Care Management Matters - The Recruitment Edit

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WELCOME

Welcome to CMM: The Recruitment Edit, produced exclusively for the Care Show 2022. In this supplement, we bring you advice, tips and updates from some of the sector’s biggest names in recruitment and retention.

For years, we have faced a constant barrage of news and data that shows us how badly staff are needed in social care. Meanwhile, providers are up against ever-changing challenges that often make it even more difficult to recruit. Promises from Government to ‘fix’ the issue with campaigns and funding have, so far, fallen short of the mark, and providers are left to find their own ways of building compassionate and enthusiastic teams for their businesses.

Despite the difficulties in finding staff, speak to any Chief Executive in this sector and they’ll tell you that their employees go over and above in their roles, doing all they can to maintain and create happy lives for the people they support. However, the last few years have inflicted untold stress and pressure on everyone working in social care, and brilliant staff have been leaving their jobs for good.

With this in mind, we asked Neil Eastwood – widely regarded as social care’s ‘recruitment guru’ – to give us new ideas and insights for retaining your staff in the current climate. He explores the fundamentals of this topic on page 4, while Sophie Coulthard of Judgement Index offers five top tips for identifying leadership qualities in potential and existing employees on page 12, so that you can make the most of the skills possessed by the staff you have.

To support providers to navigate the changing legislation around criminal records checks, on page 6, Skills for Care lets us know how references can fill an information gap and answers questions around hiring people with a criminal record and what to do about references for new staff from overseas.

Lastly, research suggests that the homecare sector is being disproportionately affected by the exodus of staff post-COVID, so we asked Raina Summerson, Chief Executive of Agincare, to share her best advice – specifically for homecare providers – for finding and keeping staff. Read her suggestions on page 10.

If you’re still looking for information, the resources on page 14 should help you to find further help. You can also sign up for free to the CMM website, where you’ll find thoughtleadership on various topics, as well as a directory of organisations that specifically support adult social care providers.

We hope this supplement proves a useful tool for you to take away and refer to, or just to read and gather ideas.

The CMM Team

"Despite the difficulties in finding staff, speak to any Chief Executive in this sector and they’ll tell you that their employees go over and above in their roles, doing all they can to maintain and create happy lives for the people they support"

TEN BUILDING BLOCKS TO MAXIMISE STAFF RETENTION

As rising energy and food bills create further strain on the sector’s workforce, Neil Eastwood explores what practical steps providers can take when topping up wages is no longer an option.

Our sector has experienced an extraordinary series of workforce pressures: Brexit, COVID-19 and a slump in active job seekers, together with a resulting ‘war for talent,’ now compounded by rising levels of inflation impacting household budgets. This has, quite rightly, further increased calls from across the sector for an increase in funding to improve pay for care workers. But with the recent leadership changes in Government and other significant demands on the national budget, there is no immediate sign of help coming.

Many providers I speak to have already increased wages as far as they can afford to, and sometimes beyond that, so further interventions to limit staff loss will have to come from somewhere else. The good news is there is much employers can do, building on proven best practice from around the world. In this article, I share 10 of my favourite recommendations, covering a wide range of initiatives. Five of them just focus on the first 90 days of employment – when staff turnover can be many times higher than the annual turnover rate –so they can yield the biggest return.

1. Think carefully about where you source your staff

Selecting suitable and reliable staff with the right values for the role is, in my view, the single biggest contributor to finding staff who will stay with you long-term. And you’re more likely to do this if you hire them through reliable sources. For example, employers report their 12-week turnover can be more than halved for new starters who were referred by an existing member of staff versus other traditional recruitment sources. The more new starters you can source with either a connection to your company or emotional maturity, such as family care experience, the better things will get.

2. Keep your promises to new starters

During the induction period it’s more important than ever that the implied promise made to the candidate during the recruitment process is honoured. Too often, expectations around shift patterns and the requirements of the job don’t reflect reality. A common trigger for leaving is a lack of appreciation of the personal care requirement of many care roles. Ensure these elements are addressed and understood fully before a job offer is made.

3. Use a peer mentoring programme

One of the most successful HR processes an employer can introduce is a buddying scheme, so that new starters are assigned a more experienced colleague to be their ‘go-to’ support person. A study of one peer mentoring programme in the US care sector found turnover was reduced from 53.7% to 17% once the scheme started.

4. Welcome new staff with open arms

Successful care providers often operate a full welcome programme to ensure that during the risky early period new starters feel valued. Examples include management being regularly visible to the recent joiners, the boss greeting each new starter personally, providing a welcome ‘goody bag’, and displaying signage to greet new starters by name.

