, for example:
- A regular visit so that someone is not alone all day and has company over a cup of tea
- Help with housework and meals so that home feels safe, tidy and comfortable
- Personal Care such as washing, dressing or support with continence in a respectful, unhurried way
- Dementia Care that focuses on familiar routines, reassurance and understanding the person’s life story
- Care at Home visits at set times to help with morning, lunchtime or evening routines
- A loved one is starting to struggle with everyday tasks like shopping, cooking or cleaning
- Someone has become more forgetful and needs prompts or gentle reminders
- A family carer is tired and needs reliable support so they can rest or work
- You live at a distance and want to know someone familiar is regularly checking in
- There has been a change in health after an illness, fall or hospital stay
Private care at home can help if:
The aim is to support the person to stay in the place they know, keeping as much independence as possible while knowing that safe, reliable help is in place.
The Day-to-Day of Private Care
When you contact Home Instead East Herts and Uttlesford, we start with a conversation about your situation. This might be over the phone at first, followed by a home visit so we can get to know the person, their routines and what matters most to them.
From there, we create a personalised care plan that sets out what support is needed, how often and at what times. We then match a Care Professional, or a small team of Care Professionals, based on personality, interests and skills, so that a trusting relationship can develop.
A typical week of private care at home might include:
- Morning support with getting up, washing, dressing and preparing breakfast
- Companionship Care visits to chat, share a hobby, read together or go for a short walk
- Home Help such as light cleaning, laundry, changing the bed and preparing meals
- Medication prompts during daytime visits, as agreed in the care plan
- Dementia Care that focuses on familiar routines, soothing conversation and safe movement around the home
- Evening visits to help with a calm bedtime routine and to make sure the home is safe and settled for the night
Visits are never rushed, and the pattern of support can be adjusted as needs change. Some people start with one or two visits a week and increase gradually, while others need several visits a day from the outset.
Throughout, we stay in touch with you and other family members, sharing updates and listening to your feedback so that support continues to feel right.
Local, Friendly & Trained Care Professionals
Care Professionals are at the heart of private care at home. We look for people who are patient, reliable and genuinely interested in others, then provide thorough training so they can deliver safe, thoughtful care.
Your Care Professional’s role can include:
- Building a consistent, friendly relationship so visits feel relaxed rather than clinical
- Providing Personal Care with dignity, always protecting privacy and encouraging independence where it is safe
- Offering Companionship Care, really listening and taking an interest in the person’s stories, hobbies and preferences
- Providing Home Help so that the home environment supports wellbeing
- Paying close attention to changes in mood, mobility or appetite and sharing concerns with the office and family
We aim for continuity, so that the same familiar faces visit whenever possible. Families often tell us that this makes all the difference, as their loved one feels known and understood rather than feeling that different people are coming and going.
Care Professionals work in partnership with families. They follow the agreed care plan, share updates and are supported by the Home Instead East Herts and Uttlesford office team, who oversee training, safety and quality.
Everyday situations where private care at home can help
Keeping on top of daily routines
Ravi has started finding it harder to keep to regular mealtimes and remember his tablets. A Care Professional visits at agreed times each day to prepare a light breakfast, prompt his medication and encourage regular drinks. Later visits focus on a proper evening meal, a relaxed chat and checking that Ravi feels safe and comfortable before settling for the night. As his confidence grows, visit times and frequency can be adjusted.
Staying independent with mobility difficulties
Eileen loves living in her own home but her arthritis makes some tasks painful and tiring. A Care Professional provides support several times a week, helping her to shower safely, choose comfortable clothes and move around the house with less worry about falling. They also help with small but important jobs, such as changing the bedding, putting the bins out and preparing simple home cooked meals, so Eileen can save her energy for the things she enjoys.
Balancing busy lives and regular support
Tom has a busy job and two young children, as well as a dad who now needs more day to day support. Private care at home means a familiar Care Professional visits his dad during the week to help with Personal Care, light housework and lunch, as well as providing companionship over a cup of tea or a game of cards. Tom can focus on work and family life knowing there is planned support in place, and the pattern of visits can be increased or reshaped if his dad’s needs change.
Frequently Asked Questions About Private Care at Home
How Can I arrange private care at home?
You can start by getting in touch with the office for a straightforward conversation about your situation. We will ask about the person’s health, daily routines and what is currently feeling difficult. If you wish to go further, we arrange a home visit to meet you in person, carry out an assessment and design a personalised care plan. Once you are happy with this, we match a suitable Care Professional and confirm visit times before support begins.
Will care visits fit around existing routines?
Yes, visits are planned around the person’s usual habits wherever possible. If they like a slow start in the morning, a particular lunchtime routine or a favourite television programme in the early evening, we take this into account when setting visit times and tasks. Care Professionals are encouraged to work with the person, not impose a new schedule, so that support feels like a natural part of the day rather than an interruption.
What happens if needs change over time?
It is very common for needs to change. We review care regularly and also encourage families to contact us if they notice new challenges, such as increased confusion, reduced mobility or a hospital admission. The care plan can then be updated, for example by adding extra visits, including more Personal Care, or introducing regular Dementia Care if memory issues progress. The aim is to adjust support so that the person can continue to live safely and comfortably at home.
How to get started and contact the team?
If you are starting to think about private care at home, you are welcome to contact Home Instead East Herts and Uttlesford for an informal conversation about what might help. We will listen, answer your questions and explain what kinds of support are possible at home, both now and in the future.
You can call the team on 01279 721443 to talk things through with someone who understands care, or, if you prefer not to phone, you can use the enquiry form on our website and we will get back to you.
For independent information, you can also view the office’s page on the Care Quality Commission website athttps://www.cqc.org.uk/location/1-116003746/contact and our profile on homecare.co.uk athttps://www.homecare.co.uk/homecare/agency.cfm/id/65432184375. For reviews and directions, you may find it helpful to look at our Google business listing athttps://maps.app.goo.gl/uGWzkW3W5aGr3rcE9.
Our office is at Allen House, Business Centre, The Maltings, Station Rd, Sawbridgeworth CM21 9JX, UK.
However you choose to get in touch, we will take time to understand your situation, move at a pace that feels comfortable and work with you to put thoughtful, reliable private care at home in place in Hertford and the surrounding area.
How can we help?
We've helped thousands of families to stay safe, comfortable and happy at home. Whatever situation you're facing, or whatever the question is, Home Instead is here to help.
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