Can I use a Home Care Package to arrange emergency or overnight respite?
Specialised Care: Dementia, Respite & Palliative
Respite Care
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In short...
Support at Home can fund planned overnight respite when it is approved and affordable within the budget. For a sudden breakdown in unpaid care, call Carer Gateway on 1800 422 737 for emergency respite options. Residential respite is a separate aged care service with its own approval and annual day limit.
The details...
Can I use a Home Care Package or Support at Home funding for emergency or overnight respite?
Yes. Support at Home can pay for approved respite care, including some overnight arrangements, where respite is included in your support plan and sufficient funding is available.
Home Care Packages were replaced by Support at Home on 1 November 2025, so new respite arrangements are now generally made under Support at Home.
What respite can Support at Home fund?
Depending on your assessed needs, respite may include:
a worker staying with you at home while your regular carer takes a break
daytime or evening respite
overnight respite in your home
respite in a community or cottage setting
accompanied activities outside the home
short periods of care when your usual family carer is unavailable.
Home and community respite may be provided during the day or overnight.
The provider must confirm:
respite is approved in your support plan
the proposed arrangement is appropriate and safe
suitable workers are available
the price fits within your available budget
any personal contribution has been explained.
What does overnight respite involve?
Overnight arrangements can differ considerably.
Sleepover respite
A worker remains in the home overnight and is generally able to sleep, but can respond if occasional help is needed.
Active overnight respite
The worker remains awake because regular supervision or assistance is expected throughout the night.
Community or cottage respite
The person stays overnight in an approved community-based setting rather than remaining at home.
Active overnight care usually costs substantially more than a sleepover because the worker is being paid to remain awake and actively provide support.
Before agreeing, ask:
whether the worker will be awake or sleeping
how many times they can reasonably be expected to assist
whether personal care or medication support is included
whether a second worker is required for transfers
what happens if the person becomes unwell
the complete overnight price
how much will be charged to the Support at Home budget
what participant contribution will apply.
Will I have to contribute towards the cost?
Respite is generally an independence service under Support at Home.
This means a participant contribution may apply based on the person’s income, assets and pension status.
The provider should show:
the full agreed respite price
the participant contribution
the amount paid from government funding
how the booking will affect the remaining quarterly budget.
An overnight booking can use a significant portion of a smaller Support at Home budget, so request a written budget calculation first.
Can my provider arrange emergency respite?
Your provider may be able to arrange urgent replacement or respite support if it has suitable workers available, but Support at Home is not a guaranteed same-day emergency service.
If a family carer suddenly becomes unable to provide care—for example, because they are ill, injured or hospitalised—contact Carer Gateway on 1800 422 737.
Carer Gateway can discuss emergency respite options and arrange care where suitable services are available. Emergency respite may occur:
in the person’s home
in the community
in an aged care home.
Availability depends on the person’s needs and local services.
Is emergency respite paid from my Support at Home budget?
Not necessarily.
Emergency respite arranged through Carer Gateway is a separate carer-support pathway and is not simply an automatic withdrawal from the person’s Support at Home budget.
Carer Gateway will assess the circumstances and explain what assistance may be available.
If the need is foreseeable—such as a planned operation, family holiday or regular carer break—it is better to arrange respite in advance through the Support at Home provider rather than rely on emergency assistance.
What about temporary respite in an aged care home?
Residential respite is funded separately from the ordinary Support at Home budget.
A person normally needs approval for residential respite through an aged care assessment. Eligible people can generally receive up to 63 subsidised residential respite days per financial year, with possible extensions approved by an assessor.
A person can temporarily pause some Support at Home services while receiving residential respite. Their provider should cancel unnecessary visits and help plan the return home.
Plan before a crisis occurs
If an unpaid carer provides essential daily support, ask the care partner to create a written emergency plan covering:
who to call if the carer becomes unavailable
the person’s medication and personal-care needs
preferred replacement workers
mobility and transfer requirements
dementia or communication needs
emergency contacts
whether overnight or residential respite would be suitable
where important documents and care instructions are kept.
What should I do next?
