Handyman type service for older people

[urgen]

Hi all,

I am struggling with supporting my DM as I live 100 miles from her. She is doing OK but walks with a frame now and is housebound bar the daily trip to the small supermarket to get supplies.

Everything is blown up or given to me to resolve and although she doesn’t like to bother me - (her words) she does. She doesn’t have broadband and her mobile she claims is broken but isnt because she has let it run out of charge.

She has a carer in just once a week to supervise her shower. The rest of the time she manages with a flannel.

I am the only sibling in the country so it all lies with me.

Is there any type of service we could buy i.e handyman, help with things not working that can often simply be user error? She is based in London if that helps.

I try and help where I can but she is often not telling me exactly what she is doing and of course I am not standing beside her. She gets upset when things stop working.

Has anyone any ideas?

Try local Age UK website for suggestions. Or there may be a volunteer befriending scheme which buddies volunteers up with a person with shared interests.

A few London councils have contracted Age UK for this . They offer befriending service as well as handyman and benefits claim checks with winter fuel etc.

My main job is a home help (when I’m not skiving on maternity) and that’s basically what I do.
Yes I do housework and laundry but I also microwave Wiltshire farm meals or tins of soup, walk tiny yappy dogs, post letters, pack hospital bags, bring Christmas trees out the loft or put them back up, call things like plumbers/sparkies/gardeners when things need fixing, tell door to door salesfolk to piss off on a regular basis, arrange chimney sweeps, make doctors appointments, help with tech and just generally do things around the house they can’t do.

Most of my clients are elderly but some are younger with disabilities so what each client needs differs. Council home helps are very limited in what they can do but I’m private so I can basically do as the client needs. The only thing I can’t do is anything with medication, anything personal care or clean windows because you need a licence for that in most of Scotland and I don’t have a licence or insurance for that.

Would that be what you need? You can either phone home help companies or find someone local to her that offers that. Often we put flyers through doors or in local shops.

I always come for the first meeting with a paper copy of my insurance cert and my disclosure (I’m in Scotland I don’t know how background checks work in London but there will be something) and I don’t mind if you make copies for your records. I mention this because it’s something that should be checked if you’re hiring someone for it but not everyone thinks of it. Some people are surprised when I turn up with them. Did make an arse of myself with my Monday client who is blind - can’t bloody read them so had to email them to his social worker.