Group offers cash bonus to recruit nurses

A SCOTTISH care operator has launched a new drive to recruit more nurses with a cash bonus for new starts.

Parklands Care Homes, which owns and operates nine sites in Highland and Moray and manages a further two in Keith and Cullen, is aiming to boost its team of in-house nurses with a welcome bonus for new nurses worth up to £2,000.

The bonus comes on top of a recent pay rise for all Parklands employees, with nurses now being offered £20 an hour for day shifts and £21 for night shifts. Full time nurses working a typical 37.5 hour week can expect to earn around £39,000, with higher rates for nurses working night shifts.

By boosting salaries for in-house nurses, Parklands aims to eliminate the use of expensive agencies.

Managing director Ron Taylor said: “The UK social care sector has a severe shortage of nurses, in particular, and this means the sector is heavily reliant on expensive agencies.

“However, agency staff often come to us for short periods, lacking in-depth knowledge about our residents and their medical history.

“Our goal is to make sure we have a dependable and consistent team of nurses. By increasing salaries and offering incentives for new nurses, we aim to recruit highly motivated, experienced nurses who can deliver consistent, high quality care to our residents. It’s a win for our nurses and a win for our residents.”

Elsewhere in the group, carers are now being offered a minimum of £12 an hour, 10 per cent higher than the Scottish Government’s social care rate of £10.90, and care shift leaders can expect to earn between £14.50 and £15 an hour.

He added: “The past few months have been tough for everyone, with every day costs becoming unmanageable for many. We’ve seen our own costs soar and the entire sector is going through the most difficult time I can ever recall.

“Nevertheless, it’s right that we reward our hard-working staff and we’ve worked hard to ensure we can offer everyone in the Parklands team more this year.”

Parklands has also partnered with the financial well-being platform Wagestream, which gives employees more power over their pay, allowing them to access up to 40 per cent of their accrued wages at any time of the month in the event of unplanned expenses.

The company also offers full training and support and flexible family friendly working hours. Parklands is currently recruiting nurses across Moray and the Highlands.

Runwood Homes’ Waterfield House in Hