It is very important to think about and plan your interviews when meeting new PAs.

You won’t have met this person before, so it’s always a good idea to ask them to text or email you a proof of ID, before the meeting, and to again request to see that ID when you meet them. All good PAs will fully expect this sort of request and happily provide the information requested.

In our experience, meeting in a public place, like your local café or at your CIL’s offices, is a good idea and highly recommended by all care organisations. If possible, give the PA, who you are meeting, more than one option of where to meet - as they won’t always be travelling from their home address and maybe coming to meet you directly from a different job. When choosing where to meet, always think about what is most convenient for you. A good PA will understand and work around this.

It is advisable to always take somebody, like a friend or family member, along with you. They can be a valuable support to you when meeting someone new, as well as help to provide an informative second opinion.

If possible, we recommend meeting in the daytime so that you have plenty of time to reach your appointment and get back home. Good PAs should be able to arrange their schedule to make this happen.

If your role is a high-profiled job e.g. because it pays particularly well or involves many working hours, you may get more applications than you expected. Take extra care in filtering those applications, to ensure that you are only meeting people who are genuinely interested in working for you.