COVID-19: Individual employer

• Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance for people receiving direct payments
  Advice for people who buy care and support through a direct payment, as well as local authorities, clinical commissioning groups and those who provide care and support.
  ⇨ See guidance

• Overview of adult social care guidance on coronavirus (COVID-19)
  Information for adult social care providers on COVID-19 guidance and support. Supporting organisations, employers and PAs may find some of the guidance useful.

  ⇨ See guidance

• Shielding guidance
  COVID-19: guidance on shielding and protecting people defined on medical grounds as extremely vulnerable
  ⇨ See guidance 

• Face coverings: when to wear one, exemptions, and how to make one

  Find out when to wear a face covering, exemptions from wearing one, and how to make your own face covering.
  ⇨ See guidance

• Social distancing cards or badges
  ‘Please give me space’ are cards or badges that can be used to show the carrier may have difficulties or concerns in maintaining social distancing.

  ⇨ See guidance 

• Access to Work: factsheet for customers
  There is an issue with the link in the heading – it is going to the ‘face mask’ guidance above. Please remove the link in the heading, but keep the link where it says, ‘see the factsheet’.
  ⇨ See the factsheet 

• Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme: people receiving direct payments.
  ⇨ See guidance

• Claim back Statutory Sick Pay paid during COVID-19:If you're an employer, find out if you can use the Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme to reclaim employees' coronavirus-related Statutory Sick Pay (SSP).

  ⇨ See guidance

Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination: Get your COVID-19 vaccination, read about the vaccines and find out what happens when you have your vaccine. 
⇨ See guidance

Coronavirus (COVID-19) testing for anyone working in adult social care who are not part of regular testing at work and unpaid carers:How anyone working in adult social care in England who is not part of a regular testing regime at work can access twice-weekly COVID-19 testing.
⇨ See guidance

• Guidance from Public Health England: This guidance contains information on personal protective equipment (PPE), and infection prevention and control (IPC)

  ⇨ See guidance. 

• COVID-19: how to work safely in domiciliary care in England
  A resource for those working in domiciliary care (including personal assistants) providing information on the use of personal protective equipment (PPE).
  ⇨ See guidance. 
• PPE supplies: If your existing direct payment contains funding to purchase PPE for your PA, you should continue to use that funding to purchase PPE. If you, or your PA, cannot obtain PPE in this way, or your direct payment is not set up to fund PPE, you should ask for assistance from the local authority or CCG that provides your direct payment who should help you to get the PPE you require.

Guidance relating to visiting people in hospitals has been updated. PAs can accompany patients where appropriate and necessary to assist with the patient’s communication and/or to meet the patient’s health or social care needs. 

⇨ Further information

• Skills for Care have launched a new workforce wellbeing resource finder. 
  This resource finder has been designed to help you quickly find trusted resources to support your own or others wellbeing. This simple tool holds different resources suited to social care from our national trusted partners. Whether you’re looking for self-help, support for others, needing someone to talk with confidentially or support with mental health, the results filtering system gives the user a few choices to reduce time and energy searching for resources.
  ⇨ Find out more

• Disability Hub:
  Acas in conjunction with BEIS has launched a new disability hub to provide clear advice and guidance on disability employment rights for both employers and workers.
  ⇨ Find out more.
  
  
• Corona heroes
  For people and families to help share useful links, practical tips and ideas that people who manage their direct payments have put in place for themselves and their PAs.
  ⇨ Find out more.

• Fast track DBS
  If you need to recruit a new PA quickly during this time, the DBS has launched a fast track DBS check. Discuss this with your usual DBS service.
  ⇨ Find out more.

• ACAS
  Coronavirus (COVID-19): advice for employers and employees.
  ⇨ Find out more

• Challenging Behaviour Foundation
  The charity for people with severe learning disabilities whose behaviour challenges has developed some COVID-19 specific information and resources. 
  ⇨ Read more. 

• COVID-19 self-assessment and risk management tool
  This self-assessment and risk management template has been developed by individual employers with the aim of supporting PAs to return to work during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has been kindly shared with Skills for Care so that others who are employing PAs can use it or adapt it to meet their support needs. It is an example of the kind of self and risk assessments you may want to consider.
  ⇨ Download the 'COVID-19 self-assessment and risk management tool'
  
  
• PAs returning to work & safety of individual employers who have been shielding
  Shielding measures are being lifted by the Government on 1st August, TLAP’s direct payment reference group has helped produce the following factsheet which will help individual employers to support their PAs to return to work. It was authored by Mark Bates Ltd, co-sponsors of the London Self Directed Support Forum.
  ⇨ Download the factsheet
  
  
• Risk Assessment Tool for Personal Assistants (PAs) Returning to Work
  This tool, developed by Sheffield Individual Employer and PA Development Group, has been developed to help employers to think about how they might support their PAs to return to work and feel they are in a safe environment. The information in this document is only a guide. It gives you topics and poses questions for you to consider when assessing the risks that might exist, and how you may minimise these.
  ⇨ See the risk assement tool.
  
  
• Working safely during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak
  This guidance from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is for all types of employers and is designed to make work and workplaces safe. Individual employers may find some aspects of it helpful.
  ⇨ See guidance

Personal care assistants: guidance for free flu vaccination (updated 9 September 2021) 

⇨ Find out more