AS THE cost-of-living crisis continues to bite across Scotland, fast-growing Glasgow- and Ayrshire-based private in-home care provider Plus Homecare is making a remarkable gesture of solidarity with hard-pressed families and their older relatives.
The trusted provider, which has kept its fees at the same, highly-competitive rate since April, is announcing that the freeze will remain in place until the end of this year, despite the extra demands of the Christmas season.
Plus Homecare, which is also planning to open up new operations in East Lothian to meet burgeoning demand for the professional assistance and personal care it offers, will cap its fees at £23 an hour.
This is well below the Minimum Price for Homecare set by the Homecare Association for 2022/23, which ensures the minimum wage for care workers as well as theminimum contribution towards the costs of running a care business which complies with quality requirements at a financially sustainable level.
At the level at which Plus Homecare remunerates its staff, the Minimum Price it charges its clients should be between £26.86 and £29.90.
As a responsible business, it is taking the generous initiative to cap its fees at £23 to acknowledge the pressures that families are facing at a time of rising heating, food, energy and transport costs, and to do what it can to help with family budgets.
Mike Collier, Managing Director of Plus Homecare, said: “My staff and I are in constant daily contact with families who want to do the very best they can for their parents or relatives, and each day we see the struggles they face.
“At this stage in life, things can be hard enough – and very emotionally draining – so if we can ease part of that burden, we will regard it as a small token recognition of what many of our clients are going through.
“We will obviously have to review in the New Year, and of course costs are going up across the board, but we pledge that we will continue to whatever we can to make this often-traumatic period as painless as possible.”
Plus Homecare in the Glasgow area, and Cairllum Care, which tailors individual care in Ayr and its surroundings, has an established pool of professional carers with extensive experience and a knowledge and understanding of the area.
And, in contrast to local authority provision which is under increasing time and resource stress, Plus Homecare aims to provide quality care to vulnerable older people in their own domestic setting at a time and duration of their own choosing.
Customer Mr McLachlan of Longniddry, whose mother has been looked after by Plus Homecare, said: “As a family, we greatly appreciate the leeway on fees at a time when, like everyone else, we are under considerable financial stress.
“That aside, we have been very impressed by how happy our mother has been with the Plus Home carers. They are totally professional and create space for companionship and quality time when dealing with the day-to-day activities of everyday living.”
Plus Homecare’s staff are trained in an extensive range of care services and are committed not only to continuing professional development but also to treating clients with dignity and allowing them to lead independent lives in their own familiar surroundings.
The firm’s service means that self-funded, private individuals do not have to leave their home, memories and belongings to relocate into a facility which can often be closed to protect more vulnerable residents.
Mr Collier added: “Council-run facilities are under significant financial and resource constraints and home visits are often unpredictable, rushed and short. We aim to give people freedom, dignity and companionship.”
