Hire a Carer
How to hire a carer
Hiring a carer isn’t something you should do without a great deal of thought, after all, this person is going to be spending time in your home with you. There are different ways that you can source a carer to suit your needs, such as approaching an agency, hiring someone you already know, or talking to a private home care company such as Helping Hands. Having additional support in your own home can make a substantial difference to your life, whether you need them to help with your mobility or to help you access the local community once more. Having a carer at home from Helping Hands will ensure you get to remain as independent as possible in the home you love and avoid the need for you to go into a care home.
Before you approach any care companies, carers, or agencies, it’s a good idea to have a care needs assessment carried out by the local council, whether you think you’ll be eligible for help with your care costs or not. Having a needs assessment will let you know what help you need, and even though at Helping Hands we will want to carry out our own assessment with you, it gives you an idea of how much help you’ll be eligible to receive and will assist with your budgeting.
Independent hiring
If you’re looking to employ someone you know to care for you or you have had a private carer recommended to you it’s important to decide how you’re going to pay for it. It’s also vital to ask for references or speak to previous clients of theirs to ensure they are reputable.
Hiring through an agency introduction service
Your care needs assessment from the local authority should’ve identified what care and support you needed in your own home, so it’s important to have the assessment to hand when you meet with an agency representative.
Hiring agency employed carer
A hiring agency may or may not be a private homecare company, and it can sometimes be difficult to discover which the company you approach is. It’s a good idea to ask if the company is a franchised branch of a nationally recognised chain, or fully managed.
If you’re concerned about how you will pay for your carer you may be eligible for attendance allowance or other benefits, and applying for these can be done though the government website. Before employing a private carer there are many things to consider, such as whether you are able to take on employer responsibilities, including paid holidays and disciplinary matters, and how your care would be covered when the carer takes time off. It’s also important to remember that private carers aren’t able to access training the way company carers are, and they’re not regulated either.
Care agencies vary widely so it’s important to get recommendations from people you know who have had good care or know someone who has. It’s also a good idea to read online reviews that previous clients have left about the company so that you can get an idea of how they are rated. Regulator websites like the CQC and independent organisations such as homecare.co.uk will have information you can access, and once you have made a shortlist of suitable introductory agencies you should ask family or friends to help you contact them. They should be able to come to your home but it’s important to have someone with you if you’re not sure you’re going to remember what you need to ask them, such as how they’ll cater to your needs, costs and how often they are billed, what happens if your carer is unavailable, and how the carers are screened and managed.
Why should I hire a carer?
Hiring a carer as opposed to leaving your beloved home and moving into residential care is always a highly personal and emotive decision, after all you may have lived in your home for decades. As long as you are diligent in sourcing your carer through reliable channels, such as approaching Helping Hands, then you and your loved ones can be reassured that your carer will be thoroughly vetted and the care you receive fully regulated. We will work closely with you and your loved ones, where appropriate, to ensure that you ae always supported exactly as you wish, and because we’ve delivered care to thousands of people across England and Wales, you really can be confident that we’re the UK’s home care experts.
Getting in touch with us is easy, as our customer care team are available seven days a week, both by phone and online. Once we’ve chatted to you about your needs and care expectations we’ll arrange an appointment for you with your local care team who will be happy to come to your home and talk you through the entire process. You can also get in touch with your nearest branch directly, and you’ll find their contact details here.
Hiring a carer through an agency compared to independent hire: The benefits
While Helping Hands is not a care agency and we never have been throughout our history, it may be confusing for people as to what the differences actually are. Care agencies traditionally source carers for their clients but don’t get involved in the day-to-day managing of the care packages and the self-employed carers they match up. In contrast, Helping Hands fully manage all of our care packages, own and run all of our local care branches, and employ all of our carers ourselves. This ensures an unrivalled continuity of care for all of our customers that care agencies are unable to match.
We have 150 local branches across England and Wales, and we own and manage every single one – we don’t operate franchises, as we believe it will affect the continuity of care that we offer across our whole branch network. Not only do we take into account the local authority assessment that’s been carried out, we also conduct our own assessment to ensure that everything we need to know about your care requirements will be documented and put into place. This will include the condition(s) you live with, medication you take, continence needs, equipment that’s used, your holistic needs (including spiritual or religious), and who else is supporting you. We’ll also need to make sure that your home is a safe working environment for our carers to be in, and any steps that may need to be taken to make it so. We’ll also need to know access requirements, such as whether you have a key box at the property, and how you like to be addressed.
How our carers can help
When you wish to hire a carer Helping Hands will undertake everything for you. You’ll be supported by staff fully screened through the DBS and with references thoroughly checked. If you’re new to the idea of support at home and you’re wondering how to hire a carer just come to us! Avoiding all of the headaches that having to organise a carer yourself can bring is the best reason to come to Helping Hands, along with our outstanding reputation for delivering exceptional visiting and live-in care.
Fully regulated by the CQC / CIW
All of our care services are fully regulated by the Care Quality Commission and the Care Inspectorate Wales, which is not the case for many care agencies and independent carers. Consequently, if you wish to have care delivered by a reputable company, fully owned and managed since 1989, come to Helping Hands.