5. Reach out to older and retired candidates

A range of research studies suggest that older workers are more likely to cope with the emotional and physical pressures of care work, particularly if there is uncertainty over a consistent income. Younger staff may be more reliant on a minimum earnings level whilst those without dependent children and perhaps with other sources of income can be more flexible. Ensuring you reach older people, such as mid-career changers and retirees, with your recruitment promotion can help here.

6. Investing in learning and development

Skills for Care’s Secrets of Success report, examining the workforce practices of employers with less than 10% staff turnover, identified that one of the biggest positive impacts on staff retention was when the employer invested more into learning and development, as cited by 94% of respondents. Actively encouraging staff to develop existing skills and add new ones, with a particular emphasis on tailoring opportunities to the individual, gives many more reasons for the employee to stay. It also allows the employer to celebrate achievements, my seventh tip.

7. Celebrate achievements

Over £1m of the £2.5m in rewards earned by care workers on the Care Friends app has been not for referring their friends (the main purpose of the platform) but for acknowledging achievements of both the individual and the organisation. This shows that many employers are already recognising the power of acknowledging and rewarding effort and progress. Make sure you are always looking for ways of celebrating success – both on a one-to-one basis and across the organisation.

8. Involve employees in decision-making

Giving colleagues a voice – to share their ideas, to give feedback and to engender in them a greater sense of control and autonomy – appears in many international studies on care worker retention. The work environment and perceived job role quality can be much enhanced by simply trusting care workers more and providing forums for them to feel heard. One simple example might be undertaking regular staff surveys combined with feedback sessions and clearly demonstrating that findings are being acted upon.

9. Increasing flexible working options

Employees are increasingly prioritising more flexible working. The lack of opportunity to work from home in sectors like social care, hospitality and cleaning has no doubt contributed to a rise in vacancies, with more than half of women saying they have considered leaving, or have left, their role due to a lack of flexibility. Employers must go as far as they can to increase flexible working options to compete, despite the operational headaches this can create.

10. If all else fails, ask them to come back

There many examples of staff who leave for a higher wage in another sector and realise that they miss colleagues and those they care for and support, or discover the workplace culture in their new employment is not as good as the one they have left. Ensure your privacy policy gives you permission to stay in contact with staff after they have left and reach out to any leaver you would re-employ. This is an effective strategy to bring back those who mistakenly thought the grass was greener. In my work with employers we expect to see about a third of all ‘good leavers’, who haven’t moved out of the area or retired, return to the organisation within six months if coaxed by their previous employer.

I hope these simple tips will be of practical relevance to any care provider who is struggling to manage their staff turnover and who feels like the option to increase wages has simply been exhausted.

TEN

Neil

Enabling

SEARCHING OUT INFORMATION:

Why references are vital

Social care staff and volunteers provide support for some of the most vulnerable people in society and at the heart of all robust pre-employment checks is the safety of the people employers are entrusted to care for and the staff who carry out this role.

Effective vetting provides organisations with the first opportunity to deter and prevent those who may be unsuitable to work with people who draw on care and support from securing a role with them.

And yet, we know from talking to employers that gathering references and conduct information is often time-consuming and at times frustrating. For example, how often have you made a detailed reference request only to receive basic information confirming job title and dates of employment? Or have you found yourself wanting to share adverse information with a new employer but been unsure whether or not you could? How can we as a sector move away from a culture of meeting minimum requirements to one of being actively curious about the information we do and don’t receive?

Working in collaboration with the Better Hiring Institute, Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), Reed Screening, Dominic Headley & Associates (DHA) and VBA Consulting, we’re looking to provide information and resources giving social care employers the confidence and assurance to both obtain and provide detailed, full and frank references. High-quality references are, after all, key in making an informed decision about a candidate’s appropriateness for a role.

Reference checking covers many elements that will allow you to determine an individual’s suitability for a role, including their previous job performance and the skills and qualities they’ll bring to the role. Not obtaining evidence of a person’s conduct in previous relevant jobs could mean you hire someone who isn’t right for the role and, in a worst-case scenario, put the people you support and the rest of your team at risk.

Recent changes to criminal record disclosure legislation has resulted in less criminal record information being

provided to employers. Now more than ever, employers will be reliant upon all the information gathered within the recruitment process, including via references, to determine the suitability of an applicant and their fitness to perform the role.

