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What is required to setup a carer agency?

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  • 24-03-2023 9:53pm
    #1
    dvdfan
    Registered Users Posts: 2,953 ✭✭✭


    My girlfriend is a carer for an agency and like most others the pay is peanuts circa €12 an hour. However, she loves doing it and wants to create a career around it. But with the low wages and all the hassles like trying to adjust to times and distances apart, its not really paying the bills.

    She is considering creating a small agency of 2-3 people to service the local area with the plan of paying the agents a decent wage and see how it goes from there and she would focus on training them in, shadowing, managing and filling in when needed.

    However, I am sure that comes with headaches. I have ran my own business before so I can help with the business side of things freeing her up to work on the care end of it. Does anyone know what type of qualifications are needed and what entities you need to register with and is there additional steps to get contracts from the HSE or are you stuck to private care unless your one of the big boys? Do you need specific insurance or any other things to consider?



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    #2
    looksee
    Registered Users Posts: 28,566 ✭✭✭✭looksee


    With the greatest respect, this is possibly a great idea and potentially a good business; doing research by asking on boards is probably less of a good idea. You have yourself listed off several things that you need to know, in doing proper research to find these things out you will no doubt find out a whole lot more that you haven't thought of, and this would be way more use to you than a one off answer with no context.

    The first thing that comes to mind is, you mention a small agency of 2 or 3 people, say 3 for the sake of argument. So quite apart from figuring out if 3 people can cover all shifts, holidays, illness leave etc, you have to cost in an income for your girlfriend (and you?) plus insurance and office expenses, and if you are going private, significant advertising and promotion. Can 3 carers generate enough income to give the carers more money and pay your girlfriend a wage plus the significant cost of insurance and all other expenses? Maybe they can, but its one of the first things you need to look at.

    A very quick google came up with this https://www.hse.ie/eng/services/list/4/olderpeople/service-specifications-home-support-services-2018.pdf which may be relevant, there is loads of official information out there.



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