The short answer
- Start from the tasks, not a job titleWork out what your relative needs help with and roughly how many hours a week, and the rest of the decisions follow from that.
- There are three ways to bring someone inEmploy someone directly, book a self-employed carer through an introductory service, or use an agency. Each one decides who is legally responsible for what.
- Checks and paperwork come before the first visit, not afterIdentity, right to work and a criminal record check, then pay, hours and notice agreed in writing.
- A self-employed carer usually costs less than an agencyCarers on PrimeCarers typically charge £18 to £25 an hour with our fee included, against £28 to £35 for an agency covering the same visit.
PrimeCarers is an introductory service, not a care agency and not registered with the CQC. Carers who join PrimeCarers are self-employed, and we check their identity, right to work and enhanced DBS certificate and interview them online before their profile appears.
The whole process
The five decisions in hiring a private carer, in order
Families arranging care for the first time usually ask a version of the same question: what do I need to do? These are the five decisions that answer it, each one linking to the section below that covers it, and most of them to a page with the full detail beyond this one.
- 1
Work out what would help
The tasks, the schedule and roughly how many hours a week, before you start looking at carers.
- 2
Decide how you want to bring someone in
Employ someone directly, book a self-employed carer through an introductory service, or use an agency.
- 3
Understand what the role covers, and where it stops
What a private carer does day to day, and the tasks that are not theirs to take on.
- 4
Check them properly, and put it in writing
Identity, right to work and a criminal record check, then the pay, hours and notice agreed on paper.
- 5
Get the first visit right, and keep it working
What to have ready before day one, and a regular way to check the arrangement is still working.
None of this has to happen on a fixed timetable. Some families move from the first decision to a carer starting within a week; others take longer over the first one because a parent's needs are still becoming clear. Read the sections below in order, or jump straight to the one you are stuck on.
Before you start looking
Working out what kind of care would help
It is easier to recognise the right carer once you know what you are looking for. These are the areas worth thinking through, ideally with anyone else close to your relative, before you start searching.
Personal care and everyday tasks
Medical conditions and medication
Mobility, falls and the home itself
Memory, confusion and mental capacity
Meals, diet and any cultural or religious preferences
Routine, and how many hours a week would help
You do not have to work this out alone or get it exactly right before the first visit. A GP can advise on medical needs, and asking your local council for a care needs assessment gets a social worker or occupational therapist to look at the whole picture and put a plan in writing, free of charge and regardless of your relative's savings. If a health condition is the main driver, NHS Continuing Healthcare is worth checking too, since it can fund a much larger package where the need is primarily a health one. Once you have a rough shape for the week, how many visits a week does my parent need turns tasks into an actual number of hours and a likely cost.
How you bring someone in
The three ways to arrange it, and who becomes responsible for what
Once you have a sense of what would help, the next decision is how you bring someone in. There are three routes, and each one settles a different question: who is legally the employer, who checks the carer, and who carries the admin.
Employ someone directly
Book a self-employed carer through an introductory service
Use a care agency
A self-employed carer booked through PrimeCarers typically charges £18 to £25 an hour with our fee included. An agency delivering the same visit usually charges £28 to £35. Hiring directly, carers often advertise £16 to £18 an hour before you add the cost of your own payroll, insurance and finding cover when the carer is unavailable.
Whether you become the carer's employer is decided by how the work happens in practice rather than by what you call it. If you set the hours, direct how the work is done and the carer cannot send someone else in their place, HMRC is likely to treat that as employment even if a contract says otherwise. Can I employ a private carer? sets out the tests behind that in full, and employing a private carer is a complete list of an employer's duties and the current tax year's figures, for anyone taking that route. Agency or private carer? puts the three routes side by side with the numbers.
What to expect
What a private carer does, day to day
Whichever route you take, it helps to know what you are asking someone to do, and what stays outside the role even when it feels connected.
Personal care
Household support
Medication support
Transport and appointments
Meals and shopping
Company, and respite for the family
No qualification is legally required to work as a private carer, so look for relevant experience and how someone talks about their approach rather than a certificate alone. What makes a good carer and the qualities to look for go into what to look for when you meet someone. PrimeCarers checks a carer's identity, right to work and enhanced DBS certificate and interviews every carer online before their profile appears; training, qualifications and references sit on a carer's profile for you to ask about directly.
The role has limits too, and they matter as much as the list above. A carer cannot give an injection, dress a wound or take on anything else the law treats as nursing care, unless a nurse has trained and signed them off for that specific task. Money, gifts, and legal roles such as witnessing a will stay off limits on every route. What are carers not allowed to do sets out the full list, including where training rather than the law draws the line.
Before the first visit
Checking someone properly, and putting the arrangement in writing
Two things need to happen before day one: you need to be satisfied about who is coming into the house, and both of you need to know exactly what has been agreed.
