Personal Choice Carers at Home

Mum is no longer with us, but it gives us comfort to know that her Legacy of helping others will always be with us x

I have been working in care now for over 20 years and love the work I do. It isn’t an easy profession at times and can be very hard, but it is extremely rewarding.

I met Liz whilst looking after her mum at a time in my life when I felt that I wanted a little more. After many talks and long discussions, in 2013, Personal Choice Carers at Home was established.

We started, just Liz and I, visiting a couple of service users, but then it seemed that word got around, and we were getting more work; we soon found ourselves employing our own members of staff.

We pride ourselves on our work and make every effort to ensure that all our Service Users are comfortable and happy with our Service. We chose the name Personal Choice because we really make every effort to tailor our services to our service users’ needs.

After many years of working full-time and managing in retail, I had two beautiful boys. I changed from full-time to part-time to try and fit my working life around them.

There were other things mentioned on the show, and I couldn’t believe how a service that was meant to be looking after people and caring, really wasn’t meeting the mark. It played on my mind!!!

One day, in the school playground, I was talking to one of the other mums. She was telling me about her sister-in-law, who had recently started her own care company because the care her mother had been receiving was not as attentive as she felt it could be.

She gave me her sister-in-law's phone number, and I gave her a call!!

The sister-in-law was Liz, and that’s how I met up with her and Caroline!

After talking for a while and explaining I’d never done professional caring, we all decided that we would give each other a go!!

That was THIRTEEN YEARS ago!

I love my job. I love the people I help care for, and I get on well with the rest of the team.

Not only am I fully trained now, but I have also obtained my NVQ 2 certificate and my NVQ 3.

One of the main things I love about my job is knowing that I am making a difference in people's lives at really difficult times in their lives. We are all one big happy family and treat our Service Users in the way that we would all want our parents to be treated. With respect and dignity.

I started working in Care in 2004, where I met Caroline, working for a 'big' care company. Looking for a change, Caroline introduced me to Liz, and I joined Personal Choice Carers at Home.

I loved the way all Service Users' care plans were person-centred, and all looked after so well. I just kept thinking this is how all Service Users should be cared for.

I joined Personal Choice Carers at Home in 2014 and haven't looked back. I thoroughly love my job, and have great friendships with everyone I work with x

I’ve always been in a job and loved working. I’ve tried everything over the years, but never really knew what I wanted to do.

In 2016, I saw a job vacancy for Personal Choice Carers at Home. I applied and was invited along for an interview. I got the job. Soon, all my training was completed, and I was out and about in the community.

It’s great that we care for people in their own homes, and as all of us carers are based in and around Wickford, it’s lovely as there is always someone about if we need any assistance.

I love the fact that we give our service users their independence wherever possible. All their care packages are different so that they suit the individuals’ needs.

I’m always keeping up to date with my training, which helps because it’s always good to have extra knowledge about everyone’s conditions.

I’ve never looked for another job since I’ve worked here.

I have met some lovely people over the years, and it’s been a pleasure getting to know them and their families.

I’m so happy in my work, and it’s so lovely knowing I help make such a difference in our Service Users’ lives.

After having my second child, I started looking for another job that I could fit around my family life.

That's when I came across Personal Choice Carers. I met Liz and Caroline, who both put me at ease as I had never worked in Care before. I'm still here 9 years later, fully trained. I was able to obtain my Level 2 & 3 Health & Social Care qualification.

Care is the most rewarding job I have ever had, helping someone to live at home as independently as possible

After working as a hairdresser for 16 years, I left to have my two beautiful children. I spent many happy times with them growing up, and when they had both started at school full-time, I decided, being a very active person, that I needed to do more with myself.

I started to look at jobs and came across an advert on Facebook from a company called Personal Choice Carers at Home, they were looking for Carers in the Community and were based locally in Wickford.

I had a little chat with myself and thought, "Yes, I could do that" It sounded like something I would enjoy. I'm a happy, caring and fun-loving person, and I love to make people happy. I have always been a natural when it comes to helping and understanding someone who may be unhappy or have difficulties, and I have always been told that one of my qualities is that I am able to lift people up when they are down. So... I applied for the job.

On the day of the interview, I was so nervous. Everyone thinks I'm full of confidence because I am often found in the middle of crowds, but deep down, that isn't always the truth.

I went to meet Liz and Caroline, and immediately they made me feel at ease.

