Employing your own personal assistant

Being a good employer

If you use direct payments to employ people then as an employer you have certain responsibilities. The Being an employer: what are your legal responsibilities? leaflet provides more information on what you have to do to ensure you meet your legal obligations when you become an employer.

Training and support/Workforce development

People who employ their own care staff (individual employers), can apply for Individual employer funding from Skills for Care to cover the full cost of care related training and development of both themselves and their personal assistants.

For other employers there is the Workforce Development Fund which is being scaled down and is only funding learning which is already in progress. This means that qualifications and apprenticeships which start on or before 31 March 2024 will be eligible for the WDF as long as the learner completes and the certificate is issued by 31 March 2025.(More information on Skills for Care workforce development)

The Adult Social Care Training and Development Fund is a new government scheme not being administered by Skills for Care. Eligible adult social care (ASC) employers can claim varying levels of reimbursement from this fund, for spend on upskilling the adult social care workforce in England. ASC employers can get reimbursement for:

  • care skills funding, including for the newly developed Level 2 Adult Social Care Certificate
  • revalidation funding.

More information about Adult Social Care Training and Development Fund on GOV.UK.