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https://socialcare.blog.gov.uk/2021/11/04/a-workforce-made-with-care/

A workforce 'Made with Care'

Posted by: , Posted on: - Categories: Care and support, Social care reform, Workforce
Image from recruitment ad
It’s estimated there will be almost half-a-million extra job opportunities in adult social care by 2035 and more than 105,000 vacancies to be filled. These roles... will be exciting, varied and rewarding.

Career opportunity

I’m delighted Made with Care, the Government’s new social care recruitment campaign in England, has now launched to encourage many more people to pursue careers in social care.

It’s estimated there will be almost half-a-million extra job opportunities in adult social care by 2035 and more than 105,000 vacancies to be filled. These roles, I have no doubt, will be exciting, varied and rewarding.

It would be wrong not to acknowledge how vital it is we expand our ranks at this critical time, of course. The pandemic has stretched both health and social care workforces to the limit. We need many more new and returning care professionals with the same qualities of compassion, dedication and empathy to join our ranks and help ease pressure on the system.

Regardless, we will continue to celebrate and acknowledge the contribution of one of the most diverse, rewarding and life affirming career sectors in the country.

Care recruitment advert - woman painting
The recruitment campaign launches just as the Government announces its Winter Plan for social care, explaining how the sector will be supported in coming months.

Positive experiences

I have spent all my professional life working to support others. Knowing I have helped make a positive difference in people’s lives is a wonderful and humbling feeling. I must add, working with so many great people and teams, I have grown to appreciate the true value of working together. I want many more people to have this experience and realise social care is not merely a job, but a career opportunity ripe with possibilities.

I’m talking about the chance to meet and work with wonderful people from diverse walks of life and to see, first hand, how their values, life experiences and commitment to care can be truly transformative for the people they look after. With the right support, I firmly believe these are careers many will want to stay in for the long term.

The recruitment campaign has launched just as the Government announces its Winter Plan for social care, setting out how the sector will be supported over the coming months.

Care recruitment advert - man in wheelchair with carer
Make the most of the awareness this campaign will drive, by running your own recruitment activity.

Big campaign

‘Made with Care’ is set to run for five months. This brilliant TV advert shows real care workers making a difference in people’s lives. I also applaud the campaign’s emphasis on the importance of personal qualities, alongside opportunities to grow professionally through new skills and qualifications.

With all this in mind, I believe we can build a care workforce that truly reflects the best of our communities. Funding is important but attracting the right people even more so. If you think you’re one of those people, start your journey of discovery today and visit the campaign website to find out more?

Get involved

Make the most of the awareness this campaign will drive, by running your own recruitment activity, using the expert advice and templates available on the campaign resource centre and advertise your vacancies on DWP ‘Find a Job’.

To stay updated with the campaign activity, sign up to this newsletter and follow the campaign Facebook page.

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3 comments

  1. Comment by stella posted on

    Good to hear, but unless care work is really valued to pay care workers to afford the cost of living; to get the really essential training for skills that we need in order to work with people who have become vulnerable (who could be any of us who have benefited society but without the means to pay privately); and crucial but lacking support and feedback for us dealing with these people, it will always be a low paid and 'tick box' exercise.
    I know this because I had many jobs and careers in my life until the last 17 years working in care, which I chose to do, but is the toughest, physically, emotionally, intellectually and mentally I have ever dealt with, but the lowest paid. 'Luckily' had savings from previous jobs to enable me to do this work which we could have not done otherwise, but is such crucial work.

  2. Comment by Tom Cooper posted on

    Fine words butter no parsnips. How can the job become more attractive when the care workforce is discriminated against by the vaccination mandate that contradicts the fundamental principles of medical confidentiality and self-determination that are drummed into staff from day one in relation to service users but do not apply to care workers? It is clear that they are a second class group that the government knows it can push around and I see no evidence that is about to change. Most junior care staff are women and a high proportion are single mothers on Universal Credit trapped in part time work for a pittance. While the government remains fixated on pouring money into the supermassive black hole of the sacred NHS, social care will remain as it is - exploited.

  3. Comment by Sam Hawker posted on

    We need a protocol that enables those waiting to start work in a care home to be able to get their second Covid-19 vaccination without waiting 8 weeks.
    This has come to light especially amongst younger candidates who have not previously considered social care as a career and who were in the last tranches to be called for vaccine. We have been working hard to fill a number of Activity Co-ordinator roles under the Kickstart scheme. There was little interest but since having the opportunity to attend a number of job fairs set up by local job centres we have met some very good candidates who are interest in the roles. We would like this to be an opportunity to introduce young people to a role in the care home in the hope that some of them will chose to stay on in a care role at the end of their placement.
    Yesterday we met a three 18 year olds who we were very impressed by, we would love to offer them the Kickstart roles but they had not thought about getting their vaccination even though they were willing to have it. We have asked them to go and get their first vaccine and then get back to us to progress their applications. We may or may not hear from them again.
    This is another consequence of the mandatory vaccinations, not only have care homes lost valued staff members, the 8 week time period between the vaccines is proving to be a barrier to enabling new people, especially the young, from entering the sector. I know that some people have managed to get their second vaccination a little bit early, but this all depends on the staff on duty at the vaccination centre on the day.