Welfare checks for older people: what they are and how to arrange one (UK)

There's a particular kind of worry that comes from a phone ringing out. You've called your mum three times, it's gone to a busy tone or straight to voicemail, and you're two hours away with no way to see that she's alright. This is the moment families start asking how to arrange a welfare check.

Here's what a welfare check is, the calm order to do things in, and how to set life up so you rarely reach this point.

What a welfare check actually is

A welfare check (sometimes called a "safe and well check") is simply someone going to a person's home to confirm they're safe and well when there's a reason to be concerned and no other way to reach them. It isn't dramatic and it isn't an overreaction, it's a normal thing worried families arrange.

The calm order to work through

You don't have to jump straight to the top. Most worries resolve at step one or two.

1. Try other numbers. A landline, a partner's mobile, a WhatsApp. Phones get left on charge in another room more often than anything is wrong.
2. Ask someone close by. A neighbour, a nearby sibling, the warden if it's sheltered housing. A two-minute knock on the door answers most worries.
3. Contact their GP surgery. If there's a health reason to be concerned, the surgery can advise and, in some cases, help.
4. Call the local council's adult social services. Every UK council has an adult social care team who deal with exactly this. Search "[council name] adult social services".
5. Call the police on 101. The non-emergency police line can carry out a "safe and well" check when there's genuine concern for someone's welfare and you have no other way to reach them.
6. Call 999 if you believe someone is in immediate danger, has had a fall, or needs urgent medical help.

What you'll be asked

Whoever you contact will want the person's full name, address, a description, why you're worried, and when you last had contact. Having that ready makes the call quick.

The better answer: rarely need one

Welfare checks are a safety net for the bad day. The everyday version of the same reassurance is a simple daily routine, so a quiet day is noticed within hours, not after a frightening silence.

That's the whole idea behind Getwello: your loved one taps one button each morning to say they're well, the family sees it, and if the tap doesn't come the family is gently alerted, in time to make a quick call rather than arrange an emergency. For families who also want to know where, there's an optional Family Map. It doesn't replace a welfare check for a real emergency, but it means you almost never get to that heart-in-mouth moment of a phone ringing out.

If you're at the start of worrying about an older parent, our guide to looking after an ageing parent walks through the wider picture.