What you’ll do

As a Shared Lives carer, you will welcome someone into your home and family. You'll share your life with them as you give them the support and care they need.

This involves sharing your experience and skills to help someone learn new skills and build their independence.

You’ll share your best moments and interests as well as the routines of day-to-day life.

You could support someone who:

  • has a learning disability
  • has physical disability
  • has autism
  • has mental ill health
  • is an older adult
  • has dementia

You will be matched carefully to someone based on your strengths, experiences and interests which will help the person you are caring for.

Types of care you can offer

In Medway, Shared Lives provides a wide range of different types of support. The support you give will be arranged with you to fit in with your family life.

You could choose to offer:

  • Long-term care – where someone comes to live with you. There is no working day, the person will become part of your home and family
  • Respite/short term care– where someone stays for a night, a weekend or a week or more at a time, this could be once a month or once a year
  • Day support – one session is 6 hours a day, including pick up and drop offs