Pedal power puts Visiting Angels caregivers in the driving seat

E-bikes, financial rewards and prioritised staff wellbeing are some of the steps the franchisor is taking to help carers feel valued

In-home care franchise, Visiting Angels, introduced its first two e-bikes to its care team this month.

This is the first franchise in the care sector to be making the low-emission alternative form of transport available throughout the network.

As concerns emerged with the cost-of-living crisis, Visiting Angels listened to feedback from carers, especially those who couldn’t afford to buy or run a vehicle. With demand for Visiting Angels’ services rising, managing director, Dan Archer, believes it is the perfect time to explore more ways to open doors for passionate people to join the care profession.

“With the cost-of-living crisis having a significant impact on the financial wellbeing of those working in the care sector, it was our duty to introduce a form of low-cost transport to support carers,” explained Dan. “As a carer-centric company, we listen to people who are really keen to work for Visiting Angels but, in this case, feel they are unable to because they don’t own a vehicle or are concerned about record fuel prices. Providing this little extra pedal power to our teams is going to make a big difference.”

Cycle-to-work schemes are growing in popularity to reduce carbon footprints, and there is also evidence to suggest e-bikes are playing a significant part in improving employee wellbeing. The form of exercise is also said to produce endorphins and for Visiting Angels this is an ideal way to help carers start their days off on the right foot.

“It’s vital that, as an organisation fundamentally built around our caregivers, we continually listen to them and respond,” added Dan. “E-bikes are just one of the many ways we are addressing the impact the cost-of-living crisis is having on our care teams.

“For those with vehicles, we have always paid a significantly higher pence per mile than is the standard in the care sector, as well as servicing our staff vehicles for them once a year and paying for new tyres. We also pay more than the industry average hourly rate and commit to at least a 5 per cent increase each year. We think this approach to rewarding caregivers should be the norm, not the exception, in the care industry.”