Many of us gravitate towards social care positions and, for many workers in the field, residential support is their gateway into an exciting and quite varied career.
What is a residential support worker?
A residential support worker's job is to offer care to those who are otherwise unable to care for themselves. Often this will be with the elderly, but some residential support workers have opportunities to specialise with those with learning disabilities or other mental health issues.
The main responsibilities of residential support workers.
There is no one true set course for the day-to-day responsibilities of a residential support worker. Their duties will depend on the client they're serving, but can range from anything from general domestic support to assisting with duties as required outside of the home (shopping, bill payments, etc). For this reason, residential support workers are often required to have a full UK driver's licence and preferably access to a reliable vehicle.
Sometimes, though, companies may provide company cars for use during working hours. This is rare though and most care agencies who hire residential support workers will require candidates to have their own vehicles and might sometimes ask for detailed service records to ensure clients are transported in a safe vehicle when required.
Residential support is largely shift based, too. This means candidates will have to be prepared to work as and when their agencies require. This can mean being a part of a waking night team, where support workers must be available within a client's home overnight in the event of an emergency – although they may not be required to stay awake for the duration of this.
Most starting residential support workers will be placed on daytime shifts to help clients during sociable hours with general needs rather than becoming involved with any sort of advanced task, which might require a greater degree of experience and exposure to the entire care process.
Why residential support workers are needed.
With an increasing amount of aged individuals living into later stages of their lives and having decreasing access to family members or other individuals who would otherwise assist with their day to day living, residential support workers have filled a very large void. They're involved in the first line of care that ensures those living without means of personal support can continue to remain active and lead a more independent life for much longer, which can ultimately lead to a much more rewarding life in the later stages.
Residential support workers are also sometimes the only means of social contact for the elderly or infirm. This vital link between the client and the outside world ensures their emotional health remains in a better state, too.
The typical clients who these workers will serve vary considerably according to their own needs. Some may just need help with their day to day dealings, like getting to the shops or banks as they don't have access to their own vehicles or may require additional help in completing these tasks. Others might require full levels of care due to disabilities or mental conditions.
This field is currently experiencing growth and the growth involved isn't likely to slow anytime soon. However, candidates should be warned that their starting wages will probably be equal to the National Minimum Wage. Those who have high outgoings might not find this role particularly suitable for them until they're able to progress into higher level opportunities.
Some of these higher opportunities can be difficult to find depending on the structure of the company, but this will vary considerably according to the corporate structure of the care providing service.
Career opportunities for residential support workers.
Often, because residential support positions are a gateway into something else, there are good opportunities for career progression at later stages. Most of the time, this will involve going into management-level roles within the company structure and taking on greater levels of responsibility.
There often are also opportunities for residential support workers to specialise in dealing with particular clients who have highly specific needs related to dementia and other chronic mental health issues.
