What to do with a parent's photos and papers after they move into care
When a parent moves into care, their whole life often comes home with you in a few carrier bags. Here's how to look after it without panic.
6 min read
When a parent moves into a care home, one of the hardest jobs is what to do with the paperwork, the photographs, the loose slides, the folders of birthday cards they never threw away. It arrives all at once, usually in the middle of an emotional few weeks, and it can be tempting to either bin it or shove it in the loft and forget about it.
You don't have to decide anything today. But there are a few small things worth doing this week — before well-meaning family members start 'having a sort out' on your behalf.
1. Keep everything together, out of the loft, for now
Attics and garages are the two worst places for old photographs. Temperatures swing, damp gets in, and glue on photo albums melts in summer heat. If the box has come from a warm house, keep it in a warm house — inside a wardrobe or under a bed is fine.
2. Do a light inventory, don't sort
In one sitting, open the box just enough to know what's in it. Is it mostly loose prints? Slide carousels? Old VHS tapes labelled in your mum's handwriting? A shoebox of letters? You don't need to know what any individual item is yet — you just need to know the shape of the collection.
3. Don't throw duplicates away
If there are three copies of the same wedding photo, resist the urge to bin two of them. In twenty years someone in the family may want a print without the crease, or one that hasn't faded. Duplicates are cheap to keep and impossible to replace.
4. Photograph the labels, not the photos
If a slide carousel is labelled 'Cornwall 1978' in pencil, photograph the label with your phone. Handwritten context is the first thing to disappear when a collection changes hands.
5. Talk to your parent while they can still tell you
This is the piece almost everyone regrets not doing. If your mum can still tell you who's in the wedding photos, sit down with a cup of tea and a few of the albums and record it — even a voice memo on your phone is enough. You won't get that chance again.
Trusted with family archives
Umberdosh Restoration
When you're ready — and there's no rush — we can digitise everything so you have it safely, and re-house the originals in acid-free sleeves before they come home.
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