Frequently Asked Questions

At The Care Advantage, we’re fully aware that consistency is key, especially when building a bond and level of trust. So wherever possible, we will do our best to supply you with a small group of consistent support staff, so that we have cover available for holidays and sickness. We all have our favourites, but it might not always be possible to have that person all the time, as our staff have their own lives (although it might not look like it hahaha).

Do you know what? Don’t worry. Here at The Care Advantage we acknowledge that not everyone gets along for whatever reason. That doesn’t mean you are stuck in a situation you can’t get out of. Simply speak to the office and they will do their utmost to find someone better suited to you, as with the previous question it’s not always possible to have your preferred person all the time but we’ll do our best.

As you probably know, the provision of support is ever changing and we know that sometimes people need a bit of extra time. Our staff are trained to provide you the level of support you need to ensure you are safe and well, and have access to systems to inform the office of these changes. Believe us, you won’t be the first and definitely won’t be the last to need a little extra time. All of our clients are aware of this and this is why we try not to get too specific on the time of your visit, with a few exceptions. But this will be explained at your assessment.

Absolutely, receiving support can be extremely anxiety-inducing. That is why at The Care Advantage we do our best to relieve these nerves by communicating with you in a clear and open manner. It’s not easy accepting support and we all understand that. This is why we strive not to be a faceless company. Our registered manager will ensure that you know who they are and give you the confidence to speak to them openly about any concerns.

Are you going somewhere nice? Is there room in your suitcase for me? Seriously though, The Care Advantage actively encourages you to live your life your own way. If you want to go on holiday with family and don’t need our support, that's fine. Just give us a call and we’ll put everything on hold until you come back. But in some cases, we know that you might not have anyone to go on holiday with. That’s not a problem, if you would like to go on holiday with your support worker, we can make arrangements to make that happen (ooo does that mean I can go?). The Care Advantage is here to help you live your best life.

The Care Advantage has staff from various religions, and as equality champions, we will do our utmost to provide you with support to attend worship. In some cases, we may even be able to provide you with a member of support staff who shares your religion to attend such events.

Awww don’t say that, you’re amazing! The staff at The Care Advantage are hand picked by the management team and are extremely professional. If we ever heard that there was a staff member that didn’t like someone, we’d be very disappointed, but just like the case of what would happen if you didn’t like your support worker, we would make arrangements to ensure everyone is happy.

Remember everyone has a bad day from time to time, it's when those days turn into weeks, months, or years that there’s a problem. The Care Advantage is strongly focused on the physical and mental wellbeing of its clients. If you’re having a bad day, TALK to someone. Our support staff are trained to listen and respond in the most appropriate way. This is backed up by the office, where the registered manager is always available to assist. There’s no need to suffer in silence and there’s no judgement for having an off day.

NO! The Care Advantage is here as an additional support for you and your loved ones. We encourage communication between all parties to avoid doubling up on tasks, but we’re not here to take anything away. We want to enrich your life.

Simply let your support staff know. They will report it to the office and it can be changed, usually over the phone, unless there is a requirement for a risk assessment to be done.

The Care Advantage has one forbidden word, which is ‘IMPOSSIBLE’. We don’t believe in it. If there is enough passion and determination, in most cases everything is possible. We are here to help you gain or retain as much independence as is possible. In our experience people can get to the point of not needing as much support or not needing support at all. The Care Advantage team would love you to not need support, because it would mean we’ve done our job, but we’ll always be there if you need us.

If you have a pet that is likely to eat a whole staff member then we might have a problem, however, if we’re talking domestic animals then of course there’s no problem. We would just need to ask a few questions about them in our assessment to ensure our staff are safe.

I’m going to answer this one in both meanings of the term ‘accident’ (physical / continence). Rest assured our team is trained to deal with every eventuality. Although they’re in the field on their own, they have back-up available just a phone call away. And all accidents will be dealt with in the most professional and least intrusive way.

The Care Advantage has a unique way of dealing with this. We develop a profile of our staff members that we add to your folder, so you know a little bit about who is visiting you. In the background though, you can rest assured that all staff are fully DBS and criminal record checked, and have references and all the necessary training before even meeting you.

Are we off to the pub? Whose round is it? Hahaha. If you would like your support staff to have a drink with you then providing it is not alcohol, they can – if that is what you and they would like to do.

If your activity involves an entry fee to have the support worker accompany you then it would be expected that the client pays for that. Support staff are working, therefore, we would expect that they didn’t have out of pocket expenses to attend an activity. More detailed information is shared at assessment.

The Care Advantage just asks that you follow the rules of morality. Treat the staff how you wish to be treated, respect their freedom of choice as they do yours.