I'm looking for a personal assistant
If you need help with everyday tasks such as getting washed and dressed, going out of the home, need help preparing and cooking food or need help with healthcare tasks, a Personal Assistant maybe be able to help you with your care and support.
Employing your own Personal Assistant can increase the choice and control you have in deciding how your support needs are met, supporting you to live more independently.
If you employ a Personal Assistant, this gives you more choice and control over who cares for you and what tasks they do.
A Personal Assistant can help you with a number of daily tasks including:
- personal care
- help with meals/ food preparation
- domestic tasks
- health related tasks such as medication support
- help living independently
- getting out and about in your local community
- managing money
- access to work, education and learning.
For more information read our factsheet on how to find a personal assistant.
Watch a video in British Sign Language (BSL) about personal assistants.
Support with Confidence
Personal Assistants who are listed on Nottinghamshire Help Yourself have the Support with Confidence logo with their details. This means they have undertaken and successfully completed the Support with Confidence scheme.
This includes
- Personal Assistant e-learning training -“Becoming a Personal Assistant”
- provided 2 references
- Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.
More information about a DBS check.
You can find a list of Personal Assistants who have completed the Support with Confidence scheme and are available to work on Nottinghamshire Help Yourself Personal Assistant Network.
If you are currently employing a Personal Assistant and would like them to complete Support with Confidence, they will need to apply themselves.
Employing a Personal Assistant
You can employ a Personal Assistant whether you have:
- have a personal budget (Local Authority)
- have a Personal Health Budget (NHS)
- pay privately (self-funding).
If you employ someone as a Personal Assistant you are their employer.
Being an employer also means you have legal responsibilities as an employer.
Before you employ a Personal Assistant, you will need to:
- decide if you want to manage all recruitment and employment responsibilities yourself
- register with a Nottinghamshire County Council Accredited Direct Payment Support Service for assistance with recruitment and employer responsibilities including payroll if you do not want to manage these yourself
- other Direct Payment Support services are available. You can find support services on Notts Help Yourself
- carry out necessary checks such as Right to Work, Enhanced DBS and reference checks
- make payments to your Personal Assistant
- pay HMRC monthly
- have Employer Liability Insurance
- manage your Personal Assistants’ working time, role and tasks carried out, holidays, sickness, and training.
Note that you cannot pay your Personal Assistant cash in hand.
For more information read our factsheet on employing a Personal Assistant.
Enhanced DBS checks for personal assistants
It is Council policy that if you receive a Direct Payment, any personal assistants you employ must have an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS check).
We will cover the cost of the DBS check(s). Neither you nor your PA(s) need to pay for this.
Further information about employing a Personal Assistant
Further information about employing a Personal Assistant can be found on Skills for Care Employing your own care and support.
Skills for Care has produced an Employing Personal Assistants toolkit which provides detail information for people employing personal assistants. It includes sections on recruiting, managing and training staff. Information on the Care Certificate can assist you in developing an induction and training plan for your Personal Assistant. Information about Personal Assistants doing the Care Certificate can be found in the Care Certificate and Personal Assistants FAQs.
In addition Nottinghamshire Help Yourself website provides information on a range of training opportunities and courses for you and your Personal Assistant to access. For more information go to Notts Help Yourself Training.