Before the first visit
- Confirm identity and the right to work in the UK
- See an enhanced DBS certificate, checked before the first visit
- Ring at least two people the carer has worked for
- Agree the rate, the hours and how much notice either side gives, in writing
- Check employer’s liability insurance is in place if you have become the employer
- Arrange a trial visit before agreeing an ongoing arrangement
What to avoid
- Relying on a verbal agreement for pay, hours or notice
- Skipping the DBS check because a carer seems trustworthy at interview
- Assuming a written agreement is unnecessary because it feels like an informal, personal arrangement
- Agreeing to pay mileage or expenses after the event rather than in writing beforehand
If you are hiring directly, you cannot request a DBS check on someone working in your own home yourself; only a registered organisation can apply for one on your behalf. Since 21 January 2026, self-employed workers and personal employees such as a privately hired carer can apply for their own enhanced DBS certificate through a registered umbrella body. Ask to see the certificate, and if the carer keeps it on the Update Service you can confirm online that it is still clear. Background checks for private carers sets out what PrimeCarers checks before a carer's profile appears, and what is left for you to verify on any route.
If you become the carer's employer, the law requires the core terms, the job, the pay, the hours and the start date, in writing on their first day, with the fuller written statement to follow within two months. Employing a private carer has the complete current tax year's figures for pay, National Insurance, holiday, sick pay and the insurance you need. If the carer is self-employed instead, whether through PrimeCarers or arranged privately, a short written agreement covering the rate, the days and hours, and the notice either side gives still protects you both, even though none of an employer's duties apply.
Once the checks are done, it is worth arranging a short trial visit before you commit to an ongoing arrangement, whether that is a single paid visit or the first few days of a longer booking. It lets you see how the carer works with your relative in your own home, on a real task, rather than going only on how the interview went.
First visit and beyond
Getting ready for the first visit, and keeping the arrangement working
A little preparation before the first visit makes the whole arrangement easier, both for the carer and for your relative.
- 1
Write down the essentials
Before day oneThe daily routine, medication times, allergies, and who to call in an emergency. This becomes the care plan a carer works from, and it saves your relative repeating the same explanations to somebody new. - 2
Sort out access
Before day oneA spare key, an alarm code, or who else holds a key, agreed and written down, so nobody is left standing on the doorstep on the first morning. - 3
Be there, or nearby, for the first visit
First visitAn introduction usually goes better with a familiar face in the room, even briefly, before you leave the carer and your relative to get on with it. - 4
Put a regular check-in in the diary
From week twoA short, regular conversation, with the carer and separately with your relative, catches a small problem while it is still small. How to build a good relationship with your parent’s private carer covers how this tends to develop over the first few weeks. - 5
Know where to go if something feels wrong
OngoingA problem with your private carer, and what to do first sets out what to do, from a small disagreement to a safeguarding concern. If the carer came through PrimeCarers, you can also ring us on 0203 369 3624.
Questions
Questions families ask about hiring a private carer
No. You can employ someone directly, book a self-employed carer through an introductory service such as PrimeCarers, or use an agency. Each route decides who is legally the employer and who carries the admin. Agency or private carer? compares all three with the current figures.
Start from the tasks rather than a diagnosis: what help is needed with washing, dressing, meals, medication and getting about, and how often. A council care needs assessment will put this in writing free of charge, and how many visits a week does my parent need turns the tasks into an actual number of hours.
Not automatically. It depends on how the arrangement works in practice, not on what you call it. If you set the hours, direct how the work is done and the carer cannot send a substitute, HMRC is likely to see it as employment. Can I employ a private carer? sets out the tests in full.
Identity, the right to work in the UK, and an enhanced DBS certificate, plus references from people the carer has worked for. If you are hiring directly, the carer applies for their own DBS certificate through a registered umbrella body, since only a registered organisation can request one. Background checks for private carers covers what PrimeCarers checks before a carer’s profile appears.
Yes, on every route. If you are the employer, the core terms of the job must be in writing on the carer’s first day. If the carer is self-employed, a short written agreement on the rate, hours and notice protects you both even though none of an employer’s duties apply. Bookings made through PrimeCarers run on the terms in our contract.
Sometimes, depending on your relative’s funding and the council’s rules where they live, and it affects tax and Carer’s Allowance differently to hiring outside the family. Can my mum pay me to care for her? sets out the rules.
Raise it with the carer directly for anything minor, and keep a note of what was said. For a booking made through PrimeCarers, hourly care runs on 48 hours’ notice, and PrimeCarers itself charges nothing to cancel, though a visit cancelled inside that notice is still payable to the carer unless it is due to unplanned hospitalisation, illness, or something you have agreed with them. A problem with your private carer, and what to do first covers what to do, including when to involve the council’s safeguarding team or the police.