Home Instead Senior Care provides care to elderly people in their own homes. Run as a franchise, it has 190 offices throughout the UK with around 9,000 people working for it.
Across the organisation, more than 45% of its employees are aged 50 plus, with its oldest, an 83 year old caregiver, June.
Martin Jones, managing director at Home Instead Senior Care, says: “We employ caregivers of all ages but we do find it particularly suits older people. It fits with their lifestyle but can also help to combat loneliness and keep them mentally and physically active. It also works for the business: we match our clients with their caregivers based on their interests and beliefs and we find older people often have the right experience for this.”
While caregivers are employed to look after clients, their health and wellbeing is also important, says Jones. “We offer caregivers plenty of flexibility around when and how much they work so they can fit it around their lives,” he says. “Some work two or three hours a week while others work 30 hours plus.”
The organisation also ensures that caregivers’ emotional and mental health is supported. It provides plenty of touch points, offering regular meetings and training sessions through its offices to ensure they feel valued and runs an annual employee engagement survey to drive the best working conditions possible.
Home Instead also gives its caregivers access to counsellors and stress management services. “Our caregivers can become very close to our clients so it can be upsetting when someone they’ve been looking after dies,” adds Jones. “We give them time to grieve and can also support them emotionally if necessary. As a provider of care, it is important to us that we look after our employees as much as our customers.”