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Welcome to the Rowan Organisation's Website.

The Rowan Organisation is a leading provider of Direct Payments, Personal Budgets and Personal Health Budgets support services in England and Wales. For more information regarding our support please click HERE.

Come and work for us!

We have the following positions available within our organisation:

For more infomrmation please click on the Vacancies Tab.

Join our National PA Register!

Are you looking for work as a Personal Assistant?

Please click here to go to our PA Register page. Joining is free and will only take 5 minutes. We will notify you of any PA vacancies that appear in your area.

Challenges faced by people who use personal assistants - Survey

Challenges faced by people who use Personal Assistants since March 2020. People who use Personal Assistants (PAs), and groups who support them, have worked together with the Local Government Association and Think Local, Act Personal to design this survey to understand the challenges people who use PAs have been facing since March 2020, particularly in recruiting (finding) and retaining (keeping) Personal Assistants.

The survey is aimed at all people who employ Personal Assistants (PAs), or who are supported by a self-employed PA, and who pay for their PA with a Direct Payment, Personal Budget, Personal Health budget or from their own money.

A "Personal Assistant" or "PA" is a person who provides support services but is not provided through a care agency. Private support workers and private care assistants are also types of Personal Assistant.

We need your help

We want to know how easy or hard it has been for you to find or keep Personal Assistants since March 2020. You can help us by doing this survey.

When we have listened to what people have said we will write a report. The report will share what we have learned.

If you like, you can ask a friend, relative or an advocate to help you with the questions. It is your views that we are interested in. Those helping you should support you to tell us your views.

To view the full survey please click HERE.

Our Summer Newsletter is here!

Please click on the image below to open the newsletter.


Testimonials

We are proud of the support we provide to many people across England and Wales with their Direct Payment or Personal Health Budget. The 'In your area' section of our site now lists the feedback and testimonals we have received recently. You can click HERE to go straight to the page to view them.

Community loto - Supporting our communities and voluntary services.

Published on 20th April 2021

We`ve joined the Loto Lwcus scheme which is a lottery run by the local voluntary services council based in Conwy, in North Wales.

Please see the poster below and click the link HERE for more info.



The Rowan Organisation's update - Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Published on 31st March 2020

We hope that all our customers and your families are keeping safe and well during this time and would like to take this opportunity to provide you with a further update in terms of the CoVid19 Coronavirus situation and how we are continuing to support you during this difficult and uncertain period.

The Rowan Organisation continues to follow the advice and guidance of the Governments and Public Health bodies in both England and Wales, in order to ensure that we are able to safeguard our staff, and to continue providing a quality service to all of our customers.

All of our staff, including our payroll and managed accounts workers, are now working from home. Our office in Coventry is closed however post is being collected on alternate days and is being scanned immediately over to the relevant staff.

As mentioned previously, if you have requested pay slips through the post, there may be a slight delay in posting these to you but they can be provided immediately via email.

If you haven`t already done so, we would appreciate It if you could please provide us with an email address that we can use to contact you.

All face to face meetings remain suspended but we continue to use technology, including telephone, skype and zoom, to ensure that we can support you effectively.

We are experiencing very high levels of incoming calls currently and we are working hard to respond to all of them. We would urge you to keep checking our website for new information as this is the quickest and easiest way to access information. We are in the process of building a Questions and Answers factsheet on the coronavirus situation, based on the common queries being raised with our staff. Once this is done, we will upload this to the website and will review and update the content on a regular basis so that it can be of maximum use to you going forwards.

All calls are being answered by experienced staff but please be aware that the guidance on the Coronavirus situation is changing rapidly so if you require bespoke information about a particular area, it might be best for you to contact social services or health staff in your local area.

In addition, please remember that your Employers Liability Insurance provider can offer you ongoing support with all employment related issues.

Please also be reminded that we cannot take calls from staff who are employed by our customers, unless this is to provide hours for processing, with their employers consent. Unfortunately, we cannot respond to PA queries in relation to the Furlough scheme or other associated matters; Please discuss these with your employer directly or contact ACAS on 0330 107 5370.

