Care home guides
How to choose a care home, who pays for it and what the fees cover, for England and Scotland. Every figure is read from GOV.UK, the Scottish Government, the NHS or the regulators, and each guide lists its sources with the date we checked them.
- How to choose a care homeHow to build a shortlist, what the regulator’s rating does and does not tell you, 42 questions to ask on a visit, and what to get in writing before anyone signs.
- Paying for a care home in England and ScotlandWho pays for a care home place: the means test and its 2026-27 limits in England and Scotland, the 12-week property disregard, deferred payments, top-ups and the NHS contributions.
- Nursing homes and residential care homes: the differenceWhat separates a nursing home from a residential care home on the register, who needs which, how the NHS contributes to nursing care, and why Scotland’s register does not split them.
- Choosing a care home for someone with dementiaWhat a dementia care home registration means, what to look for and ask, how needs change through the later stages, and when residential or nursing care fits.
- Respite care in a care homeA short stay in a care home gives a carer a break. How to arrange one, who pays in England and Scotland, and how councils fund carers’ breaks.
- Care home fees: what you pay for and why they varyWhat drives a care home’s weekly fee, why self-funders often pay more than councils, what is usually included and extra, and how fee increases should work.
Advice about your own situation
These guides are general information. For your own case, your council’s adult social care team (in Scotland, the health and social care partnership) handles needs assessments and funding. Age UK, Age Scotland, Independent Age and Citizens Advice give free, independent advice. Wales and Northern Ireland have different rules and are not covered here.
Guides last checked 13 October 2026. Thresholds and rates change each April.