Manchester Care & Repair

Who we are

Care and Repair exists primarily to meet the needs of older or disabled homeowners and to support all older and disabled people in living independently in their own home. Older homeowners are most likely to live in unfit housing yet, if they are receiving income support, there is no element to cover repair and maintenance. The health impact of cold, damp and unfit homes on older people is considerable and the disruption of a move, even if possible, may not be beneficial.

Care and Repair assists the older person to assess their options, obtain finance and supports them through the repair or adaptation process. We are an independent charity and much of our work is as a local Home Improvement Agency. Support from Manchester Council and formerly Trafford and Wigan Borough Councils has helped us build services in each of those boroughs. (We no longer provide a service in Trafford or Wigan.)

We offer these main services under the broad description of Home Improvement Agency (HIA).

Home Repairs Support

This service helps older or disabled householders with major property repairs and improvements. We assist with work planning, recommending a reliable contractor and access to subsidised loans from the council or alternative financial assistance. We can give the names of reputable contractors to residents who then manage the works themselves.

Handyperson 

This service meets the needs of any older person for small DIY jobs that they can no longer carry out themselves such as changing light-bulbs, dripping taps, sticking doors, and fitting of grab-rails, key-safes, draught-proofing and small joinery work. This service is available free to anyone aged 60 or over in Manchester.

Independent Living Support (also known as casework) 

This gives that extra help to people, often owner-occupiers, who need guidance to find the services they need to remain independent in their own home. We help them to navigate confusing eligibility criteria, fill in complex forms, apply for welfare benefits or charitable support and reduce isolation by linking to local groups and activities.

Home from Hospital

We offer a helping hand to all those over-60s who are discharged from one of the three Manchester hospitals. Our friendly staff aim to ring you within 24 hours of discharge and offer a range of support services to help smooth the transition from hospital to home. In addition, at North Manchester General Hospital and Manchester Royal Infirmary we provide an Assisted Discharge Support service to help vulnerable or isolated patients prior to discharge and provide personalised support so they are prepared, transported and settled back into their home.

In different areas and at different times we have also provided:

• BME casework support
• Burglary prevention
• Home safety and Falls prevention
• Fire Safety
• Home maintenance training and support
• Befriending for isolated older people
• Community development

And to build local capacity we have also provided training for residents and front-line staff in areas such as:

• for local ‘Take Up’ Champions
• in DIY skills
• in Falls Prevention
• In “Healthy Homes”

…and we provide training to our own volunteers