A Simple Guide to Home Care and Support at Home
- LHH Admin
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
If you’re starting to look into home care, it can feel confusing quickly.
You’ll hear terms like:
Home Care Packages
Support at Home
Providers
Funding levels
And it’s not always clear how it all fits together.
This guide breaks it down simply—so you can understand your options and what to do next.
What is home care?
Home care is support that helps you stay living safely and comfortably in your own home.
It can include:
Help around the house
Personal care (like showering or dressing)
Allied health services (like physio)
Social support and companionship
The goal is simple:
Help you stay independent for as long as possible.
What is a Home Care Package?
A Home Care Package is government funded support.
If you’re eligible, you’re assigned a level of funding based on your needs.
There are four levels:
Level 1 → Basic support
Level 2 → Low-level care
Level 3 → Intermediate care
Level 4 → High-level care
Each level comes with a different budget to pay for services.
What is Support at Home?
Support at Home is the newer system replacing Home Care Packages.
You may hear both terms used, especially during the transition.
In simple terms:
Home Care Packages = the previous system
Support at Home = the current and future system
Both are designed to:
Provide funding so you can receive care at home.
How much funding do you actually receive?
Under Support at Home, funding is grouped into 8 classification levels.
Each level comes with an annual budget.
At a high level:
Lower classifications → around $10,000–$20,000 per year
Mid classifications → around $30,000–$50,000 per year
Higher classifications → up to ~$78,000 per year
Your classification is determined during your aged care assessment.
What this actually means
It’s easy to look at these numbers and think:
“That’s how much care I’ll get.”
But that’s not how it works.
You don’t receive “hours” you receive a budget
That budget is used to pay for:
Services
Support workers
Care management (- 10%)
And how far it goes depends on:
The provider you choose
Their hourly rates
Any additional costs or loadings
Two people with the same funding level can receive very different care.
How your funding is managed
Your funding isn’t given all at once.
It’s allocated quarterly, and you can:
Carry over up to $1,000 or 10% into the next quarter
Use your funding flexibly across services
If your needs increase:
You may be reassessed for a higher classification
What happens if your funding isn’t enough?
This is more common than people expect.
You have a few options:
1. Make better use of your current funding
A good provider will help you:
Prioritise services
Adjust how your budget is used
Stretch your funding further
2. Pay for additional services privately
You can choose to:
Add services outside your funded budget
This is often used for:
Extra support
Additional hours
Services not fully covered
If you’re coming from a Home Care Package
If you’ve transitioned from the previous system:
Your funding is broadly equivalent to your previous level, your unspent funds remain available to you
There’s no strict cap on using those existing funds
This can provide more flexibility, especially early on.
Additional short-term funding (often overlooked)
There are also separate funding pathways for specific needs, including:
Assistive technology and home modifications
Short-term restorative care
End-of-life support
These sit outside your regular ongoing budget.
What does a home care provider do?
A provider helps you organise and deliver your care.
They:
Coordinate services
Help plan how your funding is used
Arrange support workers or allied health services
Adjust your care as your needs change
Some providers are proactive.
Others are more hands-off.
This difference can significantly impact your experience.
How do you choose the right provider?
This is where most people get stuck.
Providers can look very similar but differ in:
How they use your funding
How they communicate
How responsive they are
Choosing the right one affects:
How much care you receive
How easy things feel day-to-day
What should you do next?
If you’re early in the process, focus on:
Understanding your funding
Thinking about the support you need
Getting clarity before making decisions
You don’t need to rush—but you also don’t want to rely on guesswork.
If you’d prefer a clearer starting point, Liz can help.
Liz is your care navigator.
By answering a few simple questions, you can:
Understand your situation more clearly
See providers that match your needs
Get a shortlist to start from
It’s a simple way to move forward with more confidence.
Local Home Help Navigator - www.localhomehelp.com.au
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