Rachel worked closely with local UNISON reps to campaign for and then sign Reading Borough Council up to the UNISON Ethical Care Charter which sets minimum standards to protect the dignity and quality of life for people who need homecare. It commits councils to buying home care only from providers who give workers enough time, training and a living wage, so they can provide better quality care for thousands of individuals who rely on it.
Rachel promoted this and signed
Reading Brough Council up as a UNISON Ethical Care Council.
You can watch the video featured at national UNISON conference here
This gives dignity to workers who provide care and to those they care for: providers are required to:
• Schedule visits so that homecare workers are not forced to rush their time with clients or leave their clients early to get to the next one on time
• Match the time allocated to visits to the particular needs of the client
• Allocate clients the same homecare worker(s) wherever possible
• Use contracts which are appropriate for individual homecare workers
• Pay the Living Wage
• Pay homecare workers for expenses such as their travel time and travel costs
Rachel continues to promote the value of the care charter with other councils and nationally in her role with the Local Government Association