Recruitment drive in New Zealand

Gloucestershire-based care agency, Corinium Care, is organising a recruitment drive in New Zealand, seeking live-in carers for its elderly and disabled clients in the UK.

Managing Director Camilla Miles has struggled to find enough suitable carers in the UK, despite the economic downturn and rising unemployment figures.

The company, based in Nailsworth, has ten staff and more than 700 registered carers from Britain and abroad. It has recruitment offices in Zimbabwe and South Africa. The trip to New Zealand is a first.

“Our business has quadrupled in the past ten years and our search for carers has been relentless,” said Camilla, who founded Corinium Care in 1995.

“Since the credit crunch and the economic downturn in this country, we have had more applications from the UK, mostly from people who have been made redundant. But the demands for our services outstrip the supply of people who come forward.”

The agency, one of the biggest in the UK, provides 24-hour care for elderly and disabled people in their own homes. Almost 40 per cent of their clients have a degree of dementia, and their families opt for one-to-one care at home, rather than a nursing home.

“The reason for the growth of Corinium Care is linked to the growth of the elderly population in the UK. At the same time, more people are becoming aware of the choices of care available, and more are choosing to remain in their own homes with live-in care,” said Camilla.

“Another factor affecting our business is that families are choosing to keep their elderly relatives at home because it’s not a good time to sell property.”

Live-in carers earn about £70 per day.

They undergo training with Corinium Care in personal care, communicating with people with dementia, recognising signs of abuse, and moving and handling.

“Training covers all aspects of being a carer but most importantly the emphasis is on the understanding of what it’s like to be cared for,” said Camilla.

Many of Corinium’s carers are from Zimbabwe and South Africa. They spend three to six months in the UK, then three to six months in their own country before they return to Britain.

Camilla will be spending time in North and South Island in New Zealand with Corinium Director Peter Beloe. They leave on Monday January 26.

“We hope New Zealand will open up new avenues for us,” said Camilla.
“It’s a real chance to promote the benefits of live-in care to a new audience, and to offer opportunities to people who might not necessarily know about the possibilities of a career in care work.”