What is disability care?
Disability care is practical, personal and sometimes clinical support that helps someone living with a disability manage everyday life at home. It covers a wide range of help, from a hand with washing and dressing to mobility support, medication prompts, companionship and specialist nursing care.
Under the Equality Act 2010, a person is considered disabled if they have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. Long-term generally means twelve months or more. You do not need a particular diagnosis to benefit from support at home; what matters is the difference that support could make day to day.
It is more common than many people realise. Government figures from the Family Resources Survey show that 16.8 million people in the UK were disabled in 2023/24. That’s around a quarter of the population, and 4.9 million more than a decade earlier.
Who disability care is for
Disability affects people at every stage of life, and the support that helps a 34-year-old back to work looks very different from the support that helps an 84-year-old stay steady on the stairs. Government figures from the Family Resources Survey show:
- Working-age adults
Around 24% of working-age adults in the UK are disabled. Support often focuses on independence, employment, study and staying socially connected.
- Children and young people
About 12% of children in the UK are disabled. Our children’s services provide personal and clinical care at home, alongside support for the whole family.
- Older people
Roughly 45% of adults over State Pension age are disabled, most commonly through reduced mobility. Support tends to centre on daily routines, confidence and safety at home.
- Family carers
If you are caring for someone yourself, disability care can also mean respite, with planned, reliable cover so you can take a proper break.
Conditions we support
We provide care for people living with a wide range of conditions, including:
- Cerebral palsy, spina bifida and muscular dystrophy
- Spinal injury and acquired brain injury
- Multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s and motor neurone disease
- Stroke and other neurological conditions
- Learning disabilities and autism
- Arthritis, reduced mobility and long-term pain
- Sensory impairments, including sight and hearing loss
This list is not exhaustive. If a condition is not shown here, your local branch team can talk through whether we can help.
How our carers can help
Support is agreed with you, written into a personalised care plan and adjusted as things change. Depending on what you need, a carer can help with:
- Personal care
Discreet support with washing, dressing, grooming and continence care.
- Medication support
Prompts and reminders, help keeping track of supplies and flagging concerns within the agreed plan.
- Around the home
Light housekeeping such as laundry, changing bed linen and general tidying, so home stays comfortable.
- Companionship
Conversation, shared interests and staying connected to the people and places that matter.
- Mobility and transfers
Safe assistance moving around the home, using equipment and hoists where these form part of the plan.
- Meals and nutrition
Shopping, preparing food you like and support with eating and drinking.
- Getting out and about
Appointments, the shops, a local group, work or college, or simply an afternoon walk.
Nurse-led oversight you can rely on
Some disabilities come with clinical needs that go beyond everyday support. This is where Prestige differs from many home care providers: alongside our carers, we have registered nurses and clinical leads who plan, train and oversee care at home.
Our nurse-led teams can support tracheostomy management, invasive and non-invasive ventilation, gastrostomy and stoma care, catheter and continence needs, wound care and agreed clinical observations, all as part of a personalised, nurse-led care plan.
Our regional nurses are registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council, and each holds a qualification in at least one specialism, including learning disability nursing, mental health nursing, children’s nursing and general adult nursing. They train our carers, assess their competency and provide ongoing clinical oversight, which is what allows carers to carry out delegated clinical interventions safely at home.
We are an approved trainer for the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on learning disability and autism, and we work in partnership with local authorities, Integrated Care Boards and case managers to coordinate care where more than one service is involved.
Hourly care or 24-hour care?
Most people arranging disability care are weighing up how much support they need and when. There is no universally right answer; it depends on your requirements and how you want your days to work.
- Hourly care
Sometimes called visiting care, means a carer comes to you at agreed times, from a single visit to as many visits a day as you need. It suits people who manage well independently but want reliable help at particular points, such as mornings, medication times or bedtimes. Where needs are complex, hourly care can be provided across a full 24-hour period.
- 24-hour care
Means a small team of carers supports you on a rotation, so there is always someone on hand. Most clients are supported by carers working eight or twelve-hour shifts. For overnight support, we offer a sleep-on-call service, where a carer sleeps in your home but is there if you need them. There is also a waking nights option where night-time assistance is needed, for example repositioning in bed, managing a ventilation machine or administering medication.
Many people begin with a few visits a week and increase support gradually. Care can move between the two as needs change. If a permanent live-in arrangement becomes the right option, we can arrange this through our family of homecare brands.
Support for family carers
If you are looking after a family member or friend, respite care gives you a planned break with someone you trust stepping in. That might be a few hours a week, a regular day, or cover for a fortnight away.
It is worth checking what you are entitled to as well. You can request a Carer’s Assessment from your local council. If you provide at least 35 hours of care a week, you may be eligible for Carer’s Allowance in England, or Carer Support Payment if you live in Scotland. Both have earnings limits, so it is worth checking your own position on GOV.UK or mygov.scot.
How disability care at home is funded
Cost is usually the question people hesitate to ask first. There are several routes, and many people use a combination.
Funding rules change and personal circumstances vary, so treat this as a starting point rather than advice on your own situation. GOV.UK and your local council are the definitive sources, and our branch teams talk people through these routes every day.
What our carers can and cannot help with
Alongside personal and clinical care, our carers can help with light housekeeping when time permits, including vacuuming, dusting, washing up, laundry and ironing. They can also collect shopping and prescriptions, run errands, and look after pets, including dog walking and making sure food and water are topped up.
Housekeeping sits alongside your care rather than replacing a domestic cleaning service, so heavier or specialist household work is outside what a carer can take on. Clinical tasks are delivered only where they are agreed in the care plan and the carer or nurse is trained and assessed as competent to carry them out. If you need support we cannot provide, our team will happily point you towards other options.
Arranging disability care with Prestige
We have supported people to live well at home for over eighty years, from more than 30 locations across England and Scotland. Our services are regulated by the Care Quality Commission in England and the Care Inspectorate in Scotland.
Of our inspected services in England, 96% are rated Good and 4% Outstanding, and with all our branches in Scotland achieving mainly Very good or Good ratings.
Speak to your local team
A commitment-free conversation about what is difficult at the moment and what you would like to stay in control of.
Arrange a care assessment
A registered nurse or your local care expert will visit you at home, in hospital or in a specialist setting if you are awaiting discharge, to understand routines, preferences, health needs and goals.
Agree your care plan
We put together a personalised plan for you to review, and adjust it as your needs change.
Every care need is different. Speak to our team about your routines, priorities and the disability care that may be right for you or someone close to you.