205 care employers in Wolverhampton could find you

Working in care in Wolverhampton

Why is so much of Wolverhampton's care work done in people's homes?

Wolverhampton is a city of close-knit districts rather than separate towns. Bilston, Wednesfield, Tettenhall and Penn all run into one another, and nearly two thirds of the city's registered care employers provide home care rather than running a care home. In practice that means plenty of rounds built around a few streets, with short gaps between calls, and fewer long drives than you would face in the surrounding Staffordshire villages.

It is a younger, mixed city. Census 2021 put the median age at 38, below the West Midlands figure, and just over one resident in five identified as Asian or Asian British. Sikhs made up 12 per cent of residents, against under 1 per cent across England. A carer who speaks Punjabi, or understands the routines around a gurdwara, mealtimes and prayer, can be exactly who a family is hoping to find, so list your languages on your Carer Badge profile.

City of Wolverhampton Council offers direct payments, and its guidance says people can use them to employ their own support worker or buy care from an agency. The council publishes factsheets on employing a personal assistant and works with a payroll partner, Barrie Bookkeeping, so the people employing PAs have help paying them properly.

For NHS comparison, The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust runs New Cross Hospital, along with Cannock Chase Hospital and West Park Hospital. If you are starting out, City of Wolverhampton College runs Health and Social Care courses at Levels 2 and 3, and a short Into Employment course in healthcare and social care funded by the West Midlands Combined Authority, which covers the basics of the adult social care sector.

67% of the inspected care employers in Wolverhampton are rated Good or Outstanding by the CQC, below the 79% across the West Midlands and below England as a whole (85%).