Introduction

Not all care jobs involve helping people with their personal needs, such as dressing, washing or toileting. Domestic assistants help people with their household chores.

Domestic assistants are employed by local authority social services departments in England and Wales and by social work departments in Scotland. By offering a domestic service to people in need, they enable people to remain in their own homes with as much independence as possible.

Their clients are elderly people or those with physical and mental disabilities, who are unable to look after themselves and who, without such help, might have to go into hospital or residential care.

Work Environment

Domestic assistants are given a ’round’ of clients which means they get to know individual clients very well. They visit people in their homes and carry out any necessary domestic chores and might go to the local shops on their behalf.

They may also have meetings and training courses with other colleagues at the council offices.

Because of health risks, special clothing and equipment are issued – gloves, tabards, torches, personal safety alarms and residual circuit devices (for use with electrical equipment).

Hours can be flexible, anything from 10 to 37 hours a week, depending both on the needs of the service and the circumstances of the postholder. Generally the service is available from 8.00am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday. Some weekend work may also be necessary.

Daily Activities

Domestic assistants help clients maintain as independent a life as possible. Their duties include cleaning, bed changing, washing, doing any shopping on their behalf or taking the client shopping, and preparing meals.

In the initial risk assessment of the client and the client’s home, all health and safety issues, such as electrical and cooking equipment, will have been checked. It is the responsibility of the domestic assistant to report any defects or necessary repairs to the home care manager.

Skills & Interests

You need to be:

• a good communicator
• able to understand people’s needs
• able to cook and clean effectively
• able to work on your own initiative and as part of a team
• physically fit.

Entry Requirements

There are no specific minimum entry qualifications for the job. Personal attributes are often considered more important (see above). Some councils offer training leading to NVQ/SVQ units in Care .

Training is given in food hygiene, food preparation, first aid and manual handling.

Estimated salary range

£10,278 – £14,400.

Please note that salary information is a guide only and there may be local agreements in place. For further information about salaries for particular positions, please contact your local council directly.

Future prospects & opportunities

It is possible to go from domestic assistant to home care assistant work. This is usually dependent on interview and a competency assessment and may lead to further training to NVQ/SVQ level 2 in Direct Care.

Related Occupations

Follow this link to view a list of all related occuptions in Caring For Your Community.
Alternatively, follow this link to view all career profiles placed in the same job area.

Further Information & Services

General Social Care Council www.gscc.org.uk

Care Council for Wales www.ccwales.org.uk

Northern Ireland Social Care Council www.niscc.info

Scottish Social Services Council www.sssc.uk.com

Social Care careers information www.socialcarecareers.co.uk

Community Service Volunteers www.csv.org.uk/socialhealthcare

Follow this link for social services recruitment contacts within local councils in your area.

You may find further information about this area of work in your local Connexions service/careers office/school careers library – under V.

What should I do next?

Look for current local government Domestic Assistant – home care vacancies in the following places:

• LGjobs.com - the official recruitment website for local government.
• Weekly, bi-weekly or monthly jobs bulletins produced by local councils themselves, available from libraries, community centres, town halls/main civic buildings and central council personnel departments.
• Local council websites.
• Local newspapers
• National newspapers – The Guardian is particularly well known for its public sector job advertisements on a Wednesday.

Find out about the council and get some work experience if possible by:

• Making the most of work experience placements arranged through your school, college or university.
• Contacting councils close to your home to find out about the work experience opportunities they offer.
• Talking to someone who does the job you are interested in – ring your local council to see if someone can spare some time.
• Making an appointment to see a careers adviser for more specific information about jobs and training.