Confirm the details with My Aged Care or the relevant provider, write down your questions and ask for important information in writing before making a decision.
Helpful Local Home Help resources
Takeaways
- Ask for details in writing and compare more than one option where possible.
- Individual eligibility, availability and outcomes can vary.
- Ask questions early and seek independent help if anything feels unclear or unsafe.
About Local Home Help
How Providers Are Listed
How providers appear on Local Home Help Local Home Help helps families discover home support services available in their area. Providers may appear on the site in a few different ways. Some providers create and manage their own listing on the platform. Others may appear based on publicly available information about services operating in a particular region. This helps families see a broader view of support options available locally. Where possible, we encourage providers to claim and manage their listing so information such as services offered, contact details and service areas remain accurate and up to date. There are no paid or enhanced listings on Local Home Help, and there never will be. Claiming or managing a listing has no effect on a provider's visibility, ranking, or how often it appears in a consumer's personalised shortlist, it simply keeps the information families see accurate and current. Local Home Help does not charge consumers to access the platform. We may generate revenue in other ways in the future, but none of these will ever influence which providers a consumer sees, how they're ranked, or what appears in their shortlist. Provider visibility is, and will remain, based solely on relevance to each family's stated needs. What does not influence Liz There are no paid or enhanced listings on Local Home Help, not now, and not in the future. No provider can pay for a higher position in Liz results, a better ranking, or inclusion in a consumer's shortlist. This is a permanent commitment, not a current-state description. Claiming or updating a profile does not improve a provider's ranking. It gives Liz more accurate information about the provider's services, coverage and care model, which can make the explanation of why a provider matched clearer, but it has no effect on whether or how highly that provider appears. Local Home Help intends to generate revenue in other ways in the future - for example through tools built for providers, or products separate from the consumer matching experience. None of these will influence which providers appear in Liz's results, how they're ranked, or what a consumer sees in their personalised shortlist. Visibility and ranking are based solely on the fit factors described above, and nothing else. This reflects the platform's core ethos: Local Home Help is built consumer-first. Every design and revenue decision is made so that what a family sees from Liz is the most relevant outcome for them. Never the most profitable outcome for Local Home Help or a provider.
Independence Statement
Our independence Local Home Help is designed to help families navigate the often confusing world of home support and aged care services. The platform aims to present information in a clear and balanced way so families can better understand the types of help available and where to find it. While providers may appear on the platform, Local Home Help does not recommend one provider over another. The decision about which service may be suitable will always depend on individual circumstances. Families are encouraged to contact providers directly, ask questions and make their own enquiries before making a decision. Our focus is to make the process of understanding and finding support at home easier. Local Home Help does not accept payment of any kind in exchange for provider visibility, ranking, or shortlist placement, and never will. Any future revenue Local Home Help generates will come from sources entirely separate from how providers are matched to consumers.
Quality Signals
What to look for when choosing a provider Finding the right support service can take time. When considering a provider, families may wish to look for signs of quality such as: Clear information about services offered Transparent pricing or funding options Experience supporting older people at home Relevant professional qualifications where appropriate Positive feedback or reputation in the community Willingness to answer questions about care and services It is often helpful to speak with more than one provider before making a decision. Local Home Help aims to provide a starting point for exploring services, but the best choice will depend on the needs and preferences of the individual receiving support.
About the Author
Local Home Help Editorial Team
This article was created by Local Home Help to help Australian families better understand aged care and home support options in plain English.
Our content is based on publicly available information from:
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My Aged Care
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Department of Health, Disability and Ageing
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Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission
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Provider pricing schedules and operational experience within the aged care sector.
Local Home Help is an independent consumer information platform and does not provide medical, legal or financial advice.
Important information
Aged care rules, fees, eligibility requirements and program arrangements can change. The information on this page is general guidance only and may not apply to every person or situation.
Before making a financial, legal or care decision, check the latest information with My Aged Care, Services Australia, the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, or another appropriate official source.
Local Home Help does not provide legal, financial, medical or clinical advice.
Source data
Last reviewed
20/7/26, 9:08 pm