Care Leavers Supported into NHS Careers
Hundreds of people brought up in care are being supported into careers in the NHS, as part of a new scheme.
Care leavers are offered work experience, shadowing, and training opportunities to develop their skills, as well as CV writing tips and interview practice to help them step on the NHS career ladder.
The NHS has already helped dozens of young care leavers to find careers in the health service over the past two years, such as apprenticeships in therapy, dentistry, healthcare support worker roles and roles within plumbing, housekeeping and administration.
One care leaver, Lily, said she felt “so lucky” to be given the role as a result of the scheme which made her “feel seen and heard.”
Lily, 21, is one care leavers who has benefited from the launch of the NHS Universal Family Programme with an apprenticeship as a trainee therapy assistant at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust.
She entered foster care as a toddler after being born into an unsafe environment and was fostered in several homes before being adopted alongside her sister Charlotte.
It was growing up with her adoptive mum, Debbie, who suffers from several health conditions that Lily’s passion for caring flourished.
She said: “I grew up always having a passion for care, as my mum has been very poorly my whole life.”
“I feel this inspired me as I loved to see how much better she felt after being looked after by me and my sister.”
“Alongside this, my Nan was nurse in the NHS for her whole life, working across so many different wards, including mental health and she used to tell me all sorts of stories about her time on the wards when I was younger.”
Lily’s application was spotted by Inpatient Therapies Clinical Services Manager, Charis Davey, who was looking for a care leaver to join the Therapy Department.
Charis said: “As a department we wanted to tap into the experience of care leavers who perhaps don’t have the opportunities that the rest of us have but have the lived experiences that mean they can relate to patients from many different backgrounds.
“We decided to create an apprenticeship role because we recognise that because care leavers don’t necessarily have access to the levels of education that they need to get the experience or qualifications to apply for these sorts of roles through traditional routes.”
Duncan Burton, Chief Nursing Officer for England, said: “Many care leavers experience disruption in their lives which can affect their further education and impact on job opportunities in the future.”
“Care leavers have a unique set of life experiences that can bring a different perspective to the NHS. They have a huge amount to offer a career in healthcare.”
“I’m delighted to see that Lily is thriving in her new role and it’s wonderful that her inspiration for joining the NHS was hearing her grandmother talking about her time as a nurse. Her story is a great example of how this programme can empower young people to reach their potential and lead a successful career.”
“And it’s why we want to ramp this up, with 350 different careers available in the health service, there is huge potential to help more young people in care to step on the NHS career ladder.”
