Our live-in care service has seen a massive 43% increase in enquiries since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. That means we’re looking for new people to join our fantastic team of care workers.
Coronavirus has meant lots of people are thinking about changing career or needing to look for a new job. So, in the immortal words of Lionel Ritchie, “Is it you we’re looking for?”
To help you decide, we thought it was time to talk to Agincare’s recruitment business partner, Kelly Shaw, about the kind of people she’s looking for, and how the live-in care worker recruitment process works…
Hi Kelly – thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. Shall we start with a fundamental one?
What exactly is live-in care?
OK, let’s start right at the beginning… Our 24-hour homecare service gives a person one-to-one support in the comfort and security of their own home from a carefully-matched care worker.
Our clients get:
- Support with medication, personal care, eating and drinking
- Help with domestic chores such as cooking, cleaning and laundry
- The companionship of their care worker
- The chance to keep their independence and continue to be part of their local community
How has the COVID-19 pandemic had an impact?
Lots of people who have been looking at different care options have realised that live-in care is a particularly safe form of care.
It gives you complete control over who goes in and out of your home. And for many people, that’s especially important during the current COVID-19 pandemic.
The upshot is that we’re looking to boost our care worker team to meet customer demand.
Sounds like a great opportunity! What kind of people are you looking for? Do you only want people who have done care work before?
Not at all! We’re looking for anyone who’s interested in helping people. The personal qualities we look for include caring, adaptable, compassionate and friendly. We take applications from men and women aged 18-60+.
We’ve got four career pathways, which give us the flexibility to consider people’s applications whatever their background and experience:
- Experienced care workers who we can fast-track into our senior care worker programme
- People coming from an industry such as retail, tourism or hospitality. We know they’ll have gained transferable skills and experience such as customer service, health and safety and hygiene
- People who have never worked in care and who are currently unemployed, but who are looking to have a rewarding career with a successful team at the heart of a trusted organisation
- Experienced care workers who have not yet gained any qualifications in the care sector, but interested in continuing their professional development.
If I joined the team, where could I end up working?
We have placements all over the country, so if you wanted to you could get a chance to experience life in a different part of England.
How long do live-in care placements last?
Every single one of our clients is different, from their care needs to their home situation, to how long they need support for.
All our care workers have individual situations too. Some of our care workers have been supporting the same client for years. But then others prefer to do shorter stints acting as cover while a colleague is on holiday. And some choose to do short-term respite 24-hour care. We are continuing to build a diverse team of care workers.
What are the benefits of being a live-in care worker with Agincare?
Working for Agincare, rather than as a ‘freelance’ care worker, you’ll have us behind you every step of the way.
As well as the opportunity to be part of an established company, we offer:
- A permanent contract
- A weekly salary of up to £700 (depending on the client’s care needs)
- Accommodation in your client’s home, plus a food and domestic allowance
- Holiday pay
- Pension
- Ongoing training
- Career development opportunities – many of the members of our senior team started as care workers and have moved within Agincare to enhance their experience and career
- Unlimited access to our employee referral programme
- An employee assistance programme
What about training?
Supporting someone in their home is of course a big responsibility. You’d start with induction and three days of initial training. Shadowing is available for those who are new to care. This means you spend time with someone who’s already an experienced care worker. There’s ongoing training too, we don’t abandon you once you’re in a placement.
How do I apply to be part of the team?
The first step is to fill out an initial online application form – this takes about three minutes.
Once we receive your application, one of our recruitment officers will be in contact with you within 48 hours. We’ll ring you to either do a telephone interview straight away, or to arrange one with you. It’s also a chance for you to ask any burning questions you have.
After that, we send you a comprehensive application pack, and together we take it from there.
Live-in care can offer you a rewarding and interesting career. In the words of our team member, Simran:
“It lets me put a smile on someone’s face. Honestly, it’s the best job I’ve ever done.”
Isn’t it time you had a fresh start, so you can fall in love with your job?