Family
What to send someone in a care home
A room in a care home is small, shared with staff, and already has everything practical in it. The best things to send are light, personal and easy to enjoy without help.
Check first
Phone the home before you buy anything unusual. Each has its own rules, and staff know what your relative can manage.
- Food: ask about diet, swallowing and allergies before sending anything to eat.
- Electrical items: many homes test these before they can be used.
- Flowers and plants: usually welcome, but some homes limit them.
- Space: if it needs a shelf, ask whether there is one.
Things that are nearly always right
- Photos with names on. Recent ones of the family, clearly labelled. Staff use them to start conversations.
- A photo book. One clear photo to a page with a large caption is easy to look through alone or with a carer. See photo books for care home residents.
- Hand cream and good soap in a scent they've always liked.
- A soft blanket or shawl in a colour they'd choose.
- Music. Their favourites on whatever device the home can play.
- Cards and letters. Post still matters when the day is quiet. Write large.
Label everything
Laundry and belongings go astray in a shared home. Put their name on clothing, and write on the back of photos who is in them. If you send a book, their name inside the cover is a good idea.
How to address it
- Their full name.
- Room or unit number, if you know it.
- The name of the home.
- Street address, town and postcode.
Add the home's phone number if the courier asks for one. Reception will usually sign for it.
Little and often
One large hamper at Christmas matters less than something small every few weeks. A card. Three new photos. A fresh book each season. It gives them something to show the staff and something new to talk about when you call.
Tell the staff when something is on its way. They'll look out for it and make an occasion of opening it.