Helping an older or vulnerable person in their own home makes such a positive difference to their safety and comfort. Many of us regularly care for others by helping with cleaning and shopping when they can't manage it themselves. But what is it like to do this for others when it's your job?
The Happy to Help Gateshead team know first-hand how rewarding it is to be trusted to take care of somebody else’s domestic tasks like cleaning, shopping and picking up prescriptions or running other errands. They do this for hundreds of households in Gateshead every week. There are so many benefits to a person’s wellbeing, and that’s why we’re so proud of what we do.
We receive lots of questions and hear some misconceptions about what it is like to be a home help assistant. Whilst we can’t speak on behalf of all home help services, we share our thoughts here at Happy to Help Gateshead, Gateshead’s home help charity.
Do home help assistants just look after older people?
No, we support people in their own homes for a variety of reasons. Most of our clients are older people, but we also support people of all ages with disabilities and health conditions that make it difficult to carry out regular domestic tasks for themselves.
What tasks does a home help assistant do?
We take care of the tasks that clients tell us they are struggling with. We always prioritise independence, so we encourage clients to continue with the tasks they can manage, or want to keep on doing themselves, and we look after the rest. Having the choice and control over your own home is important, so each client has their own personalised home help plan, which is flexible and based on their needs and wishes.
Here are the main tasks that people ask us for help with, but this list is not exhaustive. If clients have other tasks in the home they are struggling with they simply let us know.
Shopping
Prescription Collection
Bill Paying
Housework
Vacuuming
Sweeping
Polishing/Dusting
Cleaning Floors
Cleaning inside Windows
Cleaning Cupboards inside and out
Making and Changing Beds
Ironing
Laundry services
Many people like us to do these tasks for them because it means their family members don't have to. Clients often tell us how relieved they feel that they are lightening the load for their relatives who often have shopping and housework of their own to manage, as well as looking after children and/or working for instance. It also means that when loved ones visit our clients, they can enjoy quality time together instead of having jobs to take care of while they're there.
Our favourite kind of work is providing services that make people feel happy, and 100% of our customers tell us we're achieving this. It makes us feeling amazing to know we can make a difference.
If caring for others is so great, why do I hear of so many people leaving the profession?
It is true that some care companies have a high turnover of staff. We’ll be honest, we struggle to answer this question because it’s not something we experience very often. Lots of our team members have been with us for many years now. We do know however, why our members of staff stay with us so long:-
The hours fit in with their life. We don't provide personal care, so this means we don't need to work on weekends or evenings and rotas are built around our individual members of staff. If they can’t work Tuesdays, or if they need to pick up children or grandchildren, or only want to work a certain number of hours, we honour this at all times. Work/life balance is something we feel very strongly about.
They’re given plenty of time to go from client to client so there is no rushing or anxiety about being late
They look after the same clients every week and build up trust and a great relationship with the people they support, and their families. The clients love this about Happy to Help Gateshead too.
They tell us that they feel appreciated by the clients they look after, and feel just as cared for by the Happy to Help Gateshead organisation as their clients do.
How much do they get paid?
We pay at least minimum wage to all of our staff at Happy to Help Gateshead, plus any travel expenses/mileage between clients.
Do I visit the same clients each week?
Yes. We sometimes ask our home help assistants to cover clients for other home help assistants who are absent from work, but we know which members of staff are happy to cover, and when they are free to cover, so that we can quickly put a plan in place for clients whose regular worker is off.
I’ve heard that carers often get little time between clients, and have to rush from place to place, is that true?
Liz, our home help coordinator, carries out a home visit for every new client before their home help service begins. Liz then knows exactly where each client lives, any key information about access to the property and parking so that she has a clear understanding of how long it will take for staff to arrive from wherever they are travelling from. Liz then builds this time into the rota, so that staff always have plenty of time to arrive, are not rushed, and can get a bite to eat or a cuppa when needed.
Do I need my own car to be a home help assistant?
Most of our home help assistants have their own car but a few use public transport or look after clients close to their homes and within walking distance.
Do home help assistants pay for their own travel expenses?
No. We cover all mileage expenses or public transport costs for our home help assistants so that they are reimbursed for any expenses for travel from client to client.
How is a home help assistant kept safe?
Liz carries out a home assessment on all clients before they access the service, and gets a clear understanding of the needs of each client she meets. We give all home help assistants PPE too, so that gloves, masks, aprons and bags are provided to maintain a high level of safety and hygiene. Each member of staff is given a circuit breaker too, to eliminate any risk if an electrical household item such as a hoover or iron is faulty. Each member of staff is given emergency contact information, and Happy to Help Gateshead has a dedicated staff telephone number so that they can always speak to someone from the head office support team should an issue arise. The team is trained in safeguarding too, to ensure that vulnerable clients and staff are as safe as possible.
Do I need qualifications to be a home help assistant?
Having qualifications isn't an essential requirement to be a home help assistant with Happy to Help Gateshead. We value the right personality, a dedicated and caring attitude and reliability over formal qualifications. Having some experience is also desirable, at least one year of supporting a vulnerable person is great.
Do home help assistants have to carry around cleaning equipment?
No. We ask that clients provide all of the cleaning equipment needed to carry out their home help plan. This means that clients have peace of mind knowing that we are using the products they like, and that home help assistants have everything there for them when they arrive to each client’s home.
Is training provided?
Yes, all of our home help assistants are given training as part of their induction before they visit clients on their own. New team members spend time shadowing other home help assistants. After that, we usually start our home help assistants with a few clients to begin with, and build up a rota from there, at a pace that they feel happy with, and to the amount of hours they wish to do.
How do I apply?
To apply to become a home help assistant, Happy to Help Gateshead accepts applications all year round. An application form and job description can be found on the home page of our website, and if you’d like to know more, you can contact Liz for a chat on 0191 4785919 or by emailing vacancies@teamwork-dt.co.uk. If you have any questions that we haven't answered, we'd love to hear from you. Drop a comment below our call our head office team on 0191 4785919. Or why not send us an email at vacancies@teamwork-dt.co.uk.
If you found this blog helpful, check out some of our other articles: What is the recruitment process for our home help and cleaning vacancies?
The Benefits of Home Help Services
Coronavirus - How We Keep our Clients Safe
The Cost of Home Help in Gateshead
9 Misconceptions of Home Help Support
The Benefits of Day Centres for Older People
The Benefits of Hot Meal Delivery Services for Older People
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