Thinking about a career in domiciliary care? Here’s everything you need to know about what working in homecare is like. It's a long read, but it's worth it. Just like working in homecare!
Jump to the most relevant section for you:
What is domiciliary care work? - what does being a domiciliary care worker involve?
Is domiciliary care a good job? - what makes working in homecare so worthwhile
Responsibilities - what your day-to-day work will look like as a domiciliary carer
Roles - the different types of carers involved in domiciliary care
Requirements - essential things you need to be a domiciliary carer
Skills - what makes a good domiciliary care worker
Qualifications - you don’t need any qualifications to start working in domiciliary care, but you can do them as you progress
Registration - anyone working in care must be registered in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
DBS checks - a criminal record check is required to be a domiciliary care
Finding a job - where to find domiciliary care jobs
Interview questions - what you might get asked
Pay - average pay for a domiciliary care worker
Training and induction - on-the-job training in your first few weeks
Domiciliary care work, also known as homecare, involves supporting people to live as independently as possible in their own homes, while receiving the care they need. “Care” in this context means giving assistance with day-to-day tasks like washing and dressing, medications, meal preparation and mobility. People who receive domiciliary care are usually referred to as clients or service users.
Care is delivered on a scheduled visit basis, and carers can visit a person’s home a few times a week, several times a day, or sometimes may live with them for a period of time. As a domiciliary care worker, you will often support multiple people in the same day.
Domiciliary care can be a deeply rewarding job for those who enjoy helping others and making a positive difference to people’s lives. It offers satisfying work, flexible hours and the chance to build real relationships with clients. While the role can be physically and emotionally demanding, many carers find the sense of purpose and appreciation they receive makes it incredibly fulfilling.
Homecare is a vital service and a highly rewarding role - where you build meaningful relationships and make a real difference in someone’s daily life.
▶️ Hear from Liz Blacklock, CEO of NACAS and Lapis Care, as she talks about where a career in care could take you.
A domiciliary care worker provides personal and practical support to individuals in their own homes. Typical domiciliary care worker responsibilities include:
Personal care - supporting people with their day-to-day personal tasks, like washing, dressing and going to the toilet
Mobility - helping people move safely around their home, including getting in and out of bed
Food & nutrition - preparing meals and supporting people with eating healthily and staying hydrated
Medication - supporting people to take their medication by reminding them or giving it to them, following a detailed care plan
Domestic chores - carrying out light household tasks like cleaning, laundry and shopping
Companionship - keeping people company and giving emotional support to reduce loneliness
Monitoring - observing and reporting any changes in a person’s health (physical, mental and emotional) or behaviour
Record-keeping - documenting what you do during a visit and making sure client records are accurate and up-to-date, as well as respecting confidentiality at all times
Safety - following infection control procedures and safeguarding guidelines to keep your clients, and yourself, safe
Enablement - supporting people to live as independently as possible in their own home, with dignity
There are different types of carers involved in domiciliary care. Some roles require more training, skills or experience, while others specialise in a specific type of support or activity. Here are some of the most common domiciliary care roles:
Care Assistant / Care Worker - supports people with all aspects of their day-to-day living, including personal care, companionship and light household tasks.
Support Worker - provides advice about housing, life skills such as cooking or budgeting, as well as emotional support and companionship
Senior Care Worker - a more experienced role that leads care visits or handles more complex cases and will typically support and mentor junior carers.
Live-in Carer - lives with the client to provide 1-to-1 care round-the-clock for a period of time. May be short-term care (e.g. while recovering from an operation) or long-term.
Personal Assistants - a care worker who is usually employed directly by someone who needs some support. They decide what they want you to help them with.
Shared Lives Carer - welcomes vulnerable people into their own home or stays with individuals in their own home and care for them there. This could be on a long or short term basis - you might offer weekend respite care or provide support during the day or night.
Rehabilitation Worker - supports people to live independently, often following an illness or accident. They help them to find support with housing, finances, social activities and re-learning life skills.
Activities Worker - organises social activities such as trips and entertainment, support people who need care to take part
Advocacy Worker - supports vulnerable people to have their voice heard and ensure that their best interests are taken into consideration when decisions are being made about their lives.
Specialist Domiciliary Carer - focus on complex or specialist needs, e.g. works with clients with dementia, learning disabilities, mental health conditions, or palliative care needs. May require extra training or qualifications
Field Care Supervisor - a bridge between carers and management, they are usually senior carers who monitor care quality and support staff training and supervision.
