301 care employers in Oxfordshire could find you

Working in care in Oxfordshire

Oxford and the market towns: where is the care work in Oxfordshire?

Oxfordshire is a county of two halves for care. Oxford itself is young: with its universities, the city had a median age of just 31 at the 2021 census, the lowest in the South East. Step out into the Cotswold edge and the Vale and the population gets older quickly, with West Oxfordshire's median age at 44. Much of the need for care is in those market towns and villages, while many of the people who might do the work live in or near the city.

Oxford has the most care employers, followed by Banbury in the north, then Witney, Bicester and Abingdon, with Wantage, Didcot and Henley-on-Thames further down. Nursing homes make up an unusually large share of the county's care employers, around a quarter, so there is real demand for carers who are comfortable supporting people with complex health needs alongside nurses.

Oxfordshire County Council's direct payments can be used to hire a personal assistant, and the council points people looking for a PA to Live Well Oxfordshire, its online directory, so PA work for one person at a time is a real possibility here. The council is clear that whoever hires you becomes your employer and must pay at least the National Minimum Wage.

Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust runs the John Radcliffe, Churchill and Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Oxford and the Horton General in Banbury, while Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust provides community and mental health services. Abingdon and Witney College offers Health and Social Care at Level 2.

89% of the inspected care employers in Oxfordshire are rated Good or Outstanding by the CQC, above the 84% across the South East and above England as a whole (85%).