A Day in the Life of a Support Worker at Step Up
Stepping into the world of support work is both fulfilling and demanding, as one navigates the unique needs of each individual under their care. At Step Up, our aim has always been to create an environment of trust, understanding, and empowerment for those we work with. We often get asked “What does a typical day look like for a support worker?” But the truth is, there is no ‘typical’ day. Each day is punctuated with its own set of challenges and positive moments. In this blog post, a member of our team recounts their day as a support worker at Step Up.
A day in the life of….
My day started with a wakeup call for Miss B as she was going for breakfast with a friend and was worried she would sleep through her alarm. She was already up and ready to head out early so I told her to have a lovely morning and asked her to call me later on if she wanted to let me know how her breakfast was.
I then got money signed out that I was needing for food shops and tenancy inspections. I texted Mr C to tell him I was his accompanying person for food shopping today and asked him to let me know a suitable time for him to go shopping. While I waited on his response, I headed off to Mr A’s who was off work today and was looking for an early visit for support with calling DWP to report a change in circumstances. We called DWP together once I got there and reported the change of address.
Mr A told me he was up and ready to go food shopping with his friend who was on her way. He showed me his shopping list and read out what he was getting. I had noticed last week that he had run out of kitchen roll so suggested he add that to the list – that reminded him he also needed toilet roll and bathroom cleaner, so he updated his list to include these items. Mr A’s friend arrived so I walked him out, waved over to his friend and told him to give me a call if he needs me later otherwise staff will see him tonight.
When I got back to the car, I called Woodlands Resource Centre as I needed to check up on Mr D’s review appointment so called as he has had a recent diagnosis and is just newly on medication and being monitored every 4 weeks. The appointment had been made so I put that into our diary and texted Mr D to let him know of the appointment and that staff would support him in attending this to this.
Mr C then texted to say he was up and ready to go so I headed to his mum’s house and texted to let him know I was outside. Mr C wanted to shop in Aldi as he gets more for his £40 budget there – whilst on the way he was giving me all his gossip from his weekend out partying! When we got to Aldi I encouraged Mr C to use his phone calculator to keep track of how much he’s spending. I always suggest starting with the £40 and working down from that on the calculator so you know what you have left. MR C got a good selection of foods to last the week with a few wee treats added in. He usually gets the essentials and tries to leave the last couple of pounds for his sweets and chocolate. I help Mr C pack his bags and then we go back to his tenancy where I complete his weekly tenancy inspection which is always spotless as he loves housework! He gets £5 every week for passing this.
Then it’s time for a quick break so I go to Tesco and buy a sandwich meal deal. I sit in the car and take my 30-minute break whilst I check my shift plan to see who’s next.
After lunch I get a call from Miss B to tell me she had a lovely breakfast and was now going to the shops to buy new shoes and book a hair appointment. I have 2 visits left so head over to Miss X who has a food shop to do but when I get there she is still in bed and not feeling it today. I put the kettle on and encourage Miss X to get up and offer to make some breakfast whilst she get showered. Miss X still doesn’t want to get up as she’s having a ‘down day’ so I suggest leaving the food shop to later on when the shops will be quieter and going for a walk instead to get some fresh air. Miss X asks if we can get ice cream instead – I say yeah absolutely!
I suggest we strip the bed and put it in for a wash so that when Miss X gets into it later on it will feel great. Miss X agrees as they can’t remember when the bed was last changed. I make Miss X a coffee and some toast and I put the bedding in for a wash, do the dishes up and square the place up a bit. Miss X thanks me and says she hate a mess but has not felt like doing anything in the last few. We head off for ice cream and I suggest afterwards we walk round the park for 20 minutes for some fresh air. We actually end up walking for 40 minutes and Miss X is chatty all the way round. We go back to the tenancy and by that time the washing machine had finished so we hung the bedding out to dry together, as it’s a lovely day. I said ‘by the time staff come later on that will be lovely and dry and you can get it back on the bed again’. I leave Miss X watching a programme on Netflix and head off for my last visit.
I accompanied Mr K to his Universal Credit appointment and met his new youth hub work coach who works specifically with young 18-24 year old helping them to find work. Mr K is keen to work but he struggles to see things through so we are working on finding out what will motivate him enough to break down the barriers he is setting for himself. Once the appointment has taken place it’s time to go back to the office and catch backshift for a quick handover before I finish my notes, divert my phone and then head home.