I came out of the interview with a big smile on my face. I had been offered the job. Shortly after, I started my training and then, once qualified, I was out doing a job that I've grown to love.

Eight years on and I'm still here. Every day is different and sometimes can be a challenge. But to this day, I'm still happy with my decision. My hours fit perfectly around my kids and my family, and I feel so fulfilled in my work.

My name is Sharon Wheeler, and I am a Care Assistant for Personal Choice Carers at Home. I’ve been working here since 2022.

After leaving school, I went into hairdressing and enjoyed 28 years working in the same salon. Unfortunately, they ceased trading, and at the same time, my personal circumstances changed. This made me rethink my career options.

My daughter had recently started caring for Personal Choice Care at Home and was coming home from work excited and telling me all about it. It sounded like something I could do. I’m so comfortable working with people and love to help if I can.

I contacted Liz and Caroline, and soon I began my training. I qualified a little over 3 years ago now, and I have been working full-time since and haven’t looked back.

I absolutely love my job and find it so rewarding!

I’ve worked at Personal Choice Carers at Home since 2022, and I’ve loved every single moment. I joined after leaving school feeling unsure about what I wanted to do, but it didn’t take long for me to realise that caring is exactly what I’m meant to do.

Personal Choice really does feel like my second family. I absolutely love my job and what I do. Being able to go into each service user’s home and help them feel safe, comfortable, and happy is so rewarding. I love chatting with them, hearing about their lives, and listening to all the amazing stories they have to share. I’ve grown so much as a person because of the people I work with and care for.

Alongside my role at Personal Choice, I also work at Broomfield Hospital as a Healthcare Assistant. I’m learning so many new things every day and gaining skills and confidence, which I really enjoy bringing back into my community care work to support service users in the best way possible.

When I’m not working, I love spending time with my friends and family, going on holiday, and keeping active with running and exercise.

Amy comes from a background where she trained and qualified as a Makeup Artist and Beautician, but has now joined us in helping our lovely Service Users.

My name is Melissa, and I am a hairdresser by trade, but have dipped in and out of the care industry for years.

Helping them inspired me to go back into the care industry, and after some amazing years spent with them, I decided to look for a job. This is when I found Personal Choice carers at home.

From the very moment I started working with these lovely ladies, I instantly felt at home. Everyone takes such pride in their work and truly puts in their best efforts to support and care for our service users.

We have such great communication and work so well with each other as a team. I have never been happier in a work environment.

I feel like all our team and service users are one big family.

After beginning my nursing degree at university, I was keen to find a role that would complement both my studies and my family life. Although I had limited experience in care at the time, I approached the opportunity with an open mind and a genuine desire to learn. From the very start, I discovered how rewarding care work can be, and it quickly became something I truly enjoy.

I feel very fortunate to work alongside such a supportive team, and to care for such lovely service users, who make every day meaningful and fulfilling. Being able to make a positive difference in people’s lives is something I take great pride in, and I continue to grow and develop my skills through both my work and my studies.

I have been working for Personal Choice Carers for over a year now and have never looked back. I already had a background in care and rehabilitation, which I loved, and before that, I worked in a hospital. One of my roles there was setting up all the allied health professions so they had a bank team within the hospital to save on agency costs. I asked to shadow them, and it was from that point that I knew I wanted to work closely with people. I found my purpose, I thrive on helping others, caring for others and empowering them to see their potential and live their best lives.

It was very quickly, when I started working for Personal Choice Carers, that I knew I had made the right choice. I love how they run things, I love how they care, and that really shone through. The managers are so supportive, and always look after the staff, they care so much about the service users. I feel at home being a part of such an amazing team. We all work well together and our service users are always our priority.

Every day, we are constantly learning so we can provide the highest quality of care to our lovely service users. I like to bring a little sunshine to everyone's day and try to treat people as I would like to be treated.

I first got to know Personal Choice Carers when they started looking after my mum, who was living with Dementia. From the very beginning, the care team felt like they were family. They were kind, patient, and always went the extra mile to make sure my mum was comfortable and happy.

Their support made such a big difference to our lives that I decided I wanted to be part of that same caring team.

I've now been working with Personal Choice for about six months, and it's been such a rewarding experience. Everyone on the team is thoroughly trained and truly dedicated to the people we care for.

I'm learning more every day, from both my colleagues and the amazing Service Users we support. It means a lot to be able to give back to help others to feel safe, supported, and valued just like they did for my mum x