A woman has launched a self-run business offering home support and companionship to those struggling across Weymouth and Dorchester.

Rebecca Milne, from Weymouth, runs A Little Help Dorset which provides personalised home help to both the elderly and young people.

This includes light cleaning, laundry, gardening, shopping, errands, transport, meal preparation and welfare checks. The goal is to help clients maintain their independence and enjoy life to the full.

After feeling uninspired with her admin office job, Rebecca decided to hand in her notice and become a full-time carer to people in the community who are struggling at home.

Dorset Echo:

“After talking with friends who have older parents struggling or who might have children to look after and jobs to juggle. I decided to reduce my office hours and do helping work. I really enjoyed it so after a couple of years I decided to do it full time.”

Over the past three years, Rebecca began to realise the acute effects of the  prolonged period of isolation and widespread health anxiety during the Covid-19 pandemic. She subsequently decided to start her own service in November 2023, offering personalised home care throughout the week to both young people and the elderly.

“I think that period has knocked people’s’ confidence and it’s not just the older people who struggled, it’s young people as well who might have been feeling isolated or too scared of the germs outside.

“Certain groups don’t get help if they don’t fall under a certain bracket, or sometimes they just don’t know how to get help. That’s why I decided to go full time and launch this service. I didn’t want to limit this service to just older people. If there are people that need help, some people may be too busy to assist, or they feel awkward asking people they know.”

Dorset Echo: Rebecca Milne providing homecare to elderly resident

Rebecca currently has six clients across Weymouth and Dorchester, seeing each person two or three times a week. Sessions last for two hours as, above all else, many clients treasure the company offered.

“It’s not an agency with different people so they get to know me and my life, so we often have chats and a cup of tea after I’ve done the job.

“If I won the lottery tomorrow, I would still help them. It is making a difference, one of the gentlemen I visited said to me, with you here I feel normal and when you go it’s silent again. I can fill that void offering the chat and banter that they’ve missed."

Those who are interested in the services A Little Help Dorset provides, can book a free visit from Rebecca to discuss what help is required and agree a schedule that suits them.

Sessions cost £20 per hour and there is a two-hour minimum booking.  

More information can be found on A Little Help's website: https://alittlehelp-dorset.com/