Quick summary
Most referrals that fail do so for the same handful of reasons: an unclear weight bearing status, no confirmed equipment date, no key access, a double-handed need identified late, or a postcode nobody checked. This note sets out what makes a referral start on time, and what to send with it.
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Who this is for
Discharge coordinators, ward social workers, therapy teams, community matrons, brokerage and reablement teams working with Macclesfield District General, Leighton, Stepping Hill, Royal Stoke and the community hospitals.
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What we need to give you a yes or a no the same day
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Information | Why it decides the answer |
|---|---|
Full address and postcode | Determines whether it sits on an existing round, which is the single biggest factor in how fast we can start |
Times of day required, and which are time-critical | An 8am call and a 10am call are very different propositions |
One carer or two | Double-handed calls change availability substantially. Late identification is the commonest cause of a failed start |
Weight bearing status and transfer method | Determines equipment, staffing and whether the plan is safe at all |
Equipment ordered, and the delivery date | A bed or hoist arriving after the patient is the classic failure |
Access arrangements | Key safe fitted and code available, or a named keyholder |
Medicines support level required | Prompting, assisting or administering, and whether anything is time-critical |
Funding route | Self-funding, direct payment, council commissioned, or Fast Track CHC |
Named family contact and who holds authority | Including whether a registered health and welfare LPA is in place |
Discharge summary and medication list | Particularly where medicines changed during admission |
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Send the postcode and the required times first. We can usually answer the availability question from those two alone, which saves everyone a day.
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The five things that make a start date more difficult
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- Double-handed care identified on the day. A package built for one carer cannot absorb a second at short notice. If there is any prospect of two, flag it at referral.
- No access. A key safe that has not been fitted, or a code nobody has. This stops a first visit dead and is entirely preventable.
- Equipment lagging the discharge. Care cannot be delivered safely around a bed that arrives on Thursday for a Tuesday discharge.
- Unclear or contradictory weight bearing and transfer information. Where the discharge summary and the therapy notes disagree, we have to stop and check, and that costs a day.
- Funding not settled. Particularly where a family expects the council to pay and no assessment has happened, or where Fast Track has been mentioned but not submitted.
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Capacity, honestly
Capacity changes week to week and by time of day, so any published statement about it would be out of date before you read it.
What is stable is the pattern. Early morning calls and double-handed calls are the tightest. Mid-morning, lunchtime and afternoon calls are usually easier. Rural addresses depend on whether an existing round passes nearby.
Ring us on 01625 720157 and we will tell you what we can actually do that week.Â
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What we can and cannot take on
Setting this out plainly saves inappropriate referrals.
- We provide personal care at home, not nursing care. Injections, syringe drivers, wound care and catheter management sit with district nursing.
- Medicines support at prompting, assisting or administering level, assessed and written into the care plan, in line with NICE NG67.
- Minimum visit length is one hour. We do not deliver 15 or 30 minute calls, which rules us out of some commissioned packages and is not negotiable.
- Live-in and overnight care, which is often the realistic alternative to a residential placement.
- Condition-specific experience in dementia, Parkinson’s, stroke recovery and complex care, with training designed and overseen by clinicians.
- Three council areas: Cheshire East, Derbyshire and Staffordshire, which matters for cross-border discharges. See which council covers which town.
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Reablement first, where it applies
Intermediate care and reablement are free for up to six weeks and not means-tested. Where a patient would benefit, that pathway should be exhausted before a family starts paying privately. We would rather tell a family that than take on a package they did not need, and our note on the six weeks of free care explains it in family-facing language.
Where reablement is coming to an end and ongoing support is needed, referring a fortnight before the end date rather than on it makes a straightforward handover possible.
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How a referral runs
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- Call or email with postcode, times and whether it is one carer or two. We will give an availability answer the same day where we can.
- Assessment visit, on the ward or at home, usually within a day or two, and free.
- Written care plan and price, shared with the family and with you.
- Carer introduction before the first visit wherever possible, which is what NICE recommends and what reduces early breakdowns.
- Start, often within a few days of the assessment.
- Review, with packages expected to reduce as people recover rather than drift on.
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Frequently asked questions
How quickly can you start?
Often within a few days of an assessment for straightforward daytime support. Early mornings, double-handed calls and rural addresses take longer. Ring for the current position rather than relying on a published figure.
Do you take council-commissioned packages?
Our rate and one hour minimum do not fit every commissioned framework. Where a direct payment is in place, families can choose us and top up. Ask and we will be straight about whether it works.
Can you take Fast Track CHC packages?
Yes, including overnight and live-in support. Tell us at referral that Fast Track is in play, because the timescales are different.
Will you assess on the ward?
Yes, and a home visit is usually more informative, particularly for stairs, access and equipment.
What if the family cannot decide?
We will give them a written plan and price and let them take it away. We would rather they chose properly than started something that fails in week two.
Do you cover the High Peak and Staffordshire border?
Yes: Buxton, Harpur Hill, Whaley Bridge, Taxal, Chapel-en-le-Frith, Dove Holes, Leek, Meerbrook, Longnor, Hollinsclough, Biddulph, Biddulph Moor and Kidsgrove, alongside the Cheshire East towns.
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About Visiting Angels Cheshire East
Visiting Angels Cheshire East provides care at home across Cheshire East, the High Peak and the Staffordshire Moorlands towns, from an office in Macclesfield. You can see the full area list.
- Led by two doctors, with condition-specific training designed and overseen by clinicians.
- One hour minimum visits, and clients meet their caregiver before care begins.
- Carer turnover of 12 per cent, against a sector figure of 23.7 per cent (Skills for Care, 2025), which is why continuity holds.
- Live-in and overnight care, up to full time.
- Packages reviewed and reduced as people recover.
Jude’s mother Joyce is 100 and lives alone. Continuity was the family’s determining criterion:
“Joyce lives by herself and we needed a care provider that could give us the same carer most visits. Visiting Angels have been able to accommodate this, which is very helpful. They know her routine and have built up a rapport with my Mum. We communicate regularly and they are always there on the phone if issues occur. They are very friendly, understanding and flexible if changes occur.”
Jude Burton, Google review
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Making a referral
Call 01625 720157 with the postcode, the times required and whether it is one carer or two, and we will tell you the same day whether we can take it.
You can also send the details through, and you can read more about how we work.
Authored by Kim Blissett, Registered Manager, Visiting Angels Cheshire East.
Published 27 September 2026. Last updated 27 September 2026.
This note is general information for professionals about how referrals work with our service and is not clinical, legal or commissioning advice. Availability changes continuously and nothing here is a guarantee of capacity or start date. Visiting Angels Cheshire East provides personal care at home rather than medical or nursing care. To the fullest extent permitted by law, GB Care at Home Ltd accepts no liability for any loss arising from reliance on this article.
