Parents will be all too aware of the challenges of juggling a busy home and working life. For Crewe mum, Leah Wilson, 29, what felt like an extreme decision to change careers to meet the needs of her growing family, has turned out to be the ideal job.
Leah is one of a number of Belong at Home community support workers, who visit older people living in and around Crewe and Nantwich. Her role is to help them to live their lives in their own homes, as independently as possible, including assistance with personal care, domestic tasks, as well as fitness and emotional support.
Whilst caring for others has always been her passion, two years ago, Leah’s career path took a new direction to enable her to look after and enjoy precious time with her own family.
After a decade spent building a career in childcare, climbing the ranks to senior roles in local nurseries, it was when her own children reached school age that Leah faced some resistance from her employer. She said: “I’d asked to start half an hour later in the morning as I couldn’t secure childcare before school hours. The response, in so many words, was to choose between my kids or my career.”
Having confided in her younger sibling, a support worker at dementia care specialist, Belong Crewe, Leah was encouraged to consider other options which could afford her the flexibility she needed. “My sister said, ‘Leah, care is all you know and you can drive, so why not give Belong at Home a go?’ At first, it felt a bit odd, as I didn’t have qualifications in adult care, but that didn’t matter – with support, I was able to train on-the-job to become fully qualified.”
The mum-of-two initially completed The Care Certificate, designed for those who are new to care, as part of a comprehensive induction programme. Since then, has since been promoted to a senior position with Belong at Home, the domiciliary care service from Belong Crewe – both of which are rated ‘Outstanding’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
“It’s the ideal set-up,” Leah said. “I work the opposite hours to my partner, Stephen, a production engineer; so, when I’m working, he’s at home looking after the family. A lot of Belong at Home managers have their own families, so they really understand the need for adaptability and work with you to meet your needs.”
Looking back at her big decision, Leah is pleased she made the move: “I love all of it. Our visits make our customers’ day; they are living their last years and some customers don’t have family close by and some don’t have any, so you go to work every day knowing you’re making a positive difference to people’s lives.
“I’m glad I made the change. Now, I can take the kids to school, which I couldn’t do before, and I also have a job which I love. I’d say to anyone thinking about it, just go for it – I have a background in care, but as long as you have a passion for looking after others, like me, you can train for the qualifications from day one.”
