What is a personal assistant?

Find details about what a personal assistant is and how to find one, or become one yourself.

What is a personal assistant?

A personal assistant (PA) is employed directly by the person they support to help with everyday care and tasks. This can include personal care, domestic support, help with getting out and about, or other day-to-day activities.

All PAs listed on Your Notts Directory are accredited through Nottinghamshire County Council’s current partnership with Action for People CIC, as part of the Personal Assistants at Home Network.

A PA can offer the most control over services, as they are better able to support an individual's specific needs and promote independence. It is a role that can be flexible and provide a much wider variety of support than traditional home care type roles.

PAs work directly with one or more individuals to help them with various aspects of their daily life, to help them live as independently as possible. A PA will be employed directly by an individual who is managing and paying for their own care through a social care direct payment or personal budget. PAs can be employed directly by just one employer or can work for a number of different people. PAs usually support individuals in their own home or to go out in the community.

What a PA role might include

organising and supporting individuals with their social and physical activities
booking and going with individuals to appointments
helping individuals to get to work, college or university
helping with personal care such as showering and dressing (although not all PA roles involve personal care)
supporting with tasks around the house such as shopping, cleaning and cooking
monitoring their clients' health for example measuring body temperatures or administering medication.
managing a team of PAs if in a senior PA role.

To join the directory

To join the PA directory, PA's must have:

Completed training (including safeguarding for adults and children)
Provided references and completed an enhanced DBS and barred list check

The personal assistants at Home Network replaces the former Support With Confidence scheme. This new arrangement ensures that residents receive trusted support from PAs who meet a high standard of care.

More information about joining the scheme can be found on the Personal Assistants at Home Network (Nottinghamshire County Council)

Full list of Personal Assistants

Direct payments

If you or someone you care for are eligible for support following an assessment of your social care need or already get help from social services, you can apply for direct payments.

Direct payments are not a benefit like DLA, but are paid by Social Services instead of providing services, such as home care, or a place in a Day Centre. The money must only be used to buy the services that Social Services were providing you with, or would provide to you following a strengths based social care assessment.

When you know you are eligible for social care support, there will be a range of social care services available to meet your needs. A direct payment is a method of paying for these social care services.

Direct payments can give you greater choice, control and flexibility over what services you want and when they are delivered.

Nottingham City residents

If you are a Nottingham City resident, the Nottingham City Council's Adult Social Care Hub provides support and advice to people who use direct payments, or who are interested in receiving Direct Payments. Go to, Nottingham City Council's Adult Social Care Hub

How does a Direct Payment work for Nottingham City residents?

Once you know you are eligible to receive social care support you will then be financially assessed to find out whether you will need to make a financial contribution towards the cost of your social care. Your contribution and the direct payment will then be paid into a Nottingham City Direct Payment Account which will come with a card that has chip and pin functionality and works in the same way as any other debit card.

The Nottingham City Council can view and print reports of the money spent from your account and the balance held. The Nottingham City Council uses this information to monitor that the direct payment money is meeting your care needs. You should also keep hold of any receipts, invoices or other paperwork relating to how you spend your direct payment as you may be asked to submit these from time to time.

Nottinghamshire County residents

If you are a Nottinghamshire County resident, the Nottinghamshire County Council's Direct Payments support area, provides support and advice to people who use direct payments, or who are interested in receiving direct payments. Go to, Nottinghamshire County Council's Direct Payments support area

How does a Direct Payment work for Nottinghamshire County residents?

Once you are eligible to receive social care support you will be asked how you wish to take your personal budget and this could be a Direct Payment. A Direct Payment enables choice and control around your own care provision. You will also be financially assessed and any assessed contribution will be invoiced to you directly. The money for your care will go into a Direct Payment account which you can choose to have via a Pre Payment Card, a separate bank account or a third party managed account.

A Direct Payment account ss audited each year to ensure that the Direct Payment money continues to meet your assessed outcomes in your Care and Support plan.

What are my responsibilities if I receive direct payments?

If you choose to have a direct payment, you will be responsible for your care. Your local authority will help you to set up the care, but will not have any responsibility for the ongoing management of it, as the contract for any service is between you and the provider of the service. This means you will be responsible for making payments to the agreed service. You are also held responsible for any debt accrued by either non-payment of your financial contribution or misuse of funds.

For further information, go to personal budgets and direct payments (NHS)

Direct payments becoming an employer

If you choose to use your direct payment to employ a personal assistant, you will be taking on the responsibility of being an employer. This is a significant responsibility, and one which is sometimes overlooked.

As an employer, you will be held liable for:

Recruiting your PA
Making payments of Tax and National Insurance to HMRC on behalf of your PA
Understanding and complying with Employment Law
Taking out the appropriate Insurance for your PA
Organising cover for holidays and sickness of your PA
Any training required for your PA
Dealing with any grievances

The Local Authority can help with some of these responsibilities. There are also a number of external organisations called Support Providers who will help as much or as little as you need them to. You may be happy to take on these responsibilities yourself, or you may know of a friend or relative who is willing to help.

For more information, go to employing someone to work in your home (GOV.UK)

You can also learn more, at getting a personal assistant (Disability Rights UK)

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What is a personal assistant?

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