Welcome to our resource hub where you can be signposted and find useful information to help you on your journey with Brendoncare whether through our community membership services, in our care homes or extra care housing.
Paying for care is a concern for many people as they age. Social care isn’t free and can be complicated to understand as there are potentially different sources of funding available, such as benefits, NHS funding, Local Authority payments and grants.
This Paying for Care summary aims to help you understand more about the process, so you can make a confident and informed decision about moving into a Brendoncare home.
It also explains the Brendoncare Care for Life promise; a guarantee that once you move into a Brendoncare home, you will never be asked to leave due to lack of funds.
Find out moreIf you are interested in finding out more about Brendoncare, you can download a selection of our documents here to read at your leisure.
We are able to cater for a range of different dietary requirements, including allergies and intolerances and work with the local speech and language therapists for those with any swallowing difficulties. We are also happy to cater for personal taste. Food should always be a joy rather than a chore, and we seek to make sure that is the case across Brendoncare.
At Brendoncare we want everyone to feel right at home. We encourage residents to personalise their space with their own furniture and treasured items, and welcome friends and family to visit anytime.
Visitors are welcome into Brendoncare homes daily from 9am to 7pm. End of life care is always supported with 24 hour visiting.
Of course! As long as there are no medical issues to prevent it. Let us know in advance and have fun!
Pets are accepted on a case by case basis. If you do have a pet you would like to bring with you, please make sure you mention this when speaking to the home manager.
We’re always happy to accommodate different faiths/cultures within our homes and where suitable, celebrate the special occasions with you. We have good links to local churches and other faith groups and we are able to support any routines you may have.
Whilst is can be the case, it is unusual for relatives to pay for care homes. Most of our residents fund their own care and funds will come from a mixture of public and private sources such as state/private pensions, state benefits such as Attendance Allowance or Funded Nursing Care, savings, investments or care plans such as care needs annuities.
Paying for care is a big financial commitment and everyone’s situation is different so we have put together an outline of the key aspects, including an explanation of what makes Brendoncare unique – our charitable Care for Life promise.
Residential care offers a range of services to support the needs of individuals who are unable to live independently. Our highly trained care teams are available on-site 24/7 to provide assistance with typical daily activities, such as bathing, dressing, and managing medications.
In addition to these essential services, residential care also offer meals, housekeeping, and transportation to ensure that residents have everything they need to live comfortably.
Residential care home fees vary across locations, but at Brendoncare our fees are all-inclusive and assessed on your needs before you move in.
You may also be entitled to benefits or support with your fees, you can find out more here.
At Brendoncare we understand the financial worry of affording care and so we are proud to offer our Care for Life Promise, which ensures residents have a home for life even if their financial situation changes.
Residential care homes offer live in accommodation within a home-style setting. Staff are on hand 24/7 to help with everyday tasks and activities. Nursing homes offer the same, but with the addition of a registered nurse on site to provide more advanced medical care. Find out more about our nursing homes here.
Residential care offers comfortable accommodation, with home-cooked, nutritional meals and help with personal care needs. Staff are on hand to provide support with everyday tasks, such as washing, dressing and the administration of medication.
Residential care enables people to remain independent with the added reassurance that support from our care team is available 24 hours a day.
Our staff also work with local GPs and other healthcare professionals to ensure each individual is supported appropriately for their own needs.
Each Brendoncare home offers a full range of activities, from music and gentle exercise to pamper sessions and films. Naturally however, these are optional, allowing residents to take part in as much or as little of the programme as they like.
Care homes are the generic term and could refer to either homes that provide residential care or homes that provide nursing care. The main difference being that a nursing home always has a qualified nurse on site to provide medical care. Brendoncare offers both residential and nursing ‘care homes‘.
In addition to quality accommodation, wholesome meals, personal care service, help with washing, dressing and other daily tasks, in our nursing homes, the team is there to provide medical support according to each resident’s own needs. Our staff also work with local GPs and other healthcare professionals to ensure each individual is supported appropriately.
Nursing care offers round-the-clock support for those people who require regular attention from a nurse and may have more complex care needs.
Daily life in a nursing home has very similar daily living anywhere else – eating, drinking, washing, dressing, sleeping but in addition there is 24 hour nursing and care support. That support might be helping with medication, helping with washing and dressing or providing mobility assistance. Each home offers personalised care, often working with other care professionals such as GPs, physiotherapists, community mental health teams, nutritionists and others.
Each Brendoncare home offers a full range of wellbeing activities, from music and gentle exercise to pamper sessions and films. Naturally however, these are optional, allowing residents to take part in as much or as little of the programme as they like.
Not all nursing homes are suitable for those living with dementia. All nursing homes will carry out a care assessment to ensure that the home is suitable for each individual moving in. Brendoncare homes that offer dedicated dementia care are Alton, Froxfield, Otterbourne Hill, and St Giles View.
Dedicated dementia care describes high quality, 24-hour care provided by trained staff in a safe environment. Dementia care homes are often divided into households to foster a homely feel.
There are adapted indoor and outdoor spaces so residents can explore safely. Daily leisure and wellbeing activities and therapies provide opportunities for those living with dementia to join in if they wish.
Our homes offering dementia care are staffed by highly qualified care and nursing teams. Staff find out about residents past and their current preferences and things they might like or find upsetting.
Our main philosophy of patience, kindness as well as our knowledge of a range of approaches equips staff to help residents. They feel at peace from being in an environment they know and trust thereby alleviating many of the anxieties of dementia.
Staff work closely with local GPs and other health care professionals to ensure a range of expertise is available in order to provide personalised, specialist dementia care. Family and friends are considered essential partners in supporting people living with dementia.
We know that the cost of a dementia care home can be a real concern to future residents and their loved ones. At Brendoncare, our fees are all-inclusive and based on your level of care need which is assessed before you move in.
You may also be entitled to benefits or allowances to help. To find out more see paying for care and for further information on pricing, you can visit each home’s page on our webpage, or contact our knowledgeable customer relations team on 0300 303 4866.
We are also proud to offer our Care for Life promise, which ensures that residents have a home with us for life, even if their financial situation changes.
We understand the importance of continuity in dementia care and therefore, as long as your current doctor is willing to travel to make visits to the home, it is fine to continue to use the same doctor.
We can also arrange for a member of staff to accompany residents to doctors’ appointments, but this is subject to additional costs. Each of our homes have strong connections with local GPs so even if you cannot continue to see your current doctor, we will be able to support you in getting the right medical support.
Of course, it’s their home. Residents can be involved as much or a little as they would like, from writing newsletters, starting gardening clubs, being involved in interviews for staff, writing poetry or even scripting the Christmas pantomime!
All suggestions and contributions are welcome and at each home, there are regular residents and relatives meetings, annual surveys and staff are always keen to hear how to make smooth running can be improved.
At Brendoncare, we recognise the importance of residents having autonomy and control over their lives. Material Citizenship has been developed by Dr. Kellyn Lee, a chartered psychologist at the University of Southampton and a Brendoncare Trustee. It is designed to ensure people living with dementia enjoy a meaningful life. We are proud to support ongoing work into this innovative and person-centred approach and will be carrying out further training across our homes.
We also partner with the Alzheimer’s Society to provide information and education about dementia within our staff teams and volunteers. Where possible, we also make great use of the Virtual Dementia Tour which provides experiential learning for our colleagues.
Respite care is short-term assistance for individuals who need some extra support at a particular point, for example after an illness or operation. It can help people recover their health and strength before returning home or provide a much-needed break.
Our care homes offer respite for those needing temporary nursing or specialist dementia care. Our friendly and understanding care staff team can also provide help with personal care. At all of our homes, there is a full range of activities on offer for everyone to enjoy or quieter spaces for more tranquil moments. These popular, daily events focus on wellbeing, aiding social connections and improving physical and mental wellbeing amongst our residents, whether temporary or permanent.
A typical respite stay in a Brendoncare home last a couple of weeks. This preferred length of time often gives the individual plenty of time to recuperate, whilst enjoying the home-from-home feeling we offer.
Depending on the personal circumstances, we may also be able to extend the respite stay into a permanent move.
Make sure you choose the right level of care for your loved one. Our homes offer a range of different settings, from residential care to specialist nursing care.
