This paper reports on a seminar organised as part of an ESRC-funded series on older people and care homes that focused on the period of transition into a care home and the experiences of older people immediately before and after they made the move. The papers presented suggested that there were ways in which older people could exercise choice and control over the process, but that problems existed, ranging from the ways in which assessment and referral systems were crisis or service led, to how people were supported after their move. This paper outlines these arguments, and concludes that such processes need to be addressed if the quality of care at this difficult period is to be improved.

As part of a series of discussions about life in a care home for older people, a seminar was organised to explore aspects of moving into a care home, the preparation and work that this involves, and the implications for practitioners and service providers who wish to support older people who are going through this transition. The seminar therefore involved a range of speakers, beginning with presentations of research into the process of transition, followed by a focus on international developments, specifically within Germany and a presentation of practice developments in care environments for people with dementia. The seminar ended with a consideration of current research that offered a way of thinking about moving into a care home as part of the biography of people, rather than separate from them.