Care work is one of the most emotionally and physically demanding jobs there is, requiring patience, skill, empathy, resilience, and a genuine commitment to another human being. And yet, in the UK, it has historically been one of the most underpaid professions.
The result is predictable: high turnover, burnout, and ultimately worse care for the people who need it most. When carers feel undervalued, stretched, and exhausted, it shows, not through any fault of their own, but because unsustainable conditions produce unsustainable care.
The agency fee problem
Much of the pay problem in domiciliary care comes from the agency model. A family pays £28 per hour for a carer's visit. The agency takes its cut, covering management, overheads, compliance, and profit margin. The carer might receive £11 to £14 of that. In some cases, even less.
This is not a criticism of every care agency, running a regulated care business is genuinely expensive and complex. But the structure means that there is an inherent tension between what families pay and what carers earn.
The introductory model
Hibant operates as an introductory agency. We do not employ carers, we introduce self-employed carers to families and take a modest platform fee to cover vetting, matching, and support.
Because we are not the employer, we do not carry employer National Insurance, holiday pay liability, or pension contributions. Our cost structure is leaner, and we pass that directly on to carers.
At Hibant, carers keep 90 to 92 pence of every pound a family pays, depending on their experience tier. For a carer charging £22 per hour, that means taking home around £20 or more, significantly more than they would earn through most traditional agencies for the same visit.
Why this matters beyond the pay
Higher earnings attract more talented carers and allow them to build genuinely sustainable businesses. It reduces the financial pressure that leads many experienced carers to leave the profession or take on too many clients.
It also changes the dynamic. A carer who earns well, controls their own schedule, and chooses who they work with is in a fundamentally better position than one who is over-stretched, underpaid, and allocated to a roster of clients they have had no say in. That wellbeing, that sense of agency, translates directly into the quality of care.
The Reward Carer programme
Hibant also runs a Reward Carer programme that reduces the platform fee over time as carers build their track record on the platform. Carers who consistently receive strong reviews and maintain their quality of care see their earnings tier improve, keeping more of what they earn.
This is our commitment: that as a carer's value grows, so does their reward. Not the other way around.
Looking for care or thinking of joining Hibant?
Whether you are a family navigating care for a loved one or a carer looking for fairer, more meaningful work, we would love to hear from you.