The short answer
- Get the bigger items assessed before you buyA hoist, a hospital bed or a raised toilet seat should be recommended by an occupational therapist, who can also show you how to use it safely.
- Most equipment is loaned free, not soldOnce assessed, this kind of equipment is usually provided on loan at no cost, whatever your parent's income or savings, and handed back when it is no longer needed.
- The bathroom and the bedroom matter mostThese are the two rooms where the wrong or missing equipment matters most, so start there if you can only tackle one room this month.
- Wheelchairs and hoists each have their own routeA wheelchair for daily use goes through the NHS wheelchair service, not the council occupational therapist, and a hoist needs training as well as an assessment.
None of this replaces somebody seeing your parent often enough to notice when a new piece of equipment is needed. Where a daily visit is not possible, a companionship visit costs around £15 to £20 an hour on PrimeCarers, with our fee included.
Before you buy anything
Work out which route each piece of equipment needs
Equipment for an older or less mobile person falls into three groups, and they are not sorted by room or by price. They are sorted by who needs to look at it first.
Arranged by an occupational therapist
Assessed, then usually provided free on loan
These need someone trained to look at the task, the person and the equipment together, so they are not bought blind. Once assessed, most are loaned at no cost, whatever your parent's income or savings, and returned when no longer needed.
- Grab rails
- Raised toilet seat
- Hospital-type bed
- Pressure-relieving mattress
- Manual or standing hoist
- Turning aid
Arranged by the NHS wheelchair service
A separate assessment, run by the wheelchair service
Wheelchairs for regular, long-term use go through their own local NHS service rather than the council occupational therapist, with its own referral and its own waiting list.
- Manual wheelchair for daily use
- Powered wheelchair, where eligible
No assessment needed
Ordinary aids you can buy yourself
Everyday items that make a task easier and carry little risk if they turn out not to suit. Worth trying before spending much, since not everyone finds the same thing helpful.
- Walking stick or frame
- Non-slip mats
- Comfort-grip cutlery
- Kettle tipper
- Perching stool
- Touch or sensor lamp
- Grab stick (reacher)
Buying the wrong item is not just wasted money. A bed with the wrong sides fitted, or a hoist used without training, can trap or injure someone who was safer with nothing at all, which is why the first group above goes through an occupational therapist rather than a shop. If your parent has not had a home assessment yet, asking the council for one is free and does not depend on their savings. If it is the wider home, rather than a single piece of equipment, that needs a look, reducing fall and trip risks in the home covers the room-by-room walk-through that usually comes before this conversation.
The bedroom
Equipment for the bedroom: getting up, and a call for help in the night
Most of what matters in the bedroom is about getting in and out of bed safely, and not being caught in the dark if help is needed.
A profiling bed and pressure-relieving mattress
Assessed, usually free
Bed rails and grab handles
Needs assessing, not a DIY fit
A lamp within reach of the bed
Buy yourself, no assessment needed
A doorstop and a commode
Buy yourself, cheap either way
The bathroom
Equipment for the bathroom, the room to get right first
Wet floors, a high bath edge and a lot of hard, unforgiving surfaces make the bathroom the room where equipment makes the biggest difference to safety.
A raised toilet seat and rails
Assessed, usually free
Bath seats, boards and non-slip mats
Assessed for the bigger items, buy the mats yourself
A wall-fixed grab rail
Assessed for the right height and angle
A walk-in bath or level-access shower
A bigger, funded change
The hallway and the way in
The hallway and the way into the house
Equipment in one room only helps if your parent can get to it, and the corridor between rooms and the step at the front or back door are two of the most easily overlooked places in a room-by-room list.
Grab rails along the hallway, not just by the bath
Assessed for the right position
A ramp or slope over a step at the door
Building work, usually funded
Non-slip strips or paint on outdoor steps
Buy yourself, cheap and immediate
Kitchen and living room
Equipment for the kitchen and living room: less bending, less standing
Nothing here needs an assessment. These are ordinary aids that reduce the number of times a day someone has to bend, stretch, lift or fight their way out of a chair.
A hot water dispenser, and comfort-grip cutlery
Buy yourself
A perching stool, used with a non-slip mat
Buy yourself
A riser recliner chair with a firm seat
A bigger buy, worth trying first
A grab stick, and things kept within reach
Buy yourself
Walking aids, wheelchairs and hoists
Walking aids, wheelchairs and hoists: what they do and how you get one
These cover a wide range, from a walking stick bought over the counter to a hoist that needs two trained people to use safely, so the right route matters more here than almost anywhere else in the house.
