Home and Lifestyle Support

For those times in life when you need an extra pair of hands

FAQs

  • Do you provide regular help with housework or gardening?

    If you need short term help with household tasks eg cleaning, ironing etc, I may be able to help you eg following an accident or change in circumstances but if regular help is needed, I would ask you to arrange a cleaner, gardener or help you to find one.  The aim of my service is to mainly help people on a short term or temporary basis.

  • Do you help anyone, regardless of age, gender, circumstances, etc or do you just help older people?

    My service is available to anyone who thinks I may be able to help them.

  • Why should I choose you over other services available?

    My service differs in that I could be seen as a one stop shop to help you when you need that extra pair of hands.  You don’t need to worry about defining the help you need eg do I need a PA, cleaner, event planner or all of those: I can help with a variety of tasks and you may not need to call on anyone else.  Where I feel I don’t have the knowledge or skills to help you, I would make that clear but, if you wished, aim to find you the help you required for a small charge.  Other services available tend to focus on a specialised service and be more limited.

  • How many ‘Marys’ are there?

    At time of writing, there is only one!  If I get very busy, I will aim to find other people to work with me. 

  • Do you have public liability insurance?

    Yes, up to £1 Million.

  • Do you charge mileage?

    I operate mainly in East Kent, between Faversham in the west, Sandwich and Deal in the east, north to Whitstable and Herne Bay and south east to Dover.  If help is needed outside these areas, I may be able to help but would need to make a mileage charge in some cases.  If you block book my services for a number of sessions or make whole day bookings, the mileage charge would be removed or reduced up to a maximum of 20 miles from Canterbury.

  • Do you have any references?

    Please see my Testimonials for genuine reviews of help I have given to people in Kent and in Europe both on a paid and voluntary basis.  If needed, I can also supply references with email and phone numbers that you could contact for reassurance. 

  • Do you have DBS clearance?

    Yes, I have Enhanced DBS clearance which means police and social services have checked me for any criminal or other activity and have found no evidence of anything.

  • Do you do childminding or babysitting?

    I don’t do this but can help you find someone who provides these services but if help is needed by a young family, I may still be able to help with the home and garden while parents take care of the children.  I do have experience with children but feel you may prefer someone with appropriate qualifications and insurance and more recent experience.

  • Do you provide a taxi service?

    No, I don’t provide any taxi services but if you booked me for something else eg to support your parents with housework and admin support and they needed help while I was with them to go shopping or to go to a medical appointment, I could do this.  If I was helping you at home and the cat needed to go to the vet during the morning, I could help with this.  You can’t book me simply to take you from A to B with no other service provided as I am not registered, licensed or insured to do this.

  • How would you summarise the service you provide?

    I aim to provide a service which could be any or all of the following: private personal assistant/home organiser/home help/events planner/personal time saver/concierge or lifestyle assistant.

  • If you are sick, what would happen?

    I am a sole trader and work on my own.  If I am unwell, I would aim to give you as much notice as possible if I am unavailable to help you and, where possible, will try and find someone else instead but this cannot be guaranteed.  However, please note that I am in good health and haven’t taken any time off work or volunteering for at least 2 years.

  • Can I meet you before deciding whether to accept your help?

    A free no obligation meeting of up to one hour is offered if you would like this or, if you prefer, we could have a conversation by telephone or I could meet you in a neutral environment, such as a café, for the first meeting, if preferred.  You can then have as much time as you wish to decide whether or not you would like my help.

  • Do you work evenings, weekends and bank holidays?

    Normally, I will work between 9-6pm Monday to Friday but may be able to help you outside these hours.  I may need to charge you a higher hourly rate for this. 

  • If I book you to help with housework or the garden or to pack/unpack when moving house, do I need to be in while you are there?

    Not necessarily as long as we are both clear about what you want me to do and I have clear instructions about entering the house and locking up safely if needed.

  • Do I need to sign a contract for your services?

    I do provide a basic contract so that I ensure both you and I are clear about the service to be provided, timescales, costs etc.  This is for your benefit as well as mine.

  • Do you provide a house sitting service?

    Yes, if needed, for shorter trips away up to one week.

  • Can you help with shopping?

    I can do food or retail shopping on your behalf either online or at the shops, or I can accompany you or a relative to the shops.  This could include driving to the shops/supermarket, accompanying someone to one or various shops, helping to choose items, pushing the trolley, packing goods and taking to the car, unpacking and putting away at home, etc

  • Can you take my mother to a medical appointment?

    Yes.  This could include picking her up, ensuring she has everything she needs for the appointment, waiting outside (if she needs or prefers privacy) or going into the appointment with her (with her agreement), taking notes as needed and reporting back or writing up a short summary of what was said/discussed but please note that I do not offer a taxi service.

  • Do you do personal care?

    This would depend on the level of personal care needed but it is likely that this would need to be provided by another agency or service.

  • Will other people know I am receiving a service from you?

    Your personal details will be kept completely confidential and secure and not shared with anyone else. Occasionally, I may refer, in general terms, to the kind of help I provide for you, simply to illustrate to another potential customer the range of services I provide but at no point would your name, address or other details (making it possible to identify you), be given to other people, without your permission. I have a car without signwriting and which simply has a couple of small flyers in the window so again, it would not be obvious to other people that I am there to assist you.

Need an extra pair of hands?

Call Mary now for a chat about your requirements

Tel: 07825 442245

Email: mary@everyoneneedsamary.com