Your responsibilities as an employer

The intention of Regulation 19 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 is to make sure that providers only employ ‘fit and proper staff’ who are able to provide care appropriate to their role and to enable them to provide the regulated activity. This applies across paid and voluntary roles and includes agency and bank staff.

Employers should ensure that anyone employed by the organisation is of ‘good character’ and must collect a criminal record self-declaration and criminal record check at the appropriate level. Where a candidate has previously worked with children or vulnerable adults, employers must also collect satisfactory evidence of the candidate’s conduct in the previous role and satisfactory verification of why this employment ended.

Robust vetting goes far beyond ticking boxes and collecting files. It’s vital to gather as much information as possible during the recruitment process and to be aware of what to monitor during the initial induction period. This means ensuring all staff are up-to-date with safeguarding training so that everyone is able to spot any inappropriate behaviour by other staff.

Equally important is considering your responsibility in providing references to other employers about your former staff. Make this as easy as possible by keeping accurate records of employee conduct (both positive and negative) in a central location. This might include any disciplinary action, causes for concern, awards, promotions and reasons for leaving. You can then simply collate relevant information and send on to a new employer.

Challenges and solutions

Recruiting safely and fairly means decision-making has

Jeanine Willoughby, Project Manager for Capacity and Transformation at Skills for Care, discusses how employers can make sure they’re completing references effectively and why obtaining evidence of previous conduct is so important in recruitment.

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to be adequately informed, and this takes time and effort.

Ensure processes are in place to allow all checks to be completed ahead of anyone starting in a role. This might mean making arrangements for capacity while a role is vacant to ensure you can fully focus your efforts on the recruitment process.

Use each part of the recruitment process to help narrow down candidates with the right values for the role. Take a values-based approach to recruitment by stating the core behaviours you’re looking for in a candidate (e.g kindness, empathy) in job adverts and asking questions on application forms and at interview that allow candidates to demonstrate their values.

Once a new team member starts, make sure to have a comprehensive induction plan in place too, including ensuring that new starters are familiar with expected values and behaviours and code of conduct.

Regularly supervise staff and create an open culture where staff feel safe and empowered to raise concerns.

Frequently asked questions

1. Can I refuse to employ anyone with a criminal record?

An employer can take into account a criminal record when making a decision about an applicant’s suitability, but employers should avoid blanket exclusion policies. It’s a condition of the DBS Code of Practice for registered bodies and those in receipt of DBS update service information to have a recruitment of ex-offenders policy. Employers should also ensure that their policies comply with data protection laws which require data to be processed fairly and minimise risks of discriminating against applicants.

2. If I employ someone with a criminal record, do I have a responsibility to declare this to the service user?

No. A criminal record is afforded extra protection under GDPR and DPA 2018. It shouldn’t be disclosed to anyone who doesn’t have a genuine need to know without the consent of the

How Skills for Care can support

On the Skills for Care website, you can find values-based recruitment resources to help you embed a values-led approach to every step of the recruitment process and build up a good picture of the candidate before getting to the reference stage.

We have started launching our ‘Safer recruitment’ free events and online content which will be led by safeguarding and fair recruitment specialist, Dominic Headley. These can help employers understand the legislation, their rights and responsibilities, and what to do with the information they discover. Information about these upcoming events is available on the Skills for Care website.

Reference checking may not be the most exciting part of the recruitment process for employers, but it’s a necessary and vital step in keeping both the people who draw on care and support and your staff members safe, and in treating everyone fairly during the hiring process. Let’s make a difference and get curious.

individual to whom the information relates. Having a criminal record in itself doesn’t mean the person will present a risk to service users; and the absence of a criminal record doesn’t mean a person doesn’t present a risk. Criminal record checks are a vital tool to support employers to make safer recruitment decisions but form just one part of any robust safe recruitment exercise. It’s the employer’s duty to ensure they’ve assessed and managed any risks identified during a recruitment process and put in place any adequate safeguards deemed necessary to protect service users regardless of whether or not the person has a criminal record.

3. What if the applicant has spent the past six months or more overseas?

You need to have asked the applicant for consent to complete an overseas criminal record check. Then you must request a record check appropriate to the country and assess the information returned, in the same way as all other documentary evidence, verifying that it’s genuine and relates to the individual who has applied for the role. If you are unable to obtain criminal record information, ask the applicant to contact an Embassy or High Commission for advice and to evidence all attempts to access overseas criminal information or assistance in doing so.

Jeanine Willoughby is Project Manager for Capacity and Transformation at Skills for Care.

