If you've been a carer for any length of time, you've probably had The Conversation. The one where someone mentions agency work and half the room pulls a face. "Oh I tried that once, never again." "You don't get any job security." "They'll send you to the other side of the county."
Some of it's fair. There are agencies out there that give the rest of us a bad name. But a lot of what gets repeated in break rooms and WhatsApp groups is either outdated, exaggerated, or just not true anymore.
We're Nexo People. We're a care agency. So yes, we've got skin in the game here. But we'd rather be upfront about what agency work actually looks like in 2026 and let you make your own mind up. No hard sell. Just the honest version.
1. "Agency work isn't reliable. You never know if you'll get shifts."
This is probably the biggest one. And ten years ago, there was more truth to it. You'd register, sit by your phone, and hope something came through. If it didn't, tough.
The care sector in 2026 looks very different. There are over 130,000 vacant care roles in the UK right now. Care homes, home care providers, and supported living services are crying out for experienced staff. The demand isn't going away any time soon, and if anything it's growing.
What that means in practice: if you're an experienced carer with a DBS and the right to work in the UK, there are shifts available. The question isn't really "will I get work?" It's "which shifts do I actually want to take?"
That said, agency work is ad hoc by nature. You're not guaranteed 37.5 hours every week like a permanent contract. For some people that's a deal-breaker, and that's completely fair. But for others, that's the whole point. You choose when you work. Busy week? Don't pick anything up. Need the money? Grab a few shifts. It's a different kind of reliability, where you're in control of the schedule rather than someone else writing it for you.
The reality: Shift availability depends on your area and the time of year, but experienced carers in most parts of the UK are in high demand. The sector has a massive staffing gap and it's not closing any time soon.
2. "Agencies just send you anywhere. You'll be driving for hours."
This one has some truth to it, but it depends entirely on the agency. Some agencies will book you into a shift 45 minutes away without a second thought, because they need to fill the slot and you said yes. They don't care that you've spent £15 on fuel to earn £80.
But that's a problem with those specific agencies, not with agency work itself. The smarter way to do it is to only take shifts that are close to where you live. If a shift is ten minutes down the road, you keep almost everything you earn. If it's an hour away, you're basically working the first part of your day for free once you factor in fuel, time, and the wear on your car.
This is genuinely one of the things we obsess over at Nexo. We only match you to shifts that are local to you. Not "local-ish." Not "well, it's only 40 minutes if there's no traffic." Actually close. Because a shift that looks great on paper but costs you £20 in fuel isn't a great shift. It's a mediocre shift with a hidden price tag.
The reality: You don't have to say yes to every shift. The best approach is to be selective and work with an agency that only shows you shifts worth your time and your petrol.
3. "Agency carers don't get holiday pay or any benefits."
Wrong. Agency workers are legally entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year, the same as any other worker. That's the law, and it applies regardless of whether you're on a permanent contract, zero hours, or working through an agency.
The confusion usually comes from how different agencies handle this. Some agencies roll your holiday pay into your hourly rate, so the advertised rate looks higher than it really is. You're not getting extra. They're just front-loading your holiday entitlement into each payslip.
Other agencies pay holiday pay on top of your hourly rate. So if the shift rate is £12.21 an hour, your actual take-home is higher because holiday pay gets added separately. It's worth asking which approach an agency uses before you sign up, because it makes a genuine difference to your actual earnings.
Beyond holiday pay, agency workers also have other rights under the Agency Workers Regulations 2010. After 12 weeks in the same placement, you're entitled to the same basic working conditions as permanent staff doing the same job. That includes things like access to facilities, information about job vacancies, and comparable pay. It's not perfect, but it's a lot more than "no benefits."
How we do it at Nexo: We add your holiday pay on top of your rate. So what you see isn't what you get. You actually get more. We think that's the fairer way to do it.
4. "You won't feel like part of a team. You're just a temp."
There's a version of this that's true. If you're doing a one-off shift in a care home you've never been to, you probably won't feel like part of the furniture by lunchtime. That's just the reality of being new somewhere.
But here's what a lot of people don't expect: agency carers who work regularly in the same area tend to build up relationships across multiple settings. You become a familiar face. The care home that had you last Tuesday requests you again next week. The home care client who liked your approach asks for you specifically. Over time, you end up with a network of places that know you, trust you, and want you back.
It's a different kind of team, maybe. You're not in the same break room every day with the same colleagues. But you're also not stuck in one workplace where the politics are doing your head in, or where one difficult manager makes every shift miserable. If a placement isn't working for you, you don't go back. Try doing that in a permanent job.
