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Home care costs in Redcar & Cleveland: will the council pay?

Care at home in Redcar & Cleveland costs about £26.88 an hour on average in 2026, and Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council will pay some or all of it if a free needs assessment and financial assessment say so. It’s also the only Teesside council that publishes exactly what it pays home care providers. Here’s how it works in Redcar, Marske, Saltburn, Guisborough, Eston, Normanby, Skelton, Brotton and Loftus, who to ring, and what’s free.

Written by registered care managers in Stockton-on-Tees · Figures checked 27 October 2026 (2026/27 rates)

What care at home costs in Redcar & Cleveland

Fourteen home care providers cover the Redcar & Cleveland area, and among those that publish prices the average is £26.88 an hour for visits and £1,500 a week for live-in care. Nationally, home care runs at £26–£38 an hour, and the Homecare Association calculates the full cost of delivering care properly at £34.42 an hour in 2026/27, so local prices are at the cheaper end.

Local averages from the homecare.co.uk Redcar & Cleveland listings, 27 October 2026; council rates from its Guide to Preferred Providers for Home Care (June 2025). Use the calculator for your own hours and savings.

If the council arranges your care you’ll get one of its preferred providers, the main ones are BJP, Careline, Caremark, Care Matters, Comfort Call, Dale Care, Hales Group, Olam Care Services and SNE Care Services, with Care 24-7, Hand 2 Hold and Meadowvale Home Care in reserve, all of which must be rated at least Good by the CQC. The council arranges around 1,000 home care packages, roughly a third of them for adults under 65. If you’re a self-funder you can use any agency, including ours.

Will Redcar and Cleveland Council pay?

The council’s own guide says “no-one will be charged more than they can afford to pay”, and most people who qualify pay something. The means test follows the national rules for 2026/27:

Redcar & Cleveland’s guide to paying for care at home is more detailed than most. It sets standard allowances for disability-related expenses, for example £14.15 a week for cleaning, £9.00 for transport and £5.90 for chiropody, which are deducted before your contribution is worked out, and you can claim more with evidence. Income from a direct payment is disregarded. You can decline the financial assessment altogether and pay the full cost. Two things catch people out: contributions are invoiced every six months in advance, in April and October, and the assessment is reviewed each April when benefit rates change. The Financial Assessment Team is on 01642 771659. Your home is not counted for care in your own home.

How to get a care needs assessment in Redcar & Cleveland

1. Ring the Adult Social Care Access Team on 01642 771500 (Monday to Thursday 8.30am–5pm, Friday to 4.30pm) or email AccessAdultsTeam@redcar-cleveland.gov.uk and ask for a conversation record assessment. Out of hours, the Emergency Duty Team is on 01642 524552.
2. A social worker arranges to see you, normally face to face at home. It’s free, for anyone over 18, and doesn’t depend on your finances. Ask for a carer’s assessment at the same time if someone looks after you.
3. The assessment covers what you can manage, what you struggle with and what matters to you. The council’s “My Needs Assessment” guide explains what to expect.
4. If you have eligible needs you get a support plan and personal budget, then the financial assessment sets your contribution. Allow four to six weeks from first contact; say if it’s urgent.

Write down a typical week beforehand, what you need help with, how long it takes, what a bad day looks like. Age UK Teesside (01642 805500) runs groups and advice in Redcar and can help you prepare.

What’s free in Redcar & Cleveland

• Reablement and rapid response. The Community Reablement Team helps you regain skills after a fall, illness or hospital stay; the Rapid Response Service provides personal care at home in a crisis or to get you out of hospital. Reablement is free for up to six weeks under national rules. Access both through the Access Team on 01642 771500.
• Equipment and adaptations. Occupational therapy assessments, the AskSARA self-help equipment guide, home adaptations and a handyperson service.
• Support for carers. Carers Together (01642 488977), based at Kirkleatham Business Park, offers carer’s assessments, an emergency card and hospital liaison; We Care You Care is the one-stop shop for carers in South Tees; Teesside Mind runs carer support on 01642 257020.
• Information. The Redcar & Cleveland Information Directory lists local services including the council’s home care providers, and Healthwatch Redcar & Cleveland can help if something goes wrong.

Benefits that help pay for care at home

Attendance Allowance, £76.70 or £114.60 a week in 2026/27, is for people over State Pension age who need help with personal care. It isn’t means-tested, so it’s paid whatever your savings, and at local prices the higher rate covers more than four hours of care a week. Under State Pension age the equivalent is PIP. Someone caring for you 35 hours a week may get Carer’s Allowance (£86.45 a week), and Pension Credit tops up a single pensioner’s income to £238 a week. See your rights & benefits.

Questions people in Redcar & Cleveland ask us

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