'I have enough pressure as it is, without the worry of doing something wrong because of ignorance': The impact of Covid-19 on people who employ social care personal assistants

People with care and support needs were often badly affected by Covid-19, although the impact on people employing Personal Assistants (PAs) has not been addressed. We aimed to explore the experiences of people employing PAs during the pandemic to inform care systems and social work practice. Remote qualitative interviews were conducted with seventy PA employers across England in 2021-2022. Data were analysed thematically to explore salient themes. The Covid-19 pandemic elucidated role tensions of PA employers: Navigating care arrangements during a time of unprecedented uncertainty reinforced participants' role as an employer, but exposed some aspects of employment responsibilities and legal obligations that participants felt ill-equipped to manage. Reports of contact with or by social workers were few and not perceived as helpful. The often-informal nature of PA arrangements and its blurred relational boundaries affected participants' expectations of their PAs. PA employers would welcome support from social workers in their employment role and flexibility with care plans, albeit with greater autonomy over their Direct Payment (DP) budget to enhance the potential of this arrangement. In the context of declining DP uptake in England, our study offers some potential explanations for this, with suggestions for systemic change and social work practice. How were people with care and support needs who employ social care Personal Assistants (PAs) affected by the Covid-19 pandemic? We interviewed seventy PA employers in England in 2021-2022 to ask them what happened to their care and support, and about their contacts with social workers from their local authority (LA). We found that employing a PA during the pandemic heightened many people's awareness of their employment responsibilities, particularly around trying to keep their PAs safe from the risk of the Covid-19 virus infection, and from the hardship of lost income during times when PAs were not working (e.g. during periods of national lockdown where 'social distancing' rules were in place). Several participants reported no or little contact with a social worker since the pandemic started which may have been the result of LAs postponing reviews. Some participants had wanted to use their Direct Payments differently and in a way that they thought would enable them to better meet their needs than previously agreed. When this was a problem or seemed to be so, LA staff were thought to lack understanding of the needs of people employing PAs during the Covid-19 pandemic.