Making a strong case for training

7 January 2020

Many care professionals receive training in order to carry out their role but Personal Assistants (PA's) and unpaid carers can also take courses.

a man wearing glasses and a white shirt is sitting in front of a pink background .

For carers employed by care homes or care agencies, certain training is mandatory, e.g. Administering Medication, Moving & Positioning, Safeguarding etc. However, staff employed directly by Clients as Personal Assistants (PAs) there is not such a requirement. Equally, carers working in an unpaid capacity, such as family members, friends and neighbours are also not required to complete mandatory training. Why is this?

In these two cases, the need to be trained and carry out the required care tasks is more important, in my opinion, as making a mistake or being absent from work due to an injury caused by using a wrong Moving and Positioning technique may leave the Client with little or no care provision.

Why do PA's and unpaid carers not undertake training?

• Unpaid carers do not generally know that training exists

• Clients are reluctant to pay for training of PAs

• Clients can’t afford for a carer to be absent on a training course

• Carers believe they are “doing it right” as they have been doing it that way for a long time

Did you know there is funding?

Funding is often available for training these groups of people. This can be from the Local Authority in some cases, as they recognise the benefits of keeping carers working, reducing the need for emergency care support. The funding sometimes covers travel expenses, backfill care provision and the cost of the course.

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