New Career Path And Qualifications Aim To Boost Domestic Care Workforce
New qualifications and investment in apprenticeships have been announced as part of a £75 million initiative in an effort to boost the domestic workforce in social care in a Government attempt to change perceptions of employment within the sector.
Social care minister Helen Whately said jobs in social care have not always been seen as a “career choice” as she set out plans aimed at ensuring the occupation is recognised “as the skilled profession it is”.
The Department of Health and Social Care said a national care career structure, with defined roles and professional development, will be introduced for the first time.
The sector has long struggled with workforce shortages, with the most recent report in 2023 from Skills for Care – the strategic workforce development and planning body for adult social care in England – noting a vacancy rate of about 9.9%. That equates to around 152,000 vacancies on any given day.
Skills for Care chief executive Oonagh Smyth told a parliamentary committee last month that “international recruits have significantly contributed to workforce capacity” in the year to April 2023.
Professor Vic Rayner, CEO of NCF said: “Today’s announcements are important first steps in adult social care workforce reform and will be welcomed by providers who have paused progression routes and activities in anticipation of the arrival of the pathway. The news that additional funding will become available for training and development in the sector is also welcome, although without details of what this will mean in practice it is difficult to determine impact.”
“The commitment to train nearly 40,000 staff is a step up from the current position but represents under 10% of all new starters in the sector, and of course none of these commitments come with any focus on moving us closer to a set of pay, terms and conditions that match the skills and expertise laid out in the new pathway. The role of a care worker is complex and skilled – and a pathway without an accompanying properly funded pay structure will do little to attract and retain people to progress through the career structure.”
“There are over 17,000 organisations delivering care and support across England – and it is vital that we have a workforce infrastructure that allows all organisations of all sizes to benefit from the changes outlined today. Social care delivers publicly funded services needed by millions of people each and every year. The government must make the strategic
decision to ensure that it adequately funds the pay, terms and conditions of the workforce to ensure we have the care and support we need both now and in the future.”
Sam Monaghan, CEO of MHA said: ”The launch of the Government’s Care Workforce Pathway is an important step forward in improving the value and perceptions of social care as a career. We welcome its commitment to training and development and the impact this can have on those who already work in social care, as well as the sector’s ability to attract and retain new talent.”
“At MHA, we have been very clear on the need for a long-term strategy that will futureproof the workforce. With an ageing population and increasing strain being placed on the sector, we need social care to be seen as a strong career choice for more young people.”
That’s why we’re encouraging the Government to go even further, by creating a Social Care Council that will professionalise the sector and act as an independent body examining issues such as pay scales, working hours, recruitment and training on an ongoing basis. Crucially, it would also advocate for the people who care for and protect some of the most vulnerable in our society.
The funding, totalling £75 million, forms part of previously announced investment under the Government’s People at the Heart of Care plan, a white paper publishing in 2021 setting out a 10-year vision for adult social care providing information on funded proposals that the government proposed to implement up to 2024.
The plans include the launch of a national career structure for the adult social care workforce, known as the “care workforce pathway”, and more than £50 million in funding to support up to 37,000 people in direct adult social care jobs to enrol on a new level 2 adult social care certificate qualification between June this year and March 2025.
The department said over £20 million will be available for local authorities and adult social care providers to put towards training and supervising “hundreds” of new social work and nurse apprentices.
The workforce development fund will get a further £5 million to “expand access to learning and development”, while a new digital leadership qualification aims to “help equip social care leaders and managers with the confidence and capability to lead the implementation and use of technology in the delivery of care”.
Social care minister, Helen Whately, said: “The workforce is the heartbeat of the social care sector and staff should be given the recognition and opportunities they deserve. These changes will give brilliant care workers the chance to develop rewarding careers in social care.
