Support at Home

Lead service provider/commissioner

Name:

British Red Cross

Type of knowledge

Type of knowledge:

Project evaluation

Type of evaluation:

Outcome evaluation; Interviews

Prevention service description

These services were designed in response to a survey conducted by the Red Cross in 2011 which found that the main priorities for commissioners were: developing prevention strategies and avoidance of unnecessary admissions into hospital; expanding the provision of time-limited reablement services; and ensuring flexible, personalised care.

BRC is currently delivering 200 schemes, supporting 70,000 people, across the UK, which vary in scope according to local need but use volunteers to support: rebuilding confidence, collecting prescriptions, offering companionship, assistance with shopping and also completion of financial paperwork, which can pile up during a hospital stay. The focus of the support will be shaped by the 'Top 3 Goals' approach used by BRC support workers which asks people to prioritise the things they would like help with. Alongside Support at Home, BRC also provides transport, mobility aids, community-based reablement and home-from-hospital services (which are more health-based). In total they support 450,000 people with services to enable independent living.

Intervention/service type:

Intermediate care and reablement; Support at home; Low-level support

Target client group(s):

Older people; Adults with long-term health conditions; Carers