Overnight stays near hospital: free and low-cost places to sleep

Where a family can sleep for free

Two UK charities run houses next to hospitals where families stay without paying. Both depend on a referral or a social worker, so the first step is always a conversation on the ward.

Ronald McDonald Houses

Ronald McDonald House Charities UK has 14 Houses across the UK, each moments away from the children's ward it serves. A House gives families a place to rest, eat and relax, free of charge. Families of children treated at the charity's partner NHS hospitals can stay as long as they need, including families who have come from abroad for specialist care. The charity says over 8,415 families checked in during 2023.

You cannot book directly. The hospital has to refer you.

Southampton shows how a House runs day to day. It has 53 en-suite bedrooms, each big enough for a family of four, in front of the eye unit at Southampton General Hospital and about five minutes' walk from the Princess Anne. Nurses and doctors complete a referral form, and House staff give rooms to the families in greatest need, judged on how ill the child is, how far the family has travelled and how long the stay is likely to last. The room is free. You leave a £25 key deposit, refunded when you go, buy and cook your own food, and pay £2 to use the washing machines and dryers. Families without a room can ask the ward for a day pass to shower, cook or take a break in the House.

Young Lives vs Cancer Homes from Home

Young Lives vs Cancer runs 10 Homes from Home in 8 cities: Belfast, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, Manchester, Nottingham and Southampton. They sit close to principal treatment centres for children and young people with cancer. Parents or carers and brothers and sisters can stay. The patient can stay too when well enough not to need a hospital bed overnight, along with a partner or children if they have them.

A Young Lives vs Cancer specialist social worker checks with the Home Manager whether a room is free and arranges the stay. Families without a social worker contact the charity through the chat option on its website. Where no Home is near the hospital, the social workers may help find other accommodation.

Paul's House at University College London Hospitals is one example. It takes up to 16 families, less than 10 minutes' walk from the hospital and its Macmillan Cancer Centre. Patients over 18 can stay alone. Under 18s stay with a parent or responsible adult, and outpatients can stay as well. Rooms are booked through the team caring for the patient, depend on availability and are allocated on clinical need.

Hospital-run rooms for relatives

Some hospitals let rooms to patients' relatives on site or nearby, at a nightly charge. Two examples with published prices:

Royal Brompton asks you to book ahead on 0207 351 8044, Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm, with card details or a cheque deposit, because demand is high. Its sister site, Harefield Hospital, offers a discounted rate to visitors receiving Employment and Support Allowance, Income Support or Pension Credit, who bring proof of the benefit to show the accommodation staff.

What the NHS pays for and what it does not

The NHS Constitution for England says NHS services are free of charge except where Parliament has approved a charge, so a patient's own bed on the ward costs nothing. A relative's bed is a different matter.

• The Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme refunds fares, fuel, parking and tolls. The NHS website, leaflet HC11 and form HC5(T) say nothing about accommodation.
• The NHS website lists visiting someone in hospital as outside the travel scheme, so a relative's journeys are not refunded unless a healthcare professional said the patient needed an escort.
• In England, a parent or guardian of an inpatient under 18 kept in overnight parks free between 7.30pm and 8am, for up to 2 vehicles. Visitors of gravely ill relatives or of patients on a long stay should be offered parking concessions. Details are on the hospital parking page.

How to find a bed near the hospital

1. As soon as you know the stay will be long or far from home, ask the ward nurse whether the hospital has a Ronald McDonald House or relatives' accommodation, and ask for a referral.
2. If your child or young relative has cancer, ask for the Young Lives vs Cancer social worker. Through them you reach a Home from Home or other help with accommodation.
3. If there is no charity place, ask the hospital's accommodation office for relatives' rooms and book early.
4. Ask whether the hospital offers a lower rate for people on benefits, as Harefield does.
5. Ask the ward for the overnight parking concession on the same day.

Mistakes that cost money

Booking a hotel before asking on the ward. A free House needs a hospital referral, and the ward is where it starts.

Expecting the travel scheme to cover a room. It pays for getting there, not for staying.

Turning up at adult relatives' accommodation with children. Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham does not take under 16s, and Royal Brompton accepts children only at its discretion.

Paying full daytime parking through a long admission. The mandatory free period for parents runs from 7.30pm to 8am only, but English trusts should offer concessions to visitors of relatives on an extended stay, so ask for one.

Where the figures come from

The 14 Houses and the description of what they offer are from the Ronald McDonald House Charities UK home page. The referral rule, partner hospitals, length of stay and the 8,415 families in 2023 are from the charity's page on staying in a House. The Southampton room numbers, deposit, laundry charge, priority rules and day pass are from University Hospital Southampton. The 10 Homes from Home, the 8 cities, who can stay and the social worker process are from Young Lives vs Cancer. The Paul's House details are from University College London Hospitals. The Birmingham prices are from the University Hospitals Birmingham relatives' accommodation leaflet, July 2025. The Royal Brompton prices, booking line and Harefield discount are from Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals. The travel scheme exclusions are from the NHS website, leaflet HC11 and form HC5(T). The overnight parking rule is from the GOV.UK car parking principles. The free-of-charge principle is from the NHS Constitution.