Personal Assistant for creative, political disabled woman, 6hrs./wk@£11.50/hr Bristol BS16 - BRISTOL - BS16

I’m a political and creative disabled woman in my 50s, living in Eastville BS16, an artist-activist and mother to a young adult. I have a chronic, fluctuating illness which heavily impacts my energy and pain levels, limiting my physical, mental and social activity, and entailing uninterrupted periods of rest during the day. I employ Personal Assistants (PAs) to provide the assistance I need with various aspects of daily living – domestic, personal, work and social – in order to minimise the impact of both chronic illness and discrimination. Having recently completed a long-term PhD and undergone major building works, along with Covid shielding, my life, and therefore PA work, is currently predominantly domestic whilst I work out ‘what next’.

Key Tasks

Main domestic and local duties:

l    Housework, including cleaning, laundry, etc

l    Shopping, or assisting with shopping, post office, general domestic tasks and errands

l    Washing hair

l    Organising house, post-move and building works

l    Planning, preparing and cooking vegetarian meals

l    Feeding and caring for cats and plants. Taking cats to vet, flea treatment, etc

l    Occasional maintenance of outside of house: cleaning windows, sweeping paths, etc

l    Gardening

l    Basic household maintenance or DIY

l    Driving my van, locally and further afield. Routine upkeep of van (cleaning, tyre pressures, oil, fuel, etc.)

l    Assisting with mobility, including chair maintenance, occasional wheelchair-pushing, occasional walking distances (eg. 8 km) in natural environments.

 

Other duties which may arise:

l    Assisting in getting to appointments, meetings, social activities, etc, including occasional overnight stays away

l    Basic administration and support with projects

l    Occasionally researching impairment-related or household equipment

l    Enabling me to carry out any chosen activity whether inside or outside my home, by undertaking other requests which I might reasonably make.

My PAs can be female or male. The exception to this is some overnight work where, for reasons of privacy, I book female PAs only (Schedule 9, part 1 of the Equality Act 2010 applies).

My PAs generally work a regular block of hours each week, with some room for negotiation on those hours and a possibility of increasing hours at later date. Occasionally, additional blocks of work are needed, subject to the PA’s availability. PAs can be self-employed or employed (PAYE).

Person Specification

Previous experience of PA work is not important, but applicants must be willing to learn and adapt. A commitment to this job is essential.

 

Essential attributes

l    Efficient, with excellent organising and communication skills

l    Excellent attention to detail

l    Ability to use initiative and accept responsibility

l    Reliability, trustworthiness and confidentiality

l    Respect for, and co-operation with, the way I choose to live

l    Plenty of energy and good general health

l    Frugal to keep household waste and costs to a minimum

l    Safe, calm and efficient driver with minimum of 12 months' clean UK driving licence (i.e. no endorsements). (A licence restricted to driving automatics is fine.)

l    Ability to plan and prepare healthy food, including good understanding of nutrition

l    Fluent spoken and written English

l    Fully Covid-vaccinated and willing to observe Covid-safe protocols as stipulated by employer

l    Non-smoker

l    At ease with cats and dogs

                            

Desirable

l    Basic DIY

l    Basic knowledge of gardening

l    Bike maintenance (for wheelchairs)

l    Knowledge of bodywork practice (such as massage, stretches, etc)

l    Ability to accompany on occasional overnight trips.