Email: information.team@skillsforcare.org.uk Twitter: @skillsforcare

A NEW PERSPECTIVE:

Recruitment and retention in homecare

In this difficult market, sharing knowledge is essential, and when it comes to recruiting in homecare, there’s a lot of knowledge to be shared. Here, Raina Summerson gives an insight into the work Agincare has been doing to support the recruitment and retention of its workforce.

Like the majority of homecare providers, Agincare wants to increase our workforce, improve retention and boost job satisfaction.

Despite the ongoing challenges, and an increasingly competitive recruitment market, we have committed to investing even more in our people programme, both through internal developments and linking with others.

We listened to and learnt from all our people, and from potential recruits in the job marketplace, to challenge our assumptions and identify key motivators, barriers and stereotypes regarding a career in homecare. Here is what we learnt.

Data and listening

As part of our work, we have overhauled how we engage and communicate with key audiences and stakeholders, including our teams, those who draw on our services, their relatives and loved ones, to ensure our decisions are based on reliable information and insight.

We constantly check how our initiatives are working, adjust where necessary and ensure any themes or learning points are addressed as part of a cycle of continuous improvement. That means asking the hard questions, and not shying away from the answers but acting on them. Making sure your staff can see you making changes based on their feedback is important here.

People

Homecare providers are under pressure but despite this, we must keep trying to innovate and invest in our people. We looked at our ‘candidate journey’ and made changes to make job applications quicker and easier with a new, streamlined welcome programme that includes paid induction training, welcome bonuses and other benefits alongside ongoing reward, recognition and a real commitment to personal and career development. This can be done by providers big and small by scaling it to the resources you have. The idea is to make the process easier and more appealing in any way you can.

Of course, addressing pay concerns and current pressures around car ownership and fuel prices with existing staff is part of this. Honest, open communication is key.

Training

Finding time to address and support (and pay for) training in such busy times can be hard for all concerned. However, it is an essential part of keeping people safe, feeling confident and with clarity about career options. We have chosen to use an NCFE accredited company, which specialises in practical social care, education and business apprenticeships, along with bespoke short courses and professional qualifications.

As well as supporting learners from other organisations, it means we can set people on the path to a rewarding career in care, or make them the most confident and competent they can be in any role they choose to remain in.

Recruitment

This is a critical area of investment for us but it can seem relentless and fruitless work for all homecare providers. An endless round of job boards, adverts that struggle to differentiate from each other and, certainly in the local authority funded provider space, restrictions on how core terms and conditions can really be improved and enhanced.

We all understand the criticisms of recruitment banners that say ‘no experience needed’ – this can suggest our teams aren’t skilled and ‘anyone can do it’. We know that’s not the case but equally, as part of the whole story, it’s true; we need heart, soul, care, passion and the right values, and we can provide solid training for the rest, so, in that way, those banners are right.

The campaigns we run at Agincare all reinforce this idea and we share the journeys taken by many of our team members to showcase the opportunities available.

Culture

Agincare’s entrepreneurial and innovative culture has helped us adapt over 35 years, growing sustainably from being a small care provider to operating 70 locations, including homecare branches, nationwide. In the current environment, we find that our sustainability is often a draw for our team members, both in terms of attraction and retention. Whilst we face the same challenges as other providers, our scale of service provision and longevity seem to give a confidence to people.

Agincare remains family-run, independent and financially sustainable. It means we can be innovative and creative, and still agile – and that’s something many other smaller homecare providers often share too.

Some initiatives, like major recruitment marketing campaigns, may be harder for smaller providers but building a healthy workplace culture is something any provider can do.

As a senior management team, we work hard to ensure that authentic values run through everything we do, celebrating, recognising and rewarding our incredible workforce, understanding what matters to them and addressing difficult issues up front.

Wellbeing and support

With the current spiralling cost of living increases and, for homecare especially, rising fuel costs, pay and reward has never been more important in recruitment. Offering competitive terms and conditions, including mileage for homecare workers, is a key part of any recruitment programme.

However, the increased wellbeing and support programmes many care providers implemented during COVID-19 must also be considered. These should be continued, reviewed and enhanced. Comprehensive wellbeing packages are now expected and, for Agincare, this includes a network of trained mental health first aiders, as well as practical support and advice for managing cost of living increases and regular communication and signposting to areas of support.

Providers can all access a lot of free resources for their teams through national organisations, both related to social care and external.

