Government agenda for home care could be undermined

New national standards and a government commitment to developing
home care services will be seriously undermined by lack of status,
poor pay and unsocial hours for home care workers, it has been
warned, writes Maggie Wood.

Yvonne Apsitis, vice-president of the UK Home Care Association
in Wales, said: “There is a need for a major overhaul in this
vital service. It is under-funded, under-rated and
neglected.”

The warning comes as findings show that 62 per cent of home care
workers have considered leaving their jobs, in a study commissioned
by the Welsh Assembly.

Guaranteed minimum hours, training, and better pay within a
recognised career structure will help in future recruitment, she
said.

More than half of the respondents were over the age of 45, with
younger carers failing to be attracted to home care because of the
poor conditions for employment. Apsitis claims that the failure to
recruit home care workers is an increasing barrier to the
development of home care as an important part of the social care
agenda for older people.

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