Respite weeks
Go away for a week. Someone familiar stays.
Family carers rarely get a proper rest, and arranging cover is usually another job on top of everything else. A vetted helper stays in the home for a week or two — cooking, shopping, keeping company, and being there overnight — so you can go, knowing the house is not empty.
What a week costs
Priced the way the work actually happens: agreed active hours each day at your helper’s own hourly rate, plus a supplement for being there overnight. Your helper keeps all of it; we add our usual 10%.
A typical week
Helpers set their own rates, so yours may differ. Travel is agreed separately and paid by you — helpers travel for respite, so we are not limited to your area. A residential respite bed in England averages around £1,377 a week.
When this works well
- A family carer who has not had a holiday in years
- The first week or two home after a hospital stay
- A spell of anxiety when being alone feels harder
- Covering while the usual family carer is unwell
- A wedding, a funeral, or a week you cannot miss
When it is the wrong answer
- Anyone who needs help washing, dressing or using the toilet
- Anyone who needs medication given to them rather than a reminder
- Anyone who needs two people to move safely
- Anyone needing nursing care or clinical tasks
- Ongoing live-in arrangements — we cap placements at two weeks
The one rule that matters most
A respite placement stops if personal care becomes necessary. If your relative starts needing help with washing, dressing, the toilet or medication during the week, the helper will tell you and we will help you find a registered provider. That is not the helper giving up — it is the boundary that keeps everyone safe, and they are told at interview that stopping is the right answer.
Everything else is as it is for any Witho visit: the helper is DBS checked, referenced and interviewed, the placement is insured, and you can ring us at any point during the week. How we check helpers.
Tell us about the week
Respite takes more arranging than an hourly visit — dates, travel, and finding someone who fits — so we do it by conversation rather than a booking form. Tell us roughly what you need and a real person will ring you within one working day.
Calls cost no more than a standard landline call and are included in inclusive minutes.