If your Personal Assistants require evidence of their role in order to access services within the community, we can provide personalised letters or ID badges. The best way to contact us is by emailing info@therowan.org as all emails are checked and responded to regularly.

We maintain regular contact with Direct Payments and Personal Health Budget teams, social services practitioners and local health staff to ensure that we can continue to support you in the best way possible. Please let us know if you have any queries but also remember that you are not alone and your usual contacts should still be available within local authorities and clinical commissioning groups should you need them.

We will of course keep you updated should anything change but for now, please ensure that you keep following the government guidance, stay home wherever possible and stay safe. Thank you.


News and updates regarding Coronavirus

Please see below news articles and updates from a number of Local Authorities regarding Coronavirus. Please click on the title to open.

Published on 29th January 2021

Following the Issuing of National Government guidance on COVID vaccinations Warwickshire County Council has been developing the local response to enable Personal Assistants who are classed in the category of health and social care workers to have access to vaccinations.

We can now confirm the process for your Personal Assistants to access a Covid-19 vaccination in Warwickshire.

If your Personal Assistant receives Payroll from The Rowan Organisation, they will shortly be receiving a letter outlining how they can book their vaccination appointment. If your PA does not receive support from the Rowan service, please can you ask your Personal Assistant to contact the Independent Living Team (ILT), Warwickshire to find out how to book.

When your PA goes to their vaccination appointment, they are required to bring their key worker letter, this will need to be signed by an authorised person or you as their employer. If required, it can be accessed via the following link :- https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/social-care-health/direct-payments/13?documentId=581&categoryId=20077 or you can download the attached document by clicking HERE.

Published on 4th January 2021




Published on 1st December 2020

Annwyl gydweithiwr

Bydd rhaglen cymorth gweithwyr (EAP) a ariennir gan Lywodraeth Cymru ar waith o 4ydd Rhagfyr, gan gynnig ystod o gefnogaeth llesiant i'r rheini a gyflogir yn y gweithlu gofal cymdeithasol yn y sectorau preifat a gwirfoddol yng Nghymru gan gynnwys cynorthwywyr personol. (Byddem yn annog i holl weithwyr gofal cymdeithasol cyflogedig hynny sydd eisoes â mynediad at EAPs presennol i barhau i'w defnyddio).

Bydd yr EAP yn cael ei gynnig gan Care First sy'n cyflogi cwnselwyr sydd â chymwysterau proffesiynol ac arbenigwyr gwybodaeth. Mae ganddyn nhw brofiad o helpu pobl i ddelio â phob math o faterion ymarferol ac emosiynol sy'n gysylltiedig â lles, materion teuluol, perthnasoedd, rheoli dyledion, y gweithle, a llawer mwy.

Er mwyn helpu pobl i ddeall y gwasanaethau a gynigir yn well, bydd gweminar ar 2 Rhagfyr 2020 am 3.30pm (am awr gan gynnwys cyfle i ofyn cwestiynau). Mae'r weminar hon yn agored i bawb sy'n cael eu cyflogi ym maes gofal cymdeithasol, yn y sectorau preifat a gwirfoddol yng Nghymru. Y ddolen i'r weminar yw https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2484630607866568462 felly cliciwch yma i archebu lle.

Byddem yn ddiolchgar pe gallech rannu'r wybodaeth hon gyda sefydliadau perthnasol.

Os oes gennych unrhyw ymholiadau, e-bostiwch EAPqueries@socialcare.wales

Dear Colleague

A Welsh Government-funded employee assistance programme (EAP) will be in place from 4 December, offering a range of well-being support to those employed in the social care workforce in the private and voluntary sectors in Wales, including personal assistants. (We would encourage all those employed social care workers who already have access to existing EAPs to continue using them).

