After social care was added to the Department of Health portfolio there was hope that secretary of state Jeremy Hunt would add much needed vigour to one of the most demanding areas of British public life.
First on Hunt's plate is the social care green paper, which is due this summer and will set out the government’s proposals for a long-term, sustainable solution to improving care and support for elderly and vulnerable people.
Squeezed social care.
Many believe the solution partly depends on retaining workers as well as attracting new ones: social care has an overall turnover rate of 27.8% a year, which means around 350,000 people leave the profession (Skills for Care 2017). Coupled with the exodus is the fiscal squeeze imposed on most areas of government spending since 2010.
The commons communities and local government select committee report into adult social care predicts a further 275,000 are required by 2025 to meet social care demand>
It also mentions that a large proportion of staff turnover is a result of people leaving the sector soon after joining (almost 50% of care workers left within a year of starting). This presents significant challenges when it comes to staff retention.
Staff retention solutions.
There are many ways employers can make their staff feel valued and executed properly can extend their term with them. One key area mentioned in the adult social care report is training and development, which in a sector where qualifications aren't mandatory is even more important.
The reason why many care providers are unable to put a training package in place varies from funding pressures to simply not being large enough to employ staff to carry out training.
This may be one of the key reasons that there is increasing reliance on agency staff to plug staffing gaps in some areas.
As a recruitment agency, we like to ensure that our candidates are fully equipped to do their roles. One of the ways we ensure this is through our blend of practical and online training courses.
Our candidates have access to training on first aid, dementia awareness, autism awareness, lone working, Caldicott principles and data protection and more.
By working with us, you can focus on what you do best, which is taking care of your service users while we upskill your teams to provide the support those in your care deserve.
Find out more about training.