MS support in Hertfordshire comes from four places, and the one families struggle to find is the community team. The neurologist diagnoses and prescribes. The MS nurse and community neuro team manage the condition week to week. Which team that is depends on whether your GP is in the east and north of the county or the west. Finally, the charities and a home care provider sit around them.
The referral rule is the same on both sides. A neurologist has to confirm the diagnosis before the community team will take you.
People who have lived with MS for years usually know their nurse well. It is the newly diagnosed, and the families of someone whose MS has recently progressed, who ask us who they should call. So this guide sets out each service, what it does and how to reach it, with the numbers as published on 19 September 2026.
Starling Homecare is a family run, CQC registered provider, and we support people with MS at home across the county. We are the practical layer around the clinical one. In other words, we turn a care plan into help on a Tuesday morning.
What MS support in Hertfordshire looks like: the four parts
The NHS describes the MS team as a specialist MS nurse, a neurologist, a physiotherapist and an occupational therapist, working together. In Hertfordshire those people sit in three different organisations. That is why the map matters.
The neurologist works in a hospital. In the east that means Lister, the New QEII or Hertford County. In the west it means Watford General, St Albans City or Hemel Hempstead Hospital. The nurse and therapists work in the community, in one of two NHS trusts. The charities, chiefly the MS Society and the MS Trust, answer the questions in between. Lastly, home care is the fourth part, and you arrange it privately or through the council.
MS support in Hertfordshire east and north: the Danesbury team
If your GP is in east or north Hertfordshire, the community service is Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust's neuro community rehabilitation team at the Danesbury Neurological Centre in Welwyn. Its own service page lists specialist nurses for MS and Parkinson's, clinical psychology, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and rehabilitation assistants. It also runs nurse led clinics for people with MS.
In practice, the team sees people at home, in outpatient clinics or in groups, depending on need. Its page states that patients may be seen at home if their goals require it. It takes referrals from hospitals, GPs and other health professionals. It also takes self referrals from anyone the service has seen in the past year. The number is 0300 123 7571, and the referral email is [email protected].
The eligibility is plain: aged 18 or over, a consultant diagnosed neurological condition, and a GP in East or North Hertfordshire. Speech and language therapy and dietetics sit outside this team. However, both are available by separate referral within the same trust.
MS support in Hertfordshire west: the CLCH route
West of the county, Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust runs community services. Its Community Neurological Rehab Service provides specialist therapy and nursing to people with long term neurological conditions living at home, from Langley House in Watford.
GPs refer electronically. Other professionals, by contrast, request a referral form. You reach the service through CLCH's Hertfordshire single point of access on 0300 020 0656, option 2 then option 9, or by email to [email protected]. The criteria are age 16 or over and a neurological diagnosis that a neurologist has confirmed. CLCH publishes its response times: triage within 48 hours, urgent cases within two working days, routine cases within six weeks. It runs 8.30am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday.
One honest gap. West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals' neurology page names two specialist Parkinson's nurses but no MS nurse. Similarly, the CLCH page describes nursing without naming a dedicated MS post. If you are in the west, ask your consultant's secretary who your MS nurse contact is. Then ask for a referral to the community neuro service in the same conversation.
The hospital side: Lister, Watford and Queen Square
East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust sees neurology outpatients at Lister, the New QEII and Hertford County. It says that anyone needing admission to a neurology ward goes to the Royal Free in London. West Hertfordshire's consultants all hold joint appointments with University College London Hospitals or the Royal Free.
That is why so many Hertfordshire MS patients know Queen Square. UCLH's MS service at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery says it has worked with thousands of people across North London and Hertfordshire. Above all, its focus is early diagnosis and disease modifying therapies. If you are under Queen Square, your local community team still handles day to day support. In short, the two are not alternatives.
What to ask for about MS support in Hertfordshire at your next appointment
Three questions cover most of what families come to us not knowing. First, who is my MS nurse, and what is the direct number? Second, have I had a referral to the community neuro team for my half of the county, and if not, can that happen today? Third, what should I do during a relapse, out of hours?
The MS Society's helpline on 0808 800 8000 and the MS Trust's on 0800 032 3839, both listed by the NHS, will help you prepare those questions. Hertfordshire also has its own MS charity, the Herts MS Therapy Centre in Letchworth. We describe it in our guide to MS respite care in Hertfordshire.
How Starling Homecare supports people with MS at home
MS fluctuates, so the care has to. Our part of MS support in Hertfordshire is practical. Our MS care at home is visiting, overnight or live-in support that can step up during a relapse and back down afterwards, with the same small team throughout. We help with personal care on the mornings fatigue wins, meals and medication prompts, and getting to clinic appointments at Danesbury or Watford. We also pick up the household jobs that quietly stop.
Our carers follow the plan your MS nurse or therapist sets, and we tell them when something changes. Where a council funded package is in play, our guide to the care needs assessment in Hertfordshire explains that route.
Where we provide MS support in Hertfordshire
Our carers support people with MS across all ten of the areas we cover. In addition, each has its own local team and number.
- St Albans: 01727 324 127
- Harpenden: 01582 824 830
- Welwyn Hatfield: 01707 714 000
- Potters Bar: 01707 714 000
- Hemel Hempstead: 01442 954 137
- Berkhamsted: 01442 954 137
- Tring: 01442 954 137
- Hitchin: 01462 534739
- Hertford: 01920 746779
- Radlett and Shenley: 01923 988 550
Common questions about MS support in Hertfordshire
Does Starling Homecare provide MS care at home in Hertfordshire?
Yes. We provide visiting, overnight and live-in care for people with MS across the ten areas listed above. We plan it around fatigue and relapses, and we work alongside the NHS MS nurses and community neuro teams rather than replacing them.
How do I get an MS nurse in Hertfordshire?
Ask your neurologist or GP for a referral to the community neuro team for your half of the county. In the east and north that is the HCT team at Danesbury on 0300 123 7571, which lists MS specialist nurses. In the west it is CLCH's Community Neurological Rehab Service via 0300 020 0656, option 2 then 9.
Can I refer myself to the MS community team?
In the east and north, yes, if the service has seen you in the past year. Otherwise, and anywhere in the west, the referral comes from your GP, neurologist or another health professional. In every case a neurologist must have confirmed the diagnosis first.
We checked these service details against Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust, Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust and the NHS multiple sclerosis page on 19 September 2026. Services change, so please confirm hours by phone.
Arranging Care Is Simple
Starting care can feel like a big step. We keep it calm and straightforward, and we are here to guide you from your very first call.
1. Talk to us
Get in touch by phone or request a callback. We will listen, answer your questions and help you understand the options, so you can decide what feels right in your own time.
2. A home visit and initial consultation
We arrange a visit to understand your routines, your home and what matters most to you. Together we agree an initial consultation and shape the support that feels right.
3. Your care begins
A small, familiar team starts your care, arriving at the agreed times and staying involved as your needs change. We remain your trusted adviser throughout.
Whenever you are ready, we are here to help.