Finding a live in carer

[Coffeeinthepark]

Hi

My grandmother is newly wheel chair bound and now incapable of looking after herself. She's been having carers come in a few times a day but the family want to look for a live in carer.

Does anyone have any experience of this? Where best to look? How easy is it to get someone. She lives in a small village in Bedfordshire in a small but immaculately clean house

Thanks

I would call social services - they should have lists of care agencies who provide that sort of care and send it out (or your local council website, in adult social care section may have a list). The good thing about agencies is that if the live in carer is sick or leaves for whatever reason, they will need to provide cover. Plus they will have to have crb check and at least basic training (and you have someone to complain to if things don't go as well as they should), also you pay the agency so no need to worry about PAYE or NI contributions as they agency should sort that Via their payroll.

I would look at the Care Quality Commission website CQC.org.uk where you can search for companies in your area and various services they offer. Most importantly, this will show who is registered by law with them (a legal requirement under the Health and Social Care Act) and even more important, their most recent inspection reports
Social services may well give you a list of companies, and may even recommend one or two that they use, but this is merely based on cost not experience of good/excellent care.
I speak from experience :) good luck op

You could try Classified ads in The Lady

www.lady.co.uk/home/situations-wanted

Having used live in care for my DF for five years I too would recommend an agency.
You will need a rota of say two weeks on two weeks off so this way managing multiple carers is much easier.