How to find a personal assistant carer
A personal assistant (PA) carer can improve your independence.
You can choose who you want to support you (with some exceptions, please discuss this with your allocated worker). You can decide what you need them to do and when you need it, within the guidance of your adult care plan or children's short breaks plan.
If you would like DPSS to help you find a PA carer to directly employ, you can contact our Employment Services Team on 01603 223392 or email [email protected]. Read our privacy notice to find out how we use your personal information.
DPSS' preferred recruitment platform is ukcil.com. For our DPSS customers, this is a free service accessed by contacting the employment team. The employment team will create an account for you and send you a login. Here you will be able to view candidates and invite them for interview, make a job offer and even download an employment contract. The employment team can be involved as much or as little as you like depending on your requirements.
If you are looking to engage services of a self-employed PA, the Norfolk Community Directory (NCD) is where you can search for a PA carer to help you who is self-employed. Some care agencies also advertise on the NCD (any care agencies who deliver personal care must be CQC registered).
Please note that the PAs on the NCD are self-employed and have not been vetted by Norfolk County Council. This is a services directory, not an approved/recommendations forum. All checks, including Right to Work/DBS checks, should be carried out before employing a person from this list.
Users should take care when choosing providers and, if needed, make their own checks on a service and assess the suitability for their needs. Checks should be made for any services delivering activity that is governed by a regulatory body or subject to professional minimum standards.
DBS checks
A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check helps you decide if a person is a suitable by giving you information about any criminal history.
An enhanced check will also tell you if that person is on a list of those barred from working with vulnerable adults and children. You must get an enhanced DBS check for anyone you recruit to work with children with a short breaks plan.
We can arrange a check for you and the cost will be covered by us. To arrange this contact the Direct Payment Customer Services Team (DPCST) on 01603 223392 or email [email protected] with the following details:
- The PA's full name
- The PA's National Insurance number
- The PA's date of birth
- The PA's email address
- Your email address
The check will be carried out by DBS and a certificate will be sent to the proposed PA. It's very important that the PA shows you the original certificate.
If you have any concerns about any information on the DBS certificate, please contact Adult Services or the Short Breaks team to discuss. The GOV.UK website (opens new window) also has more information on DBS checks.
Training
You must consider any necessary training.
For example, if your personal assistant is responsible for lifting or moving you then they must have moving and handling training.
