Find out whether you can employ a family member as a Personal Assistant, and what you need to consider.
PA Employers need to treat their PAs fairly and not to discriminate against them on the basis of a personal or 'Protected Characteristic', such as their gender, age, sexuality, ethnicity or martial status.
Find out more about the Independent Living Fund (ILF) Scotland, which enables people to purchase social care support to help them meet outcomes that are important to them. Many people receiving ILF Funding also employ their own PAs.
Local Authorities (councils) have an important role in making sure that PA Employers have the information and support they need to meet their needs.
Find out what help you can get from a local Independent Support Organisation if you are thinking about employing PAs, or you're already a PA Employer.
Find out what Outcomes or Personal Outcomes are, and why they are important to PA Employers.
Find out what training is available to PA Employers to support you in your role.
Find out what help Personal Assistants and PA Employers can get if they have any problems managing their relationship.
When you become a PA Employer there are certain legal responsibilities that you take on. Whilst these might seem daunting at first, it is important to know that you can get a lot of support to understand these and to meet the responsibilities you have, from both an Independent Support organisation and your Council.
Find out what you are responsible for when you employ PAs, including administrative responsibilities, keeping your PAs safe and making sure their have the information they need.
The Personal Assistant (PA) role involves much more than personal care. There are many potential roles and responsibilities for a PA which should be specified prior to recruitment.
When you decide to employ Personal Assistants, your Council will ask you to sign an agreement. Find out what is included in this agreement and how to check it covers everything you need.
It is important for anyone considering taking on a PA to understand the difference in employment status between an employee and a self-employed PA. This can affect their legal relationship and financial agreements between them. Find out more about how to determine if a PA is employed or self-employed.
Find out more about how to recruit for PAs, including where to get support with recruitment, where to advertise and how to do interviews.
Before you make a change to an employee's conditions or contract, this section tells you what you need to be aware of. Change is best undertaken when all options have been considered with the employee's involvement and agreement.
Find out how to request information to check that any new PA you plan to employ is allowed to work with children or vulnerable adults. You can also find out about the upcoming changes to the PVG scheme for PAs, which come into force in April 2025.
Find out more about your legal duties as a PA Employer when it comes to health and safety, and how to complete a risk assessment.
There are now no official Covid-19 rules or restrictions in Scotland. However, this page includes some things you may wish to consider around Covid-19 as an Employer of Personal Assistants.
Advice for PA Employers and PAs about how to handle the issue of smoking in a person's home.
It might not always be appropriate for Personal Assistants to administer medicine and in many cases training by professionals is required which will be the responsibility of the employer but PAs have responsibilities here too.