Your elderly parent had a fall: what to do next

Right now: call 999 if your parent is hurt or unwell, and NHS 111 if they cannot get up but seem unhurt — many areas have a falls lifting service that can help them up safely. Once the immediate moment has passed, a fall is a signal, not just an accident. It is the trigger to tell the GP, ask for a falls service referral, request a care needs assessment, consider a personal alarm and check benefits — so the next fall is less likely, and less dangerous if it happens.

This guide covers that second part: the admin cascade that follows a fall. It is the part nobody tells you about, and the part that actually changes what happens next.

This guide is general information, not financial or legal advice. For advice about your own situation, speak to a regulated professional, or a free service such as Citizens Advice or Age UK.

What should you do in the first hour?

Keep it simple and don’t try to be the medic:

• They are hurt, unwell, or you’re worried: call 999.
• They can’t get up but seem unhurt: call NHS 111. Many areas have a falls lifting service that sends trained people to help someone up safely — availability varies, but 111 will know what exists locally.
• They are up and seem fine: stay a while, make a cup of tea, and note down what happened while it’s fresh — when, where, and whether anything led up to it. You will use those notes more than you expect.

Any health worry at all, that day or afterwards, goes to the GP, NHS 111, or 999 in an emergency. Everything below is about organisation, not medicine.

Why should you always tell the GP — even if they seem fine?

Because a fall that isn’t reported doesn’t exist, administratively speaking. Telling the GP does three things:

1. It goes on the record. Care needs assessments, benefit claims and future referrals all lean on the medical record. “Mum fell on 6 July” in the notes is worth far more than your memory of it a year later.
2. The GP can look into it. Whether anything needs checking is a clinical question — exactly what the GP is for.
3. It opens the door to the falls service. Ask directly: “Can she be referred to the local falls service?” This is an NHS service that looks at why someone is falling and how to reduce the risk of it happening again. Most areas have one, and a fall is precisely what it exists for. NHS 111 can also advise on what’s available locally.

Make the call yourself if your parent won’t. You can tell a GP anything — they just can’t tell you things back without your parent’s permission.

How does a care needs assessment help after a fall?

A fall is the classic trigger for a care needs assessment — a free assessment from the council’s adult social care team. Anyone can request one for a person who appears to need care; your parent doesn’t have to ask themselves.

After a fall it typically leads to the practical things that make a home safer: an occupational therapist visit, grab rails by the bath and stairs, raised toilet seats, better lighting advice, and sometimes a package of home care visits. The assessment produces a written care plan and, where the council contributes to costs, a personal budget.

The assessment itself is free for everyone. Whether the council pays towards any ongoing care is a separate financial assessment (in England, capital limits of £23,250 and £14,250 apply) — but equipment and minor adaptations are often provided regardless. Our guide to the needs assessment walks through how to request one and what to say.

Should your parent have a personal alarm?

After a fall, usually yes — and it is one of the easier things to arrange. A pendant or wrist alarm connects to a 24/7 response centre; if your parent falls again, they press the button and someone answers, whatever the hour. For a family, it converts “what if she falls and lies there all night” into a plan.

Councils sometimes provide telecare free or subsidised after a needs assessment, so ask during the assessment before buying privately. Private alarms typically cost a few pounds a week. Our guide to personal alarms and telecare compares the options — including how to raise the idea with a parent who insists they don’t need one.

Which benefits can a fall unlock?

A fall often marks the moment a parent starts needing help or supervision — and that is the exact test for Attendance Allowance. Two points families miss:

• Supervision counts. Attendance Allowance isn’t only for hands-on care. Needing someone to keep an eye on them to stay safe — because of falls — is a qualifying need in its own right.
• The six-month clock runs on need, not help. The help must have been needed for six months, not received. If your parent has been unsteady and struggling for a while, the fall may simply be the loudest evidence of a need that started long ago. Note the date the struggling began.

Attendance Allowance is paid at £76.70 or £114.60 a week (2026/27), it is not means-tested, and it is tax-free — see the complete Attendance Allowance guide. An award can also increase Pension Credit and council tax support.

Rates correct for the 2026/27 tax year. Benefit rates change every April — always check the current figures on gov.uk.

How do you make the home safer without lecturing anyone?

Resist the urge to turn up with a bag of gadgets and a list of criticisms. The route that works — practically and diplomatically — is the occupational therapist visit through the council assessment above. An OT walks through the home with your parent, spots the risks, and recommends changes with the authority of a professional rather than a worried child. Rails, equipment and minor adaptations often follow at little or no cost.

That framing matters. “The council sends someone to help people stay in their own homes” lands very differently from “I think your house is dangerous.”

What about the bigger conversation?

One fall doesn’t mean your parent can’t live alone. But it is usually the moment a family starts asking the question — and it’s better asked calmly now than in a hospital corridor later. Our guide to the signs a parent may be struggling to live alone helps you judge it honestly, and if your parent waves away every suggestion, when a parent refuses help covers what works better than pushing.

For the full picture of what support exists and how to get it, start with the pillar guide: how to get help for an elderly parent.

The bottom line

Handle the moment with 999 or 111, then work the list: GP told, falls referral requested, needs assessment booked, alarm arranged, benefits checked, family plan agreed. None of it is difficult; it’s just admin nobody warns you about. Start with the money — run the free benefits check to see what your parent could claim, because a fall is very often the moment an entitlement begins.