Skills for Care
Supporting the care sector and promoting employment opportunities for care leavers
The ‘Step into Care’ Programme involved 225 participants in a three-month support and training programme, created and delivered by four delivery partners in Manchester and Leeds, it matched participants with the most appropriate experiences. Its purpose was to engage with adults with barriers to work, and support them to become employment ready within the health and social care sector, while creating a pathway for work experience and employment opportunities.
As a result, 151 adults experienced a positive change in their emotional and mental wellbeing, (with 24% of those measured also experiencing a notable change in their physical health); while 95 achieved their level 1 Adult ‘Preparing to work in adult social care’ qualification and 171 achieved employment in the care sector, with another five into other employment & education.
Participants feedback included:
“Thank you for giving me the chance to go in to ‘Step into Care’. I was successful and now have a job in my area. I hadn’t worked for 28 years and didn’t know how to even go about it. I was scared to go out and had no confidence at all but am building on it and still getting there. Please give others the opportunities. Thank you so much.”
“I am grateful to you and your team for your support and help and I am genuinely enjoying my job. It’s hard work but it’s so rewarding and I have already had excellent feedback from my peers as well as the residents who are lovely.”
Partnership was a key element of this programme. While locals were engaged to best support & match young people with the most appropriate experiences, it also partnered with 61 local care providers and employers, training and preparing potential candidates and guaranteeing an interview with potential employers and, in doing so, reducing recruitment and attrition costs. Now the programme is complete, some of the care providers shared their feedback:
“The initiative saves us time and money in recruiting and training and having to bring new recruits up to speed.”
“You sent us a male applicant 9 months ago, he had no care experience, he went through your programme and he is our best carer”
“There has been a positive difference in the attitudes of candidates who have come through ‘Step into Care’ compared to other recruitment programmes”
Following the Skills for Care programme, 40 CareTech PLC Centre managers have joined Registered Managers membership, ensuring that the business are more able to recruit underrepresented young people into the workplace.
