What is a Mencap personal support worker? Easy read What is a Mencap support worker3.indd 1 16/11/ :40

Transcription

1 What is a Mencap personal support worker? Easy read What is a Mencap support worker3.indd 1 16/11/ :40

2 A personal support worker is someone who is employed by Mencap and is there for you. They listen and talk to you about how they can best help you. They will work with you so you can live your life the way you want to and do the things that you want to do. Your personal support worker does not make decisions for you, but will help you to make your own decisions. Having a personal support worker employed by Mencap means that Mencap takes care of paying them, training them, insuring them, dealing with their tax and making sure they get the right support in their job. Mencap is checked by the Care Quality Commission and others. This means you can feel confident about the quality of support you get from us. Your personal support worker can support you to do lots of things that you want to do. For example they can help you do things at home or work with personal care learn new things go shopping deal with letters or difficult forms do things you enjoy meet friends and new people. Getting the support you want We will meet with you to find out what you want your personal support worker to do and what they can help you with What is a Mencap support worker3.indd 2 16/11/ :40

3 Together we will look at things like what type of person you would like to support you what you would like them to be good at what hours or days they will work. Getting started Once you have decided you want a Mencap personal support worker, we will give you a document that tells you what Mencap will do and what you will do. This is called a support agreement. The support agreement talks about things like when you want to be supported how much having a personal support worker will cost you when you will need to pay Mencap. Mencap works with you to find the right personal support worker. This might be someone that already works for us, or it could be a new person who has not worked for Mencap before. Finding the right personal support worker for you We can work with you to help find the right personal support worker for you. We will carry out checks on this person to make sure you will be safe with them and that they are the right person to support you What is a Mencap support worker3.indd 3 16/11/ :40

4 ! Questions and answers When can my personal support worker work? We will agree with you when your personal support worker will work. We cannot ask someone to work more than 37.5 hours a week. If you need more hours than this, you can talk to us about employing more than one person to support you. Your personal support worker must have 2 days off a week, as well as meal breaks each day. What if I need support at night? We will talk to you to find out what support you need and agree with you how best to support you overnight. Can I ask my personal support worker to do anything I want? Before you decide to have a personal support worker, we will explain what they can and cannot do. Personal support workers have to follow special rules. The rules are there to make sure everyone is safe your personal support worker has the right skills to support you What is a Mencap support worker3.indd 4 16/11/ :40

5 What information do you need to keep about me? We will explain what information we need to keep about you. If you decide you want your personal support worker to look after your money and any medicines, we must both agree to this. You and your personal support worker will need to keep some information about this to make sure everyone knows what has been agreed. We can help you to do this. What happens when my personal support worker goes on holiday? All of our personal support workers have at least 4 weeks of paid holiday a year. They do not have to work on public holidays, for example Christmas and Easter, unless this has been agreed. We can help you to get another personal support worker while your usual personal support worker is away. What happens when my personal support worker is off sick or is not able to work? We will make sure you have another personal support worker while your usual personal support worker is away. This will not cost you any extra money What is a Mencap support worker3.indd 5 16/11/ :40

6 What happens if I want to change my personal support worker? If you have any problems with your personal support worker we will work hard with you to solve them. If we cannot solve the problem, we will try to find you another personal support worker. You cannot say no to someone working with you because of something about them. For example, their background or culture, or any disability they have sack your personal support worker. This is because they work for Mencap. If you are not happy with your personal support worker, we will work together to make things better. What should I do if I think my needs have changed? Contact the Mencap manager who looks after your support service. You can talk to them about what you need. Someone will then visit you to find out more. What about health and safety? Your personal support worker should always think about your safety and their own safety. You should also think about your personal support worker s safety. You should not ask them to do anything that might harm either of you in any way What is a Mencap support worker3.indd 6 16/11/ :40

7 Can I pay my personal support worker money? No. Your personal support worker works for and is paid by Mencap. They should not ask you for any money. They should also not accept gifts from you. But you will need to pay for anything you ask your personal support worker to do with you. For example, if you go out for the day you will have to pay money for bus fares, or for getting into the place you are going to. If your personal support worker has to pay for anything for you, they will fill in a form and send it to Mencap. We will then send you a bill for the costs. If someone else looks after your money for you, we will send the bill to them. What support will my personal support worker get from Mencap? They will get the support and training they need. They may sometimes need to go to meetings at Mencap to get their support. We will need to agree with you when your personal support worker can go to these meetings. What can I do if I need to speak to someone in Mencap? You can contact the Mencap manager who looks after your support service. We will also tell you how to complain if you are not happy about the support you get What is a Mencap support worker3.indd 7 16/11/ :40

8 What to do next To talk to us about having your own Mencap personal support worker call or To find out more about our services To find out more general information about Mencap and learning disability visit our website at Registered charity number What is a Mencap support worker3.indd 8 16/11/ :40