Keysafe guide for families

A keysafe is a small metal box fixed to an outside wall. It holds a spare door key behind a combination lock. For a family with an older parent, a partner with mobility issues, or anyone living alone at a distance, a keysafe can mean the difference between a paramedic getting in quickly during an emergency and the fire brigade breaking the front door down.

Why keysafes matter

The reasons are straightforward. A parent who has fallen may not be able to reach the door. A paramedic or carer needs access without waiting for an adult child to drive across the county. A neighbour can feed the cat if the owner is in hospital. A cleaner or gardener can let themselves in on their regular day without anyone needing to be there.

The alternatives are all worse. Keys hidden under plant pots or doormats are the first place any opportunist looks. Spare keys spread among multiple neighbours lose track of who has what. Emergency services forced to break down a door cause expensive damage and lose time doing it.

Police-approved models

Not all keysafes are the same, and the cheap ones are genuinely bad. Budget models from online marketplaces are often thin metal that opens with a claw hammer in under a minute. The ones worth buying carry a Sold Secure or Secured by Design rating, which means they have been tested against forced entry. Check that the home insurer accepts it.

The Supra C500 (now sold as the C500 Pro) is the most widely recognised. It has a push-button code and fixes to brick or stone with the supplied bolts. Expect to pay £60 to £90 depending on the retailer.

Burton, Yale and Master Lock also make certified models, but not every model from each brand is certified. Check the box for a Sold Secure or Secured by Design mark, and avoid anything without one.

Where to fit a keysafe

Three things matter with placement.

The wall surface. Fit it to solid brick or stone, not timber, UPVC, or soft render. The strength of a keysafe comes entirely from what it is bolted into. In a Cotswold stone house, the challenge is finding stone solid enough to take the fixings, so I check the wall before drilling. If the house is listed, check with the council first, as a keysafe on a listed wall can need consent.

Visibility. Not hidden, but not advertised either. Beside the front door in a porch, round the corner of the house, or in a spot that is visible from inside but not from the road. Avoid fitting it right next to the door handle, which makes it too obvious which door it opens.

Height. About door-handle height, roughly one metre from the ground, suits most people. Too high and an older resident cannot reach it. Too low and it means bending, which is uncomfortable for anyone with back or knee trouble.

Code management

The code is the entire security of the system. Treat it accordingly.

• Do not use obvious codes: 1234, 0000, the house number, a birthday.
• Do not write the code on the keysafe itself, on the door frame, or anywhere near the house.
• Change the code when anyone who had it no longer needs access. A cleaner who has moved on, a carer whose visits have ended.
• Change it at least once a year as a matter of routine.
• Share it only with people who have a genuine reason to need it.

Keep a written record of who has the code, but not the code itself. A note in the back of a diary works: "Fitted Mon 2nd Jun 2025. Shared with: Jane (daughter), Tom (son), Margaret (next door), the care agency." Update it when anything changes.

Who should have the code

For a single older resident, the usual list is: one or two adult children, one trusted neighbour, any regular carer or cleaner, and sometimes the GP surgery. Some practices keep keysafe codes on file for housebound patients; ask yours whether this is possible. If your parent has a personal alarm, give the code to the alarm company too, so it can pass it to the ambulance crew. Whoever rings 999 can also give it to the call handler.

For households with multiple residents, the list can be shorter. A nearby family member plus one neighbour is often enough. For holiday homes, a local cleaner or caretaker plus the owner.

Alternatives worth knowing about

A keysafe is not the only option. Three others come up.

• Smart door locks let a code or a phone app open the door, and can give carers their own temporary codes. They cost more (typically £150 to £300), run on batteries and don't suit every door, so check the door and the home insurance first. They do avoid having a key outside the house.
• A trusted neighbour with a key is a good complement to a keysafe, not a replacement. Neighbours go out, go on holiday, or may simply not be around at the specific moment they are needed. A keysafe works at three in the morning.
• Video doorbells with remote unlock (Ring, Nest, and similar) can be linked to a smart lock, letting a family member see who is at the door and open it from their phone. Useful where relatives live far away, but only as reliable as the internet connection at both ends.

For most older residents in Cirencester, a police-approved keysafe remains the simplest and most reliable choice.

Cost and fitting

A Supra C500 or equivalent costs £60 to £90. Fitting takes 30 to 45 minutes in solid brick or stone. With me that's the first hour, £55, covering drilling, fixings and checking the wall. Total fitted cost: roughly £115 to £145.

Fitting one yourself is possible if you have a decent hammer drill, carbide-tipped masonry bits, and are comfortable working with a spirit level at wall height. The supplied bolts on a C500 are specific; do not substitute shorter or thinner screws, because those bolts are what gives the unit its pull-off resistance.

A well-fitted, police-approved keysafe with a sensible code and a short list of people who know it is one of the best things a family can do for the safety of an older relative. It costs about the same as a decent pair of shoes and sits on a wall for years, completely ignored, until the one day it is needed. Then it matters enormously.