Personal Assistants

Flu Vaccination Guidance (and how to access) for Personal Assistants (October 2022)

Being a Personal Assistant

A Personal Assistant, or PA, is a person who supports someone to live as independently as possible.  The support provided can vary massively; it can range from supporting with personal care, to assisting someone to watch a football match.  The PA role is rewarding and fulfilling and you have the benefit of getting to know your employer and vice versa. You are employed directly by the employer.

Usually employers who use PAs have a disability or condition which affects their ability to complete everyday activities and often need someone to be their hands or eyes or method of transport in order for them to maintain their own independence.  Having a PA enables employers to live the way they want to in their own homes, maintain control over their lives and to make their own choices about how their support is shaped.

Pre Employment Checks

It is an employers responsibility to carry out any necessary pre-employment checks on all PAs they recruit.  This can include reference checks (contacting the referees directly even if a pre-prepared reference has been provided), a DBS check (Wilts CIL can apply for this on your behalf, on request) and very importantly Right to Work checks, which must be completed prior to the person starting work.  An information sheet can be found on this in the ‘Information Sheets’ section of ‘Useful Resources’.

The Personal Assistant (PA) Register

The PA Register is a matching website for employers to find PAs and vice versa.  The PA Register allows employers to self-sufficiently advertise vacancies and PAs to advertise their availability.

Registration on the site is quick, easy and free.  Being registered means that users can search for other users and message them with a view to exploring a recruitment opportunity.  Users can then go on to create a profile (an advert) if they wish.  An active profile shows other users that you are actively looking for employees or work, depending on whether you are an employer or a PA.

The PA Register can be found here.

We have published a Privacy Notice for PA’s explaining what you can expect us to do with your personal information when applying for a Personal Assistant position via Wiltshire CIL.