Future-proof your career says local care boss

Chester home care company boss declares that caring is a ‘job of the future’, urging people to come onboard as she pledges to build an army of caregivers to provide support in the local community.

Catharine Chalton of Home Instead currently has 50 vacancies at her home care company which has clients across West Cheshire, Chester and Ellesmere Port.

Catharine says that jobs in her sector are future-proof, referring to the resilience of care work against a backdrop of sectors such as hospitality and travel that have been so badly impacted by the pandemic. And now that the government’s furlough scheme has ended, people may have sadly lost their jobs.

With an ageing population, home care, on the other hand, has seen a huge increase in demand, so much so that there is a national shortage of caregivers.

The UK has an ageing population with over 14.28 million baby boomers who are coming into older age over the next few years. The millennial generation follows a close second at 14.22 million people. At the same time, we are living longer.

Commenting, Catharine said, “Our CAREGivers are professionals who face the challenges of the day but who tell us they still go home with a smile on their face at the end of the day.  We won’t lie: being a professional caregiver is hard work but it does bring real job satisfaction and the opportunity to make a real difference to the day of an older person is truly gratifying.

“Unlike a career in retail or hospitality, the clients our caregivers support genuinely enjoy their company and look forward to their visits.  A professional career in care brings with it so many benefits – especially knowing how much you have brightened someone’s day whilst delivering outstanding care in peoples’ homes”

Home Instead caregiver Kate has followed in her families footsteps with her caring career. Her father, who lives in Australia, is a chef for a group of care homes and has written two great cookery books which take into consideration people’s preferences and needs at all stages of their older lives.

Kate uses her father’s expertise when cooking for her clients- encouraging her end-of-life clients to eat well and eat what they are craving, making them happy and content. Kate comments: “I love my role as a caregiver as I truly feel passionate about making a difference to the lives of older people. Even now I live halfway around the world from my father, he definitely inspires me in my role- we both have a desire to make a real difference to the lives of our clients.”

It is estimated that the adults social care sector in England has approximately 105,000 unfilled vacancies at any one time.

Home Instead is a national company with 10,000 caregiver vacancies to fill in the coming two years. For more information on the 50 vacancies in Chester, please call 01244 851744 or visit:

 https://www.homeinstead.co.uk/chester/.

*The UK’s ageing population: Of the nearly 12 million people aged over 65 and above in the UK:

• 5.4 million are aged 75+
• 1.6 million are aged 85+
• Over 500,000 are aged 90+
• 14,430 are centenarians

Pictured - Father and Daughter, Peter and Kate both found a love for caring- even though they live halfway around the world from each other.