Personal Assistant
Personal care Assistants (PA) aim to improve the lives of their clients by providing additional care and support they need to live independently and thrive.
PAs support clients with a variety of daily tasks at home, including domestic tasks, personal care, shopping, sorting out paperwork and they also support their clients to get out and about in the community.
A wide variety of people may need the support from a PA. You may work Disabled people, older people, people with learning disabilities or people with mental health challenges. Most PAs are directly employed by the person they are supporting, which gives the client choice and control over their care.
What is unique about this role?
PAs provide both physical care and social support, giving them the opportunity to develop a close relationship with the clients they support. This role is unique because PAs can see the direct impact their work has on the quality of life of their clients.
There are a wide variety of clients and needs, so PAs have a wide pool of clients they can choose from. The nature of PA work is very flexible. PAs can choose to work with clients based on their availability, location and interests and have the choice to work with more than one person if they choose.
Career pathway
You do not have to have any specific caring experience to work as a PA, so the role is accessible for most candidates. You just need a willingness to learn and a desire to provide care for others.
Not only will you gain experience through working with clients, but you will have access to a number of training opportunities, completely free of charge, including First Aid, Manual Handling, Makaton, etc.
Many PAs go on to other caring or public sector roles once they’ve built up their skills and experience.