Care Assistant

Home Instead North Lakes; Appleby-in-Westmorland; On-site; GBP 12,000 - 21,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Up to £15 per hour

Travel time paid

Mileage paid

Double pay on Bank Holidays

Guaranteed hours contracts

Fully funded qualifications

Referral bonuses £250

Job summary

Home Instead North Lakes is hiring Care Professionals to support clients in Penrith, Keswick, Appleby and Kirkby Stephen. You’ll provide compassionate one-on-one visits with clients matched to you through shared interests, and travel time and mileage are paid on top. You don’t need previous experience.

Training starts from day one, with funded qualifications (Levels 2, 3 and 5). Expect competitive pay up to £15 per hour, full hour visits, and generous benefits including travel time pay, mileage,

Qualifications

• No prior care experience required; warm, reliable and caring individuals encouraged to apply.
• Willingness to complete funded qualifications (Level 2, 3 and 5) on the job.

Responsibilities

• Provide compassionate one-hour visits focused on the client’s routines and preferences.
• Support with morning routines, meals, medication reminders and gentle activities.
• Travel between clients with paid travel time and mileage; ensure client safety and wellbeing.

Skills

Warm personality

Reliability

Caring nature

Education

Level 2/3/5 qualifications

Job description

Ready for a fresh start?

Sometimes life nudges you to ask: what’s next for me?

Maybe you’re semi-retired or an ex-nurse who misses building real relationships. Maybe your weeks need a new purpose. Maybe you’re starting your care career and want to do it properly, with people who get it.

Now hiring Care Professionals in Penrith, Keswick, Appleby and Kirkby Stephen, with clients close to home and travel time paid on top.

At Home Instead North Lakes, you’ll have real, unhurried time with real people where the care we deliver is rated Outstanding by the CQC. One-hour visits built around what matters to them, with clients matched to you through shared interests. Full hour with your client. Travel time and mileage paid on top. That hour is theirs. No corners cut.

And you’ll be in good company. Thank you to everyone who took part in our last PEAQ survey: 98% of the Care Professionals in our South Lakes team told us they are proud to work for Home Instead, and 100% would recommend our services.

What you bring as a person matters more than what’s on your CV.

Time to care, and hours to fit your life

Every day is different, and every day means something. You might help someone with their morning routine, share a proper cuppa and a catch-up, prepare a meal, support with medication, or enjoy a gentle walk together. Every visit is shaped around the person, their routines and what makes them feel most like themselves.

These aren’t small things to the people you visit. They are everything. And you’re paid for every minute. No wonder 98% of our South Lakes Care Professionals feel confident in their ability to meet their clients’ needs.

Your hour is their hour

At Home Instead, travel is never squeezed out of a visit. Your client gets their full hour with you, and you get paid for all of it. Your travel time between calls is paid separately on top (£12.71), plus mileage, and it’s planned so you can get to your next client without rushing.

No clock-watching. No cutting the cuppa short. No arriving at your next call flustered.

Why join us?

• Up to £15 per hour for every minute of your visit
• Travel time paid on top (£12.71), so your visit is never cut short
• Plus mileage
• Double pay on Bank Holidays
• Guaranteed hours contracts available, including mornings, weekends only, and Friday to Sunday
• 5 Star WorkBuzz Employer and Financial Times Top Employer 2026
• Outstanding CQC rating and 10/10 on homecare.co.uk (80+ reviews)
• Top 20 Homecare Provider 2026 in the North West
• Fully funded qualifications (Level 2, 3 and 5)
• £250 referral bonuses, plus work anniversary bonuses
• Free wellbeing, counselling and legal support
• Local discounts on food, shopping and treats

No experience needed

Whether you’ve built transferable skills in hospitality or another people-focused role, or you’re starting a new chapter, you could be a perfect fit. If you’re warm, reliable and genuinely care about people, we’ll support you with everything else. Training starts from day one, and 100% of our South Lakes Care Professionals say it prepared them for their first client visit.

You won’t be on your own either. 96% say our office team is responsive to any queries, and 92% feel valued by Home Instead.

What we need from you

UK right to work, a full UK driving licence and reliable transport.

Ready to remember your why?

100% of our South Lakes Care Professionals rated the recruitment process 10/10.

Pay: Up to £15 per hour, with travel time and mileage paid on top