Skills for Care report explores ‘The Value of Adult Social Care’
Skills for Care’s report on ‘The Value of Adult Social Care in England’ re-iterated the importance of social care to our society.
As members of the social care sector, we understand that it provides vital care to millions of people in England. There is a joint responsibility between the Government, commissioners, regulators, Local Authorities and other external bodies to ensure the workforce is supported and developed.
The Skills for Care report quotes the AgeUK 2019 report, which found that an estimated 1.5 million older people had unmet care needs. It also claimed that the social care workforce wasn’t always able meet the expectations of those people they care for.
Two years on and the sector is still facing difficulties. The number of EU workers has dropped dramatically and the pending vaccination rules being brought in by the Government will further impact the number of workers in our sector.
The development of the social care workforce needs attention and is key to the future of the sector and the quality of care it delivers. Staff retention is a significant priority for the Government if the sector is to emerge from the pandemic effectively.
‘The Value of Adult Social Care In England’ report calls for Local Authorities to strengthen their approach to outcomes-based commissioning to ensure people get the level of care they require.
The Skills for Care report calls for some clearly defined outcomes across the sector. They include:
- The development of a clearly defined careers structure linked to training.
- Addressing the pay differentiation between senior and entry level care workers.
- Recognising the central role managers play in high quality delivery.
The past 18 months have taught us that our social care workers are dedicated and passionate individuals who rise to the challenge in the face of adversity. Workers should be given access to training that goes beyond the minimum requirements, and they should be encouraged to develop their skills, competencies and leadership abilities with a view of furthering their careers within the sector.
Clearly, training has a major role to play in the future of social care in England. Grey Matter Learning is working with our customers to ensure they are in the best place to develop the social care workforce of the future, with our online training platform Click providing a vital tool to care providers across the UK.
For further information on how we can help you, check out our leadership and management courses, which are fully licensed by Skills for Care: https://greymatterlearning.co.uk/social-care-courses/face-to-face-learning/