Whether you are a family member looking after a loved one or a qualified carer, taking a break now and then can make a positive difference to your wellbeing, too. You could be going on holiday, having an operation or even wanting to take a few days to yourself to recharge.
You can’t take care of others until you’ve taken care of yourself. Using a respite care home can allow you to focus on being yourself without worrying. At Brendoncare, we pride ourselves on caring for those you care for to a high standard.
People staying for respite receive the same warm welcome and are invited to be part of home life as much (or as little) as they like. Each of our homes has an activities team that run daily events ranging from exercise and music to crafts and quizzes and everything in between.
Whether it’s to help after a hospital stay, an operation or allow for the appropriate level of care following developments in a person’s condition, respite care works to offer the right level of care at that moment.
Respite care can be beneficial for the residents’ carer too. It allows them time to rest and re-charge their batteries, knowing their loved one is receiving the same high standard of care.
Any older person who requires short-term, personalised care could be eligible for respite care. We follow up an initial enquiry with a confidential assessment entered around a person’s care needs and affordability.
If the person receiving respite care still receives disability allowance, you can still receive Carer’s Allowance. See www.gov.uk/carers-allowance for more details.
Following your enquiry, a member of our team will be in touch to discuss your needs and arrange for an initial assessment. All our care plans are personalised. This means we work from the first moment to discover the right level of care for you or your loved one. It’s essential to disclose any information that could later affect our level of service.
If circumstances change before the respite stay, please let us know.
A brief change in surroundings and lifestyle can make a person feel unsure or even anxious about a respite stay. Our care staff team make the moving in process as easy as possible. They encourage a loved one to make our home their home, offering as much help and support as they would like.
Our chefs prepare meals daily and can cater for a wide variety of diets and personal tastes. Some of our homes offer hairdressing and beauty treatments. Others run Men’s clubs, day trips, garden/tea parties and even private concerts. For people living with dementia, specialised care is always available.
Visiting is an important part of life in our homes and we invite you to spend as much time with your loved one as you like.
For those who are unable to visit in person, we are happy to facilitate plenty of other connections. These include telephone and video calls, as well as writing letters.
Respite breaks can be booked if needed immediately or in advance at some of our homes. Otterbourne Hill, Knightwood and Alton have dedicated respite rooms that can be booked up to three months in advance, giving you plenty of time to prepare ahead. All our homes can offer respite care straight away if there are spare rooms available.
Membership includes unlimited access to Brendoncare’s community services, including clubs, telephone support and digital support. A 10% discount on respite stays in Brendoncare homes is also a member benefit.
No! Your membership enables you to visit as many clubs as you would like to, all for one fixed price. We ask that you book clubs in advance so we can anticipate how many people will attend and we stay within capacity. We will issue you with a membership card to show on your arrival.
If your circumstances change and you wish to pause or cancel your membership you can do this at any time by getting in touch.
If you can no longer attend a club but would like to continue to be a member, we can stay in touch with you via remote community support services, including regular telephone support or online clubs. If you no longer wish to be a member you can cancel anytime.
We will regularly check for members who have stopped using their membership to ensure you are not paying unnecessarily.
No. So long as the person you are caring for is using the service, your attendance in support of them is free just indicate who you are supporting on the membership form. If you’d like to participate in our sessions separately, we will happily welcome you as a paying member too.
We are able to offer support to people on low incomes through our Access Fund, as part of Brendoncare’s charitable work.
Complimentary membership is available to regular volunteers. Relative of our care home residents are able to receive their first twelve months’ membership free of charge. We also offer a 25% membership discount to residents of our extra care Mews accommodation.
Yes. We really want new members to find the club that feels right for them, so if you haven’t been before, please come along to one of our sessions and why not bring along a friend!
Brendoncare is not able to provide transport to clubs as standard. If we have been successful in recruiting volunteer drivers in your area, we may be able to help with transport to your club for no additional cost.
Membership costs £14.85 a month and includes access to all our listed services. This is heavily subsidised by our generous donors, fundraising and Brendoncare’s charitable funds to enable us to keep the cost of membership down.
Membership payments are made by monthly Direct Debit, which help us run our services more efficiently. If you like, our team can help you set this up.
For further information, please email clubs@brendoncare.org.uk or call 01962 857099.
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