The EAP will be offered by Care First who employ professionally qualified counsellors and information specialists. They are experienced in helping people deal with all kinds of practical and emotional issues related to well-being, family matters, relationships, debt management, the workplace, and much more.

To help people better understand the services on offer, there will be a webinar on the 2 December 2020 at 3.30pm (for an hour including an opportunity to ask questions). This webinar is open to all those employed in social care in the private and voluntary sectors in Wales. The link to the webinar is https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2484630607866568462 so please click here to book a place.

We would be grateful if you could share this information with all relevant organisations.

If you have any queries please email EAPqueries@socialcare.wales

Asha Hassan

Cydlynydd Gwella a Datblygu /Improvement and Development Co-ordinator

Gwefan/Website: gofalcymdeithasol.cymru/socialcare.wales

Published on 18th November 2020





Published on 18th November 2020

Cold Weather & Heat-Health Alert Service Administration Message

Message Issued on Thursday, 01 October 2020 at 10:57

YOUR ACTION IS REQUIRED: New registration required for the PHE Heat Health and Cold Weather Alert Service

You are receiving this notice as you have previously signed up to receive the PHE Heat Health and Cold Weather Alerts and Planning Advice emails from the Met Office.

The alerts will be provided by the GovDelivery (Granicus) platform from 01 October 2020

The GovDelivery platform is already used to deliver the National Severe Weather Warnings and has a number of advantages over the current system:

  • Increased capacity to allow more users to access the alerts
  • Improved information protection and management
  • User controlled subscription service
  • Easier access to information on mobile devices (no attachments)

Unfortunately, for GDPR reasons, it is not possible for the Met Office to manually transfer our existing distribution list straight to GovDelivery, so we will require your action if you wish to continue receiving this service.

ACTION: All current users of the service will need to register their email address with GovDelivery before 01 November 2020, by which time the Cold Weather Alert service will start and old email dissemination platform will be turned off.

How to sign up:

Please follow the link below to our GovDelivery subscription page, enter the email you normally receive the service on, then subscribe to the "Heat Health and Cold Weather Alert Service" topic under "Public Health England". You will also be asked to specify the health region that you are working in.

GovDelivery: Registration page for the PHE Heat Health and Cold Weather Alerts https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/UKMETOFFICE/subscriber/topics?qsp=PHE

Please share this notice with colleagues who you think should be registered to receive Heat Health and Cold Weather Alerts. It will be particularly important this winter to be aware of forecast severe weather due to concurrent risk of COVID-19. For more information on cold weather and health please go to https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/cold-weather-plan-for-england

If you encounter difficulties viewing the updated emails, have any questions or technical problems related to the subscription service please contact subscriberhelp@govdelivery.com

For any other enquires relating to this service, please contact enquiries@metoffice.gov.uk.

Best Regards PHE and the Met Office.

Published on 8th October 2020

The Department of Health and Social Care, in advance of full bespoke guidance for PAs and direct payment holders about the invitation to get a flu vaccination, has asked us to share the following information with our networks. This is so that PAs can begin to access the flu vaccination now.

All frontline health and social care workers should get the winter flu vaccination - including all Personal Assistants (PAs). For the first time, this year, PAs will be able to access the vaccine free of charge from GPs and community pharmacies, via the NHS Complementary Scheme. This vaccination is available now. (Local availability may vary).

To access the scheme, PAs will simply need to attend a GP surgery or community pharmacy and identify themselves as a PA. However, we are aware that individuals have been asked to provide proof in the past and we have therefore provided a letter that can be used for identification, as attached.

The process for PAs to access the flu vaccination, is as follows:

  • Print a copy of the letter found HERE.
  • The direct payment holder, as employer, will fill out this letter, to prove they employ the PA. Once the PA has this, this will act as their ‘letter of entitlement’ to the vaccination.
  • They will then need to visit their local GP or community pharmacist, who will be able to give them the flu vaccination. If they need to prove their entitlement, they can use the letter of entitlement
  • The vaccination will then be given to them, free of charge.

