Calacare Pty Ltd

Work as a team, work effectively and care for every participant

During an initial phone meeting, and during an in-person meeting, I requested a mature aged carer, with extensive driving experience, who had experience with ASD children. Calacare insisted they would find me the perfect match in a Carer. They then supplied two teenaged ‘carers’. Neither had any experience taking care of special needs children, and they had their provisional driving licences. Being desperate for help, (which many ‘providers’ such as Calacare are relying on), I decided to employ one of the young ladies. Calacare constantly mixed up the hours the carer was supposed to work. The carer went on holidays and Calacare gave me two days notice, when they had weeks notice from the carer. They sent her to me hours early one day, which I was charged for. Another time, they forgot to inform me that she would be away for a week. I was expecting her to help my child at 7am, to help him ready for school. I was not provided with the carers number, even though I had requested it a number of times, so I could not call to ask if she was still coming. I called the office number which no one answered. I left a message, but no one called back. I ended up calling them again after 10.30am, and asked why my son was left without supports as requested, and I was told, “Oops. Did I forget to tell you?” At one point, I needed to get to Melbourne by car, (accompanied by my children). I was told that the supervisor could drive me. She was a shockingly bad driver, and tailgated cars the entire way. When we arrived near Melbourne, and the traffic was built up, the ‘Carer’ kept tailgating and would brake hard behind every vehicle. As my children and I kept holding onto our seats for dear life, I asked her to please keep her distance so that she didn’t brake hard because it was jolting my back. She reached over, and tapped the dash in front of me and said, “that’s what that’s for, to hold onto when I have to brake”. Apparently, driving at a safe distance, so she did not have to brake hard, was completely beyond her. I would not recommend this agency. It does not matter how many mistakes they make, and there were many, they will always blame the participant and state, “if you hired more of us, there wouldn’t be a problem”. The agency could not provide one stable worker for just 10-15 hours a week, could not communicate when the worker would not be available, or provide what was promised. I will not use them again. And I am sick and tired of agencies like Calacare who are growing prosperous from taking advantage of the most vulnerable in the community. Very few participants, who are unhappy with their providers, do anything about it. If they did, Calacare would not have the rating that they currently do.

Calacare has been absolutely amazing. The staff are super helpful and empathetic, making me feel very comfortable. Also exceptional organisation skills. This company has been the best that I have come across so far, and I highly recommend it!

The staff at Calacare were amazing. Very professional, friendly and just an absolute pleasure to deal and work with. Would never hesitate to recommend these fantastic people who go above and beyond to make each and every experience unforgettable! Thank you again and again.

Calacare has made such a positive impact on my daily living by providing me with a cleaner who is reliable, respectful, and a delight to work with. Communication has been clear and easy, as has billing. I feel respected and that I'm being treated with genuine sensitivity and compassion. They have consistently shown me flexibility and a willingness to listen, making me feel safe with their staff.