I have a 15-year-old who I want to assist within my home care business. She would be doing tasks such as making and preparing food while the other staff member did personal care. She would be changing beds cleaning, etc. Could you advise us as to whether this would be acceptable?

Answered by Sheila Scott

Thank you for your question .I do believe very strongly that if young people can be given work experience/employment , they are likely to seek permanent employment in social care later. In care homes I have known young people who began their career in care as a Saturday Person become the Registered Manager of a service later (not just once but several times).  You have asked however about homecare . 15-year-olds are classed as children for employment and there are some strict rules about what they can and can’t do including the jobs they can do and the hours they can work. I would check with your insurance company before you agree to any young person working for you to make sure you are covered in the first instance. The second area I would think about is the work she will be doing. Working in domiciliary care is a difficult job and 15 is too young to be carrying out domestic type duties in someone’s home. For young people aged over 16 however, their skills for care have some helpful guidance . If they are too young to work in the community maybe an office based role will help gain some useful experience before they are able to go out and support people in the community?