A voice for reform

One of our challenges in homecare is that nothing really seems to change. As recent Skills for Care figures show, there are no signs that it is getting any easier, with ever-increasing vacancy numbers. Agincare still lobbies hard for social care reform from Government, with funding and a workforce strategy remaining absolutely crucial for our teams, and ultimately everyone they support.

Involving our team members and letting them hear about what we are trying to do for social care and them gets really good feedback. We love to encourage and enable our team members in various roles to attend panels, give evidence to MPs, be interviewed or even over the last year to give evidence to the Health and Social Care Select Committee.

There is no doubt that all homecare providers are seeing ongoing challenges with demand for their services simply outstripping supply; this places yet more pressure on our teams who often do their job because they want to make a difference. Without some fundamental changes to the way we reward and recognise our workforce, the measures described above can help but they will not resolve the serious shortages we continue to face.

5

FIVE WAYS TO IDENTIFY FUTURE LEADERS

A fundamental part of being a business owner is succession planning, and to do this successfully, you need to be able to recruit and retain people who can take over in leadership roles. Here, Sophie Coulthard from Judgement Index explores five simple ways to find out who your future leaders are.

If you’ve been thinking about succession planning within your care company, then you might be considering how you can spot leadership qualities in your current team or new hires. Nurturing future leaders should be a continuous process and is essential for the success of your company.

It’s important to remember that leadership can be taught –very few people are born natural leaders. Skills can be developed over time from hands-on experience, training courses and from modelled behaviour seen in others.

With that being said, there are some ways to spot potential in your people and new hires; we’ve broken these down into five key tips for identifying future leaders.

1. Key values

Does their behaviour align with the values of the company? Your values are the heart of your company, and understanding how the potential leader understands and ‘lives’ those values can be a clue as to whether they will be successful in post.

During an interview, you can ask open, values-based questions and look for examples of when they may have brought these values to life. Too many closed or leading questions will hinder your ability to understand the authenticity of the candidate.

If you think about the two best managers you’ve worked with, they might have had quite different personalities. But I’m sure they would have had similar values which showed in the way they led their team.

2. Avoiding temptation

Don’t be tempted to hire a ‘minime’! We all have natural biases, and the temptation can be to look for people who have the same qualities as you when hiring or promoting to leadership roles.

When someone shares similar character traits, background, looks or even accent, our primal instinct is that we feel safe with them. We naturally want to be around people who are like us – I’m sure everyone will remember a group of people from school who all dressed the same or had the same haircut, for them they would have felt a sense of belonging and safety in that group.

The issue with biases is that they can prevent you from spotting leadership potential in someone who is quite different from you. We need more people in leadership roles who come from different backgrounds, are different ages, and are different ethnicities.

People who think differently and see the world from a different

perspective to you will bring fresh ideas to the table. As well, if we can encourage more diversity in leadership positions, more talent could be attracted to the sector, because people will see it as an industry where everyone has the same opportunity to climb the career ladder.

3. Unconsidered behaviours

Spot the key behaviours that demonstrate potential. While behaviours can be learned, there are some behaviours that we commonly see exhibited in leaders and potential leaders. You may have spotted some of these in your team and not immediately connected them with leadership:

• They have emotional intelligence: Our past research has found that people working in care have a greater ability to notice and sense things in others, and while this may be true in how they can read their clients’ mood and spot if something is wrong, how does this translate to their colleagues? Someone who is able to notice the mood of a person or atmosphere in a room and sense how to respond will likely be a more empathetic leader.

• They thrive on challenge: People with a natural ability to problem solve and think strategically will likely thrive in a leadership role. Who is knocking on your door with an idea to do something differently? Who is exploring all solutions to a problem instead of displaying a defeatist attitude? This person may be your future leader.

• They know how to celebrate success: In a sector where much of the time is spent spotting the things that are wrong or that pose a risk, it’s key to have leaders who are able to recognise when they have done a good job. If someone is highly self-critical, it can spill out into

negativity on others, and we’ve seen this drive a negative culture within care companies. If someone can celebrate their own achievements, they’ll likely be better at also celebrating others’ too.

4. Adaptability

The lesson that hits home the hardest when we train future care leaders, is that being flexible in their leadership style to suit the situation will get the best results.

Often, someone is promoted and then adopts one style of leadership. They either think they need to command, and essentially tell everyone what to do, or they worry about what people will think of them and become too soft and friendly with their team, which risks people taking advantage of them.

Someone who can adapt their style where needed will have a greater chance of being a successful leader. You may see this demonstrated in how they behave with their clients. Do they adapt their approach, perhaps being more formal with a client who likes to be treated that way and then more relaxed with another? This may indicate that they will be able to grasp and implement a flexible leadership style with a team.

