After a career in the Royal Air Force and leading businesses as a CEO, Les saw an advert on Facebook that changed his life forever. He was worried about rejoining the workforce over the age of 60, but with a few clicks, he was soaring to new heights within the healthcare industry…
Transcript: I’m a personal support worker at the Coach House – I joined Home From Home Care in 2016. Before joining, I was in the Royal Air Force for 17 years and then I was chief executive of a number of companies. I thought my days of working were over, but I saw an advert on Facebook, sent a line in saying “I wish I could do that job, it sounds fantastic” and the next thing I knew, I was in.
Now I’m over 60 and not as fit as I used to be, but the company understands that and they really responded to what I needed. They’re superbly supportive of me. I started off as a PSW1, I loved every second of that, and then promoted to the PSW2, did the PBS course and became a PBS support worker, and I’ve been doing that ever since it’s been really absolutely amazing.
Day ops is slightly different to the homes; the individuals live with their parents or guardians and they come here on a daily basis. There is no typical day – that’s the thing I really enjoy about working with Home From Home Care. Everything is person-centred. We come in with the idea that we’re going to support the individual in what they want to do. We go swimming, we go on the train, boat rides, and that makes it really good fun. Each and every one that I’ve supported I’ve been fortunate enough to take them to a new level and enable them to do things they couldn’t do before, and that is something quite incredible.
If you care about things and you’re passionate, if you’ve got experience in developing people, even your children or your grandchildren – this is a job for you. And whether you’re 60 or 26, it doesn’t really matter. I’ve learned so much from colleagues who were emotionally much younger and less experienced in life, but taught me so much, that is something else that means a great deal to me. It’s a great company to work; for the colleagues that you work with are second to none, and individuals are simply amazing. They make me feel fantastic and I love this job with every bit [of who] I am.
At Home From Home Care we do social care differently. You can thrive in a career in which you can grow, develop your skills and make a real difference to people’s lives every day.
