Shared Lives Carer

**Job title**:Shared Lives Carer

**Location**:Wolverhampton, Dudley and the neighbouring Black Country areas, including South Wolverhampton and South Staffordshire (below A454), North Worcestershire, South-West Birmingham and Sandwell.

**Purpose**:Shared Lives Carers open up their home and support adults with additional/complex needs on either a Live-In, Short-Break or Day Support basis. Shared Lives is sometimes described as a bit like ‘foster care for adults’ but it’s so much more than that. The Carer encourages the person to not only become part of the family and provide a sense of belonging, but also to create a life of new opportunities, of which the person would otherwise have limited chances to experience. The aim of the Shared Lives Carer is to always support the person to develop the practical, social and emotional skills to make their own choices in life and be as independent as possible, whilst remaining at the heart of the community, just like you and me.

**Salary**:Shared Lives Carers must register with HMRC for self-employed status which enables you to qualify for Tax Relief of up to £10,000 per household annually plus £250 per week for each person staying with you. You are then paid between £300-£600 per person per week (pro-rata), according to the level of support you provide. You can support up to three people at any one time.

**Hours**:Shared Lives Carers provide support to the person on either a Live-In (permanent), Short-Breaks (over-night or weekends) or Day-Opportunities (morning or afternoon sessions) basis.

**Do you** **have a room in your home and room in your heart?**

**Could you share your home with someone who needs your support?**

We have an opportunity for you to join us as a Shared Lives Carer, based from your own home in the Wolverhampton, Dudley and surrounding Black Country areas. If the following appeals, we’d love to hear from you:

- You will support the person who comes to live or stay with you to develop the practical, social and emotional skills to make their own choices in life and be as independent as possible, whilst remaining at the heart of the community, just like you and me.
- If you are currently looking for a change of direction/career change or are already working as a support worker/care assistant in domiciliary or residential care and are passionate about supporting people more flexibly in the community, then Shared Lives could be for you.
- You want to become a meaningful part of someone’s life and be able to support them in all their activities.
- You have a passion for helping others live a fulfilling and interesting life.
- You would like the opportunity to take part in wider social events and celebrations and access existing resources, as well as connecting to a wealth of support and friendships.

**Who are we looking for?**
- You don’t need any qualifications or experience of working in the care sector (though it can help), all you need is the right values, dedication and of course a spare room.
- You will need to be over 18 years of age, be able to read and write English and be committed to undertaking training and supervision for the continued development of your role.
- Shared Lives Carers are very passionate about the work they do, they are extremely creative in how they support the Person achieve greater independence, but above all else they don’t make assumptions about people just because of the labels they may have been given.
- It doesn’t matter if you are employed, not working or retired, you can still be a Shared Lives Carer.
- If you don’t own your own home you will need to ask your landlord’s permission to use the property for Shared Lives.

**What are the main responsibilities of this role?**

1. _To support the Registered Manager in the delivery of a high quality Shared Lives Scheme for the Camphill Village Trust across the Borough of Dudley, City of Wolverhampton and surrounding Black Country/West Midlands area._
- After careful matching, support the person staying with you to build confidence, maintain and develop social, emotional, communication and independent living skills to become an active citizen of the local community.
- To work towards the outcomes as set out in the individual’s Personal Plan, Support & Wellbeing Plan and the Shared Lives Arrangement Agreement and to treat all information confidentially.
- To develop and maintain positive working relationships with family members, care managers and other social care professionals, all of whom are concerned with the wellbeing and best interests of the person you support.
- To promote and positively represent the CVT Shared Lives Scheme within the Trust, locally, the region and nationally.

2._ Contribute to the matching process of the person identified to stay with through prior discussions and introductory visits to ensure that the Arrangement is appropriate for all parties involved._
- To provide a safe and secure environment, where the perso