5. Resilience

If there’s one thing that the past few years have shown us, it’s that resilient people make the best leaders. Managers who saw the challenge ahead as something they could overcome with their team inspired their colleagues to believe it too.

Resilience is about having the ability to bounce back from difficulties. Dusting off your shoulders and trying again, being unafraid to see a failure as an opportunity for growth.

You will likely see people in your team who have this quality. They

won’t see themselves as a victim, and they will face difficult situations and pull through them.

Our past research of Outstandingrated managers showed that they all had much higher levels of resilience, no doubt a contributing factor to their success. They all had a strong ability to handle stress and pressure, both at work and in their personal lives.

You may recognise people in your team who have strong abilities to handle stress and maintain a positive attitude around the pressures they may be under. Should you promote them to be a leader, they will help maintain a calm environment with their teams and build a culture where people can feel more confident and in turn, resilient.

Setting up for success

As a final note, someone who is great at their job will not necessarily make the best leader. Often, we promote the highest performing staff member, only to see them fail.

It’s the responsibility of the senior team to set up future leaders for success, by providing them with the time, resources and support to become the best leader they can be. There is no end, no completion date, when it comes to leadership. It’s often a lifelong learning experience but by following these tips you can ensure you’re starting in the right place.

“Dusting off your shoulders and trying again, being unafraid to see a failure as an opportunity for growth”

RESOURCES

ONLINE

Associated Retirement Community Operators

The main body representing housing-with-care providers in the UK. Web: www.arcouk.org

Association for Real Change

A third sector and membership organisation supporting providers of services to people with a learning disability and/or autism. Web: www.arcuk.org.uk

Association of Mental Health Providers

The leading representative body for voluntary, community and social enterprise mental health organisations in England and Wales. Web: www.amhp.org.uk

Care England

Membership association body representing independent care providers. Web: www.careengland.co.uk

Care Management Matters

Resource directory including employment law specialists, recruitment agencies and more, as well as thought-leadership articles on best practice in recruitment and retention. Web: www.caremanagementmatters.co.uk/ directory

Care Provider Alliance

Brings together the main national associations, collectively representing the whole adult social care sector to ensure a co-ordinated response to the major issues that affect it. Web: www.careprovideralliance.org.uk

Care Workers’ Charity

Advancing the financial, professional and

mental wellbeing of social care workers by making grants, signposting to resources and providing access to services. Web: www.thecareworkerscharity.org.uk

Homecare Association

The only membership body in the UK dedicated to supporting homecare providers. Web: www.homecareassociation.org.uk

Judgement Index

A values-based assessment tool which supports employers to identify and develop the right people for the right roles. You can also hear Sophie Coulthard’s interviews with inspiring care leaders on The Road To Outstanding podcast. Web: www.judgementindex.co.uk

National Care Association

Representing small- and medium-sized care providers and affiliated local associations, National Care Association liaises with national and local Government and key stakeholder groups including the Care Quality Commission. Web: www.nationalcareassociation.org.uk

National Care Forum

The membership organisation for not-for-profit organisations in the care and support sector. Web: www.nationalcareforum.org.uk

Neil Eastwood’s Recruitment Masterclass

A free online course covering the fundamentals of recruiting in social care. Web: www.findandkeepthebest.com

Registered Nursing Home Association

The Registered Nursing Home Association

is the only national association exclusively representing the interests of owners of SME care homes with nursing. Web: www.rnha.co.uk

Skills for Care

Tools and resources to help providers recruit, train and retain staff in the adult social care sector.

Web: www.skillsforcare.org.uk/Recruitmentsupport/Recruitment-support.aspx

Social Care Institute of Excellence (SCIE)

CPD-accredited training, consultancy and free e-learning and videos. Web: www.scie.org.uk

The Prince’s Trust

Offers free courses, grants and mentoring opportunities to people aged 11-30 to inspire young people to build their confidence and start a career. Web: www.princes-trust.org.uk/support-ourwork/health-and-social-care

Voluntary Organisations Disability Group

VODG is a membership body representing over 100 organisations within the voluntary sector who work alongside disabled people. Web: www.vodg.org.uk

BOOKS

Saving Social Care: How To Find More Of The Best Frontline Care Employees And Keep The Ones You Have, Neil Eastwood.

The Care Leader’s Handbook: A practical guide to leadership for care managers, team leaders and future superstars, Sophie Coulthard and Rob Coulthard.

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