The other thing nobody mentions: variety is actually good for you as a professional. You see how different services operate. You pick up techniques and approaches from multiple teams. You get really good at walking into new environments and getting straight to work. That's a skill, and it's one that makes you more confident and more capable over time.
5. "It looks bad on your CV. Employers want to see stability."
This one made more sense fifteen years ago. Today, the care sector is so short-staffed that most employers are looking at your experience and your qualifications, not whether you did it through one employer or several.
Think about what agency work actually puts on your CV. Experience across multiple care settings (residential, home care, supported living, one-to-one). Adaptability. The ability to walk into a new environment, find your feet quickly, and deliver good care from the first hour. Those are valuable qualities, and care managers know it.
If anything, a carer who's only ever worked in one setting can feel like more of a risk to a new employer, because they've never had to adapt. Agency carers prove they can adapt every single shift.
And let's be honest: most people working agency aren't doing it because they couldn't get a permanent role. They're doing it because they want flexibility, or because they're topping up their income alongside a permanent position, or because they tried permanent and found agency suits them better. Employers understand that.
6. "Agency work is only for people between jobs."
This is one of the most outdated ideas out there. Loads of carers who work through agencies are doing it alongside a permanent role. They've got their regular contract doing three or four days a week, and they pick up an extra agency shift or two when they want some additional income.
Others use agency work as their main way of working because they like the freedom. Maybe they're a parent who needs to work around school runs. Maybe they're studying and need hours that fit their timetable. Maybe they just don't want to be locked into a rota that someone else wrote.
There's also a growing number of carers on sponsored Health and Care Worker visas who use agency work to pick up additional hours. You're allowed to work up to 20 extra hours a week through a supplementary employer, and care agencies count. That's potentially an extra £250 to £340 a week depending on rates. It's not "between jobs." It's a deliberate financial decision.
The point is, agency work fits into all sorts of lives. It's not a last resort. For a lot of carers, it's the thing that makes the rest of their life work.
On a sponsored visa? We support care workers on Health and Care Worker visas who want to pick up extra agency hours. If you're not sure how the supplementary employer rules work or whether you're eligible, register with us and we'll talk you through it. No jargon, no pressure.
7. "All agencies are the same."
This is the one that frustrates us the most, because we get it. If you've had a bad experience with one agency, it's easy to write off the whole thing. And there are agencies out there that justify the bad reputation: slow to pay, impossible to reach, sending you to shifts miles away with five minutes' notice.
But agencies vary massively. Some are huge national operations where you're a number on a spreadsheet. Some are local and hands-on but don't have enough shifts to keep you busy. Some focus on long-term placements. Some do ad hoc shifts. Some pay holiday pay on top, some roll it in. Some match you to local shifts, some send you wherever there's a gap.
The trick is knowing what to look for. Here are the questions worth asking any agency before you sign up:
How do you match me to shifts? Will they be close to where I live, or just wherever there's availability?
How is holiday pay handled? Is it included in the rate, or added on top?
What's the minimum commitment? Am I locked into hours, or can I pick and choose?
What settings do you cover? Care homes? Home care? One-to-one packages? Supported living?
How quickly do I get paid? Weekly? Fortnightly? Monthly?
If the answers feel vague or you can't get a straight response, that tells you something. A good agency should be able to answer all of those clearly and without hesitation.
So is agency care work worth it?
Honestly? It depends on what you're looking for. If you want a guaranteed 37.5 hours every week, a fixed team, and the same routine, permanent might suit you better. There's nothing wrong with that.
But if you want flexibility, variety, control over your schedule, and the ability to earn extra on your own terms, agency work is worth a serious look. Not because it's perfect, but because it gives you options that permanent work doesn't. And in a sector where carers are stretched thin and undervalued, having options matters.
The key is finding the right agency. One that's honest about what they offer, matches you to shifts that actually make sense, and treats you like a professional. Not every agency does that. But the good ones do.
Curious? Here's how Nexo works.
We match experienced care workers to ad hoc shifts close to home. Care homes, home care, one-to-one packages. You pick the shifts that work for you, when they work for you.
We add holiday pay on top of your rate (not rolled in). We only show you shifts that are genuinely local. And there's no minimum hours, no fixed contracts, and no commitment you didn't choose.
You'll need 3 months' paid UK care experience, a valid DBS or SSSC, and the right to work in the UK. That's it.