Match the equipment to its route
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Walking sticks and frames
Wheelchairs
Hoists and turning aids
The NHS page on walking aids, wheelchairs and mobility scooters sets out the wheelchair service referral routes in more detail, and the British Red Cross wheelchair hire service is worth knowing about for a short-term need or while an assessment is pending.
Getting it, free or funded
How to get it: assessment, loan and the bigger grants
Most of what is worth having in this guide starts with the same phone call, whether the end result is a raised toilet seat or a hoist.
- 1
Ask the council for an occupational therapy assessment
Free, any incomeContact adult social services at your parent's council and ask for a home assessment. In many areas you can refer yourself, or complete an online self-assessment, without waiting for a GP to be involved first. It covers exactly this: what equipment would help, and how to use it safely. - 2
Most equipment arrives on loan, not for sale
Free at the point of useGrab rails, a raised toilet seat, a hospital bed, a hoist and similar items an occupational therapist recommends are usually loaned free, whatever your parent's income or savings, and collected again once they are no longer needed. - 3
Ask separately about a wheelchair
A different service, its own waiting listA wheelchair for regular use is assessed and provided by the local NHS wheelchair service rather than the council, so mention it as its own request rather than assuming the OT assessment covers it. - 4
Buy the small, everyday aids yourself
No need to waitItems like non-slip mats, comfort-grip cutlery or a kettle tipper do not need an assessment, and a free advice service can point you to a sensible supplier if you are not sure where to start.
Living Made Easy, run by the national charity the Disabled Living Foundation, gives free, impartial advice on which everyday aid suits a particular problem, without pointing you towards any one shop. Local authority funding explains how the wider council assessment process works if money for ongoing care, not just equipment, is also part of the conversation, and reducing fall and trip risks in the home covers the Disabled Facilities Grant for bigger structural changes such as a walk-in shower or a stairlift. A carer visiting regularly is also useful once new equipment is in place, simply by being there often enough to notice if it is not being used, or not fitting as well as it did at first. Hourly care visits for personal care and daily tasks cost around £18 to £25 an hour on PrimeCarers, with our fee included.
Questions
Questions families ask about equipment for an elderly parent
Not for ordinary aids like non-slip mats, comfort-grip cutlery or a walking stick, which anyone can buy. Bigger items that involve moving or supporting someone, such as a hoist, a profiling bed or full bed rails, should be assessed by an occupational therapist first, because the wrong item, or the right item used badly, can injure the person it is meant to help.
Contact adult social services at your parent's local council and ask for a home assessment. It is free regardless of income, and in many areas you can refer yourself or complete an online self-assessment rather than waiting for a GP referral. How council assessments work.
Equipment recommended by an occupational therapist, such as grab rails, a raised toilet seat, a hospital bed or a hoist, is usually loaned free of charge, whatever your parent's income or savings, and handed back once it is no longer needed. Everyday aids you choose to buy yourself, like a perching stool or a kettle tipper, are not covered this way and you pay for them as with any other purchase.
A wheelchair for regular, long-term use is assessed and provided by the local NHS wheelchair service, a separate route from the council occupational therapist who arranges most other equipment. A GP, physiotherapist or occupational therapist can refer your parent, and in some areas you can refer them yourself. For short-term need, the British Red Cross hires wheelchairs by the week.
Often, yes, particularly a manual hoist for someone who cannot bear any of their own weight, where one person operates the hoist and the other keeps the person steady and reassured. A standing hoist or turning aid, for someone who can still take some weight through their legs, can sometimes be managed by one trained person. Either way, whoever uses it needs to have been shown how by the person who assessed it.
A grab rail helps someone pull themselves up or steady themselves while sitting up in bed. A full guard or night-time side, running the length of the bed, is meant to stop someone rolling out, but it can also trap them or cause an injury if they try to climb over it to reach the toilet. This is exactly the judgement an occupational therapist's assessment is for, since the same item that helps one person can put another at more risk.
Living Made Easy, run by the national charity the Disabled Living Foundation, gives free, impartial advice and information on daily living equipment, including a guided tool that suggests products for a problem you describe. It is a good starting point for the everyday aids that do not need an occupational therapist's assessment.
Yes, mainly by being in the house often enough to notice if a piece of equipment has stopped being used, no longer fits well, or has become difficult to manage alone. A hourly care visit for personal care and daily tasks costs around £18 to £25 an hour on PrimeCarers, with our fee included, and a companionship visit for company and an extra pair of eyes costs around £15 to £20.