James' journey into a career in care
James was inspired to pursue a career in adult social care by his mum who has built a successful career in the sector and is now an operations manager. James studied Health and Social Care at college and then decided to follow in his mum's footsteps by training to be a community support worker at Kingfisher Care in Hinckley. In 2018, James was promoted to the role of on-call operator.
Day in the life of a community care worker
James works full-time. His schedule is organised by a weekly rota that includes a mixture of morning/ early afternoon shifts and afternoon/ evening shifts. Although his weekly shift pattern varies, James always has Thursday and Friday as his days off work.
A typical day in James' schedule sees him travelling across Hinkley and Blaby to visit clients and provide them with the support that they need to live independently in their own homes. Each visit begins with James reading through the 'task sheet' that outlines each support task that James needs to complete to meet the needs of the person that he is supporting. Tasks may include helping the person to get dressed, brush their teeth, use the toilet and prepare and eat nutritious meals. James is also trained to support people to take their medication and manage their health conditions, such as diabetes and skin conditions.
As well as practical care, James' role is to provide companionship and to support people to maintain their social and emotional wellbeing. For this reason, James has a regular group of people who he visits. The operations team at Kingfisher Care match James with clients who share his personality traits and/or interests. This enables James to build a bond with the people that he supports.
Working in home care, you learn so much about yourself. My confidence has grown as I have seen how resilient I am and how much I care for the people that I support.
Role of an on-call operator
James has the additional responsibility of being an on-call operator. This role means that James is responsible for supporting members of the Kingfisher team with problems that arise during their shift. This could involve offering advice and support to his colleagues, or taking the lead on medical emergencies.
2018 - present |
On-call operator - Kingfisher Care home care service |
2017 - 2018 |
Community care worker - Kingfisher Care home care service |
2013 - 2017 |
Crew member - McDonalds restaurant |
2015 |
Left college with Level 3 Health and Social Care qualification |
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