Six weeks of free care after hospital: how to get it

Quick summary

Intermediate care and reablement are free for up to six weeks after a hospital stay, arranged by the NHS or the council. It is not means-tested. Most people get one or two weeks rather than six. Ask the ward about it by name before you agree to pay any private provider, because plenty of families are never offered it.

What is it?

Short, intensive support designed to get someone doing things for themselves again, rather than doing things for them indefinitely.

Reablement means relearning daily activities such as cooking and washing. Intermediate care is the broader term, covering support at home, in a community hospital, or in a care home on a short-term basis, aimed at avoiding readmission and avoiding a premature move into long-term care (NHS, Care after illness or hospital discharge).

The difference from ordinary home care is that a reablement worker will stand next to someone while they make their own tea. A care worker will make it. That is deliberate, and it is why reablement ends.

Is it really free?

Yes, and the entitlement has a legal basis.

Government guidance on hospital discharge states the requirement under the Care and Support (Preventing Needs for Care and Support) Regulations 2014 that where intermediate care including reablement is provided by local authorities, it is provided free of charge for up to six weeks (GOV.UK, Hospital discharge and community support guidance).

It is not means-tested. Savings, income and pensions make no difference at all. Minor aids and adaptations up to £1,000 must also be provided free.

The honest caveat: you are not automatically entitled to six weeks. The entitlement is that if it is provided, it is free up to six weeks. Whether it is provided depends on an assessment of whether the person would benefit.

How long does it actually last?

Less than people expect. The NHS says most people receiving this type of care do so for around one or two weeks, with six weeks as the maximum where the service is available.

That is not a service being cut short. It is what happens when the goals are met, because reablement is measured by whether someone can manage, not by how many weeks have elapsed. Around half of people who complete reablement need no ongoing care at all.

A package agreed on the day of discharge may be one your mum does not need by week three.

How does it get arranged?

Through the hospital, before discharge, under what is called discharge to assess.

The principle is that long-term decisions are not made on a ward. Someone is discharged as soon as it is safe, with short-term support, and the assessment of what they need longer term happens once they are home and recovering. That is why a package agreed in hospital is provisional by design.

In practice, ask the discharge coordinator or ward social worker directly. Use the words: “Has she been assessed for reablement or intermediate care?” If the answer is no, ask why not, and ask for it to be recorded.

Why do families miss it?

• Discharges happen fast, often with a day or two of notice, and the conversation about what happens at home competes with everything else. 

• Capacity is finite, so reablement is not always available at the moment someone needs it. 
• And the phrase itself is jargon: nobody says “would you like six weeks of free care”, they say “we’re referring for D2A”, which means nothing to a family in a corridor.

The result is that a lot of people start paying privately on the day of discharge for something they could have had free. 

What happens when it ends?

There should be a review before the six weeks are up, looking at what has been achieved and what is still needed.

From there the options are: nothing further, because the goals were met; a care needs assessment leading to council-funded or self-funded ongoing care; or, occasionally, more intermediate care if further progress looks likely. If ongoing council-funded care follows, a financial assessment decides what is contributed, using the 2026/27 capital limits of £23,250 upper and £14,250 lower.

Ask for the review date at the start rather than the end. It gives you time to choose a provider properly, instead of at four o’clock on the afternoon the free support stops.

What if the discharge feels too early?

Say so, in those words, to the discharge coordinator, and ask for it to be recorded in the notes.

“Medically fit for discharge” is a clinical judgement about the hospital’s role. It is not a judgement that home is safe, and the two get conflated constantly. If your specific concern is that the stairs are unmanageable or there is nobody there overnight, name it precisely rather than saying you are worried in general.

Who to ring locally

• Cheshire East Council adult social care, 0300 123 5010, for Macclesfield, Wilmslow, Knutsford, Congleton, Alsager and the surrounding villages.
• Call Derbyshire, 01629 533190, for Buxton, Whaley Bridge and Chapel-en-le-Frith.
• Staffordshire Cares, 0300 111 8010, for Leek, Biddulph and Kidsgrove.

If the discharge is from Macclesfield District General, the ward will usually give you a date around 48 hours ahead. 

Frequently asked questions

Do you get six weeks free care after hospital?

If you are assessed as benefiting from intermediate care or reablement, it must be free for up to six weeks. It is not automatic, and most people receive one or two weeks because that is how long the goals take.

Does it apply if she was not in hospital?

It can. Intermediate care also exists to prevent admission and to help people who are struggling at home, so it is worth asking adult social care about even without a hospital stay.

Can I choose the reablement provider?

No. It is arranged by the NHS or the council. Choice comes afterwards, if ongoing care is needed.

Can we use our own carers alongside it?

Often yes, for things reablement does not cover, such as company, shopping or overnight support. Tell the reablement team, because working at cross purposes undermines the point of it.

What if she is not making progress?

Ask for a review early rather than waiting for week six. If reablement is not the right model for her, a care needs assessment for ongoing support should start sooner rather than later.

Does Attendance Allowance stop during it?

Attendance Allowance is usually suspended during a hospital stay and restarts on discharge. Reablement at home does not affect it. Tell the DWP about hospital admissions, because overpayments have to be repaid.

About Visiting Angels Cheshire East

Visiting Angels Cheshire East provides care at home across Macclesfield, Wilmslow, Congleton, Knutsford, Alsager and the villages of East Cheshire, along with Buxton, Whaley Bridge and the Staffordshire border towns.

• You choose your caregiver. You meet them before care starts, and if it is not right you say so and we send someone else.
• No visit is ever shorter than an hour. There is no such thing as a fifteen minute call here.
• Short term packages stay short term. Care after a hospital stay should reduce as someone recovers, and we will tell you when it can.
• Carers trained in stroke recovery, Parkinson’s, dementia and complex care.
• Live-in care available, up to full time, for the first weeks home if that is what is needed.

David’s mother in law is becoming increasingly confused:

“Visiting angels have been a massive help in the care for my mother in law, who is getting increasingly confused. They provide companionship and support every day proving to be very reliable and consistent. They are there at times we can’t be, due to all the commitments of work and grand children.”

David Figg, Google review

Not sure what you need yet? Start with a free assessment

Our free home care assessment is a visit at a time that suits you, with no obligation afterwards. In it we will:

• Work out what is actually difficult, and which times of day, which is usually what a visit should be built around.
• Talk through a realistic package, what it would cost, and how it should reduce as they recover.
• Look at the money with you, and point you towards the funding, benefits and grants you may be entitled to.
• Tell you honestly if reablement should come first, or if you do not need us yet.

If reablement is coming to an end and you are working out what happens next, call us on 01625 720157. You can also send an enquiry, and you can see what our services cover.

Authored by Dr Haroon Ahmad, Managing Director, Visiting Angels Cheshire East.

Published 6 September 2026. Last updated 6 September 2026.

This article is general information about entitlements after a hospital stay, not legal or financial advice, and it is no substitute for advice about an individual’s circumstances. Each council and NHS area runs its own intermediate care and reablement services with their own availability and criteria; the position here was correct at the date of publication and should be checked locally. Free independent advice is available from Citizens Advice, Age UK and MoneyHelper. To the fullest extent permitted by law, GB Care at Home Ltd accepts no liability for any loss arising from reliance on this article.