Published on 24th April 2020 - (source - Skills for Care)

The Coronavirus National Testing Programme has now expanded capacity to test other frontline workers who are having to self-isolate due to having coronavirus-like symptoms or because a member of their household has symptoms.

This expansion includes all personal care assistants (PAs), across both health and social care, who meet the criteria set out above.

The full list of eligible employers now includes:

  • All NHS and social care staff, including hospital, community and primary care, and relevant staff providing ancillary support to frontline NHS services (e.g. accommodation, catering) and voluntary workers.
  • All PAs, across both health and social care
  • Police, fire and rescue services.
  • Local authority staff, to include core and essential workers such as those working with vulnerable children and adults, with victims of domestic violence, and with the homeless and rough sleepers, and those staff essential to the continuity of business.
  • Defence, prisons and probation, and judiciary staff.
  • Front-line benefits workers

See Government information on the types of workers who may now be eligible for testing.

What do PAs and their employers need to do?

  • Any PAs who think they are eligible and need to be tested are being instructed to speak to their employer first.
  • Employers will need to complete the ‘Confirmation of employment and eligibility for testing- letter of ID’ and send it to their PAs with the presentation slides. These presentation slides includes a list of ‘drive-through’ regional test site locations.
  • PAs will then able to register themselves for a test at the link provided within the invitation – using the link for ‘Other Government Departments’.
  • Any PAs to be tested will need to attend a specified regional test location and must drive/be driven using their own car or a car that belongs to a member of their household.

Published on 2nd April 2020

If you receive your Direct Payments funding through Gwynedd County Council please click HERE for the latest advice from the council.

Published on 30th March 2020

If you receive your Direct Payments funding through Denbighshire County Council please click HERE for the latest Frequently Asked Questions from the council.

Published on 30th March 2020

If you receive your Direct Payments funding through Warwickshire County Council please click HERE for the latest advice from the council.

Published on 13th March 2020

The government has published guidance for employers on what to do if you employ staff and they are diagnosed with the virus or are advised to self-isolate. It also advises on how to prevent the spread of the virus.

To view this guidance please click HERE.

Published on 1st March 2020

Independent LivingWe are now working in Partnership with Mark Bates to provide high quality support and insurance to the people we support. We have been working with Mark Bates Insurance for many years supporting people in receipt of Direct Payments and Personal Health Budgets.

They can offer insurance solutions that cover...

  • Direct Payments – Home Employment
  • Personal Health Budget – Home Employment with Healthcare
  • Self-Employed Personal Assistants
  • Adapted Home Building and Contents
  • Mobility Equipment

For further information on the Insurance cover they offer please click HERE.

Support for businesses and employers throughout the UK.

The Rowan Organisation is proud to announce the launch of our new sister company (TRO.plc), where our services will be available to new customers and businesses across England & Wales. This includes bespoke, high quality and affordable:

For further information please view our English brochure or our Welsh brochure. If you have any enquiries please contact our team on 02476 322860 or e-mail TROplc@therowan.org.

The Rowan Organsiation Privacy Policy

The Rowan Organisation strictly adheres to the GDPR and our full Privacy Policy can be viewed by clicking here.

Have you / do you use our services?

We are always looking to develop and improve on the services and support we provide. In order to get your valuable feedback we have developed an online survey for individuals we have supported. This can be found below.

Take me to the survey.

Thank you for your time in completing this.

Board Membership.

Would you like to join our board?

As a User Led Organisation we are governed by our board of managment, which is made up primarily of individuals who use Direct Payment or Personal Health Budget funding.

We are looking for new members to join us shaping our Organisation now and the future. If you would like more information please e-mail us. We look forward to hearing from you.

Accessibility.

In keeping with our ethos of accessibility for all, our website has been designed to be accessible and complies with the W3C Worldwide web accessibility standards (AA rating).

If you would like more information about the accessibility features of this website, please click here.

We hope that you find this website useful and welcome any feedback which may help us to improve it.

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