Benefits of joining SWC for PAs

Anyone can set up as a Personal Assistant. You do not need to be approved by the Council but there are benefits to being approved under the Support With Confidence or Personal Assistant at Home scheme for both the Personal Assistant and the service user.

Support with Confidence in Bracknell Forest is designed for individual PAs to register as care providers. We can accept companies to the register who are agencies registered with the CQC and we accept Personal Service Company’s under the personal assistants at Home scheme.

For the personal assistant the benefits are as follows:

Flexibility
The Support With Confidence and Personal Assistants at Home websites allows you to state which days or times of the day you can work so that people who are searching on the website will know in advance when you are available. This allows you to fit your work around your own life and that of your family and is flexible enough for you to be able to pick up extra work as your circumstances change.

Training
We will provide a comprehensive training programme which will give you the skills and confidence you need to carry out your job effectively. It will also ensure that you know what to do in an emergency or who to contact if there are any problems. Training will help to protect you from injury as it will include showing you the correct way of offering physical support to your employer so that you don’t put yourself in any danger. Your training will give you a good basic introduction to social care work so if you choose to go on and study further you will already have covered the basic foundation.

Advertising
Once you have completed the training programme, we will put your details on the websites so that you can advertise your services. People who are searching for a Personal Assistant will be able to see these and if they think you may be able to help them, invite you to meet them to discuss their needs in more detail. Bracknell Forest Council assesses those looking for care, then gives money to those who are eligible for funding to spend on care steering them and those who want to self-fund towards both schemes. By advertising through the schemes, you are more likely to find work which means more choice and flexibility for you.

Support
We want to make sure you are confident in what you are doing and feel able to carry out your duties without any problems. Once you find work, you will be responsible to the person using your services but through Personal Assistants at Home we provide a 9 – 5 telephone support service for our PAs.  Bracknell Forest Council will continue to support you and give you help and advice on any aspects of your job should you need it.