Becoming a Micro-care provider means that you are in control of the way you work and the way your business develops. You can decide what services you specialise in, what you provide for your clients, when you work and who you work with. Being a micro-care provider can also offer more job satisfaction as you can be more innovative in finding solutions to the everyday challenges faced by your clients. Ultimately, you will be enabling people to do the things that they value and bring them joy.

The Flintshire Micro-care Team is here to support Micro-carers and will work with individuals to:

• Support them develop their business or ideas
• Provide advice and information on training, funding and other available support and resources
• Potentially help access some start-up funding
• Support individuals to develop and deliver a quality service in line with current Welsh Government legislation and regulations
• Providing links to a network of other Micro-care providers for mutual support
• Whether you already have experience in care or if it is new to you, the team can support you with a wealth of information and resources to get you started. And ongoing support as you grow your business.

Step 1: Complete the ‘Expression of Interest Form’ and return to a member of our Micro-care Team.

Step 2: You will then be invited to meet the team who will give you an overview of Micro-care in Flintshire. The team will discuss your ideas and how they can best support the people of Flintshire who need care and support. At the end of this meeting you will be given a Self-Assessment form. This forms helps you develop your business ideas.

Step 3: You will be invited to a second meeting where you and the team will go through the completed Self-Assessment form with you. The team will agree with you a development plan to help you get your Micro-care business up and running.  

Step 4: The next stages may include attending free training courses or development sessions in relation to aspects of social care and running a business, so that you build up the necessary skills, qualifications, expertise and confidence for your business to thrive. Specific courses may include:

• Business Development
• Care training, via a number of short mandatory care courses. For example:
  • Moving and Positioning
  • Health and Safety
  • Infection Control
  • Medication

In addition you can continue to meet with Micro-care officers to develop your thinking and business ideas.

Step 5: You will need to start completing some paperwork within a Quality Framework, which has been designed to help your business develop and also ensure you meet legal and national standards. The Micro-care Team will help you completed this.

Step 6: The Micro-care team will meet with you on further occasions to look at progress made against the Quality Framework and to decide together if you are ready to go and start working as a Micro-carer. At this stage, you can decide that you need a little further support before you start, or that becoming a Micro-carer is not for you.

As you start your own business and become self-employed there are things you will need to think about. You will need to consider:

• your business plan and structure
• what services you will be providing and how to market them
• keeping financial records
• fulfilling all legal requirements such as paying taxes and making sure you comply with employment legislation if you want employ other people.

To help you, the Micro-care Team have developed a number of simple, easy to follow Fact Sheets:

Fact Sheet 1 – Keeping it Legal (Business Compliance)

Fact Sheet 2 – Explaining business structures

Fact Sheet 3 – Financial Management

Fact Sheet 4 – Researching and understanding the market

We are also able to provide one to one business support with one of our business advisers, a number of business training sessions and ongoing business mentoring if you feel you need it.

There are currently two ways to find work as a micro-care provider and build a sustainable business:

• Being hired by people in receipt of a Direct Payment from Flintshire County Council
• Being hired privately by people

If an individual is eligible for help to meet their care needs, Flintshire County Council can give them the money instead of a service, as a Direct Payment. This allows the individual to arrange support that is right for their lifestyle.

Flintshire County Council have a dedicated Direct Payments Team who work with people to help them choose the right care for them.  Working with a Micro-carer would be one of the options offered to those in receipt of a Direct Payment.

There are also a number of people whose needs may not be eligible for council funded care but who still want to purchase care or well-being services privately. Micro-care providers are able to work directly for individuals who pay the Micro-carer directly.

Micro-carers supported by the Micro-care team will be listed on the Care@Flintshire website, and your details will be shared with a number of external agencies to promote your business.

You will also be encouraged to list your business on DEWIS Cymru, a national website listing people and services all over Wales who support people with their well-being needs