The increasing number of older people within Britain's and, more generally, Europe's ethnic minority communities raises the need for the development of health and social care services which are appropriate to the specific needs and expectations of these older members of the various ethnic minority communities. Within the UK, the Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities can be identified as being in greater need of care and support in older age. There is, however, comparatively little research that examines the family and caring relationships of these ethnic minority older people, particularly those who are not identified from contacts with statutory and/or voluntary agencies. Drawing on a small but diverse sample of 20 older Bangladeshi and Pakistani women and men aged 50 years and older, we explore our participants’ understandings and experiences of care and support within the context of their family lives and social networks. Our data from the 20 semi-structured pilot interviews suggest that, much like the trend within the general population, the family remains central in the provision of care and support for these ethnic minority older people. We conclude by considering the implications this has for social care policy and practice.