Care Coordinator / Scheduler - an admin role, often office-based, that organises the care rotas and schedules. They match care workers with clients based on needs and availability and respond to changes or emergencies.
Team Lead / Supervisor - responsible for managing a team of care workers, ensuring they provide high quality care and support.
Specialist Coordinator - specialises in one area of care such as dementia or end-of-life care and takes responsibility for that area of service, including training staff and putting policies in place.
Deputy Manager - leads and manages the care team, helping them to deliver high standards across the organisation. They play an important role in supporting the manager of the service.
Care Manager / Registered Manager - responsible for the day to day running of a care company, ensuring it meets standards and is compliant with regulations.
It’s relatively easy to become a domiciliary care worker however there are a few requirements and things you need to consider:
Skills - above everything else, are you caring, adaptable and keen to learn? If so, that’s a solid foundation for becoming a domiciliary care worker. Find out more about the key skills for domiciliary care.
Qualifications - you don’t need any qualifications to start out in care, but your job and/or registration will require you to do some training, which may include getting a qualification. Find out more about homecare qualifications.
Registration - in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland you must register to work in care. In England you don’t have to. Find out more about care worker registration.
DBS checks - all domiciliary care workers must have a criminal record check to ensure there is no reason why they would not be suitable for care work. Find out more about DBS checks.
Transport - domiciliary care work involves travelling between people’s homes, so you will usually need your own car and driving licence. Depending on your run, it might be possible to walk and/or get public transport.
Availability - domiciliary care happens around the clock, so you are likely to be needed at evenings, weekends and bank holidays, as well as during the day. Typically you will have a shift and a set amount of hours each week.
Your skills and attitude are really important as a domiciliary care worker, in some ways even more important than any qualifications. It’s essential that you can create relationships quickly with your clients and are also ready for anything. Every day - every moment - is different in homecare; you never know what you’re about to walk into when you open the front door of the person you’re caring for.
Skills that make a great domiciliary care worker include:
Empathy - being able to understand how others are feeling
Patience - allowing people to take their time and do things their way
Communication - being easily understood, as well as giving clear instructions and information
Relationship-building - being able to create a good rapport with anyone
Time management - punctuality and being able to get things done in the allocated time
Attention to detail - accurately following care plans and administering medication
Resilience - having the tools you need to cope with the emotional challenges of care work
Adaptability - every client is different and trying something different can achieve great results
One of the benefits of working in domiciliary care is that no formal qualifications are required to start out. However, having GCSEs (or equivalent) in English and Maths can be helpful. Care companies offer full training to new recruits and there are lots of opportunities to learn and grow as you start working.
Here are some of the domiciliary care qualifications available:
Care Certificate
The Care Certificate is a nationally recognised induction standard for new care workers. It covers 16 core standards that outline the knowledge, skills and behaviours you need to work in domiciliary care. If you’re new to care, you’ll typically do the Care Certificate as part of your training in your first 12 weeks on the job.
Level 2 Diploma in Care
This is the standard qualification for domiciliary care workers and covers all of the foundational, mandatory skills and knowledge you need to be working in care. It can be a requirement of the job that you work towards this qualification as you get more experience, and is required for registration as a care worker in Scotland and Wales. It’s equivalent to a GCSE.
Level 3 Diploma in Adult Care
For more experienced carers or those taking on more responsibility (e.g. senior care workers), this qualification builds on the skills learnt at level 2 and starts to include leadership and medications. It’s equivalent to an A’level.
Level 4 Diploma in Adult Care
If you want to move towards supervising or leading teams, this qualification builds on care planning, safeguarding, and managing people. It involves assessing performance of other care workers and quality of care delivery.
Level 5 Diploma in Leadership for Health and Social Care
A specialist qualification required in England for Registered Managers in domiciliary care. It covers compliance, regulation, and service management and makes sure you have all the skills and knowledge necessary for running a homecare business.
Aside from these, there are various specialist qualifications you can undertake in areas you might be interested in, such as dementia care, end-of-life care, mental health first aid or working with people with Autism and Learning Disabilities.
In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, it is a requirement for everyone working in care to be registered (like any other profession such as a nurse, doctor or lawyer). The main purpose of registration for care workers is to protect the public, as it ensures that only people who are competent and qualified can deliver care. Registration usually requires you to have some basic qualifications, or at least agreed to work towards them as a condition of your registration.
Find out more about care worker registration in:
In England, registration is not currently required. Completing the Care Certificate goes a long way to ensuring you have the right skills. There is also a voluntary register which you can choose to join to demonstrate your fitness to care for others. Find out more about the register.
▶️ Watch: Liz Blacklock from NACAS explains why we need a register of care professionals in England.
All care workers must have a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check in order to work in care. This background check ensures you do not have a criminal record that would make you unsuitable for the role. Employers typically arrange and pay for this as part of the hiring process.
Nationally there is a shortage of care workers, meaning that there are lots of jobs to choose from if you are interested in working in domiciliary care. There are currently around 70,000 unfilled posts in domiciliary care, a vacancy rate of 11.9% (according to Skills for Care).
Good places to find a job in domiciliary care are:
Job boards - websites like Indeed or Total Jobs are used by many homecare companies to advertise vacancies.
Council websites - check your local council’s job website, as many councils employ domiciliary care workers directly.
Care directories - find out what care companies there are in your local area by using directories like homecare.co.uk or by searching on the regulator’s websites for England, Wales and Scotland.
Facebook - check Facebook groups for your local area; there are also a number of general domiciliary care groups which advertise jobs.
Supermarkets - it’s old school, but you’ll often find posters on the community noticeboard of your local supermarket.
Homecare office - if there are care companies with an office in your local area, there’s a good chance they’ll be advertising job opportunities in their window. Or just pop-in!
A big part of the interview for a domiciliary care worker is what’s called the “mum test”. What would you do in this situation if this was your mum you were looking after? What would you want to happen if it was your mum? How you respond to those questions gives a big indication of your suitability for being a domiciliary care worker.
▶️ Liz Blacklock of Lapis Care explains the "mum test".
Here are some common domiciliary care worker interview questions:
Motivations:
Why do you want to work in domiciliary care?
What qualities do you think make a good care worker?
What do you know about our care company and why do you want to work with us?
Skills and knowledge:
What experience do you have caring for someone?
What steps might you follow to help someone with taking their medication?
How do you prioritise when you have a number of tasks to do in a short period of time?
How do you maintain client confidentiality?
What would you do if you suspected a client was being abused or neglected?
How do you handle working independently or with minimal supervision?
Give an example of a time you had to adapt your communication style to someone, for example, because they couldn't hear very well or struggled to remember things.
Scenarios:
How would you respond if a client refused to let you help with personal care?
What would you do if you noticed a sudden change in a client’s health or behaviour?
You’re running late for your next care visit - what do you do?
How would you handle a situation where a client was becoming confused or distressed?
How would you handle a disagreement with a colleague or supervisor?
Practicalities:
Are you able to work early mornings, evenings, weekends or bank holidays?
Do you have a full driving licence and access to a car?
Are you comfortable working alone in people’s homes?
The average pay for a domiciliary care worker is £13.05/hour (according to Indeed), that’s an annual salary of around £25,000 if you are working full time. However, many homecare jobs are pinned at the National Living Wage, which is currently £12.21 if you’re aged 21 and over (as of 1st April 2025).
Factors that affect domiciliary care rates include:
Location - e.g. London and the South East of England typically tend to pay more due to the cost of living in those areas.
Experience and training - you are likely to be able to earn more if you hold a qualification like an NVQ or Diploma in Health and Social Care, or if you have specialist skills, such as end-of-life or dementia care.
Company policies - some care providers pay for travel time and mileage, while others don’t.
Shift patterns - working weekends, evenings and bank holidays can offer pay rates that are 10% - 30% higher.
Employer - some companies (like Caroline Cares for You) pay care workers salaries, rather than payment per hour (which is more common).
When you start out as a new domiciliary carer, you will receive training from your care company. This is mandatory, and usually covered by the Care Certificate in England.
The mandatory training for all domiciliary care workers is:
Health and safety - being aware of and reducing risks to yourself and others
Fire safety - preventing fire and what to do if one happens
Moving and handling - lifting and carrying objects safely
Infection control and prevention - hygiene and protective equipment
Adult safeguarding - preventing abuse and how to respond if it’s happening
Child safeguarding - what to do if they suspect abuse or neglect
Learning disability and autism awareness - how to interact appropriately
Depending on what your role involves, training is also mandatory in these areas:
Basic life support and first aid - recognising and responding to accidents and illness
Assisting and moving people - supporting people to move around their house
Food hygiene - preparing food safely
Medication administration - supporting people to take their medications
See Skills for Care for a full list of mandatory training for care workers.
And that’s everything you need to know about starting out in domiciliary care! We hope you have a long and fulfilling career in homecare ahead of you. Make sure you check out our series of webinars for domiciliary care workers, 30 minute learning sessions on topics relating to wellbeing and personal development. Good luck! 💚