Home Care Service - What We Do / Don't Do

What we do

Home Care staff will assist people with all, or a combination of, the following daily living tasks:

• Intimate personal care tasks, e.g. bathing/showering, washing, dressing, toileting, transferring from or to bed/chair and mobility around the house, assistance with eating and drink, medication, catheter and stoma care. 
• Practical assistance with shopping (including budgeting, prescription collection and payment of household bills), laundry, housework, meal preparation and prompting and monitoring of nutritional and fluid intake.

Home Care staff are only able to perform the tasks specified on your care plan, which was drawn up and agreed with you following your assessment of need by a social worker.  Should you find that there are other tasks which you need assistance with, please complete the online Social Services Change of Details Form.

Circumstances under which a service may be withdrawn

Under certain circumstances the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead reserves the right to refuse to provide a home care service or may withdraw service because:

• Health and safety cannot be maintained at a reasonable level, thereby endangering staff and Service User.
• Non co-operation of a Service User, thereby negating the benefit of the care or endangering staff.
• Staff have been subject to discriminatory comments, offensive language or inappropriate behaviour, verbal or physical abuse by the Service User, their family or friends.
• Re-assessment of needs identifies that home care support is no longer required or has increased beyond that which the Service is able to provide in relation to skill, knowledge and competence level of Team members.

The service operates seven days a week, 52 weeks a year and provides long-term support. 

What we don't do

Home Care Assistants must not:

• Carry out duties which should be performed by a trained nurse or health care worker, e.g. injections and dressings.
• Be asked to clean unoccupied rooms or perform tasks for other members of the household, e.g. family, lodgers or tenants.
• Undertake any task which might result in personal injury, e.g. unsafe moving of people, cleaning outside windows, moving heavy furniture.
• Accept any gifts or bequests, be a beneficiary or act as an executor to your will
• Carry out tasks not detailed on your service user plan except in exceptional circumstances and following authorisation by their manager or equivalent.

Incontinence Laundry

An incontinence laundry service is available as part of your service user care plan.  As such the service can only be provided as the result of a needs assessment.  Where an incontinence laundry service is deemed necessary, appropriate arrangements for collection and washing etc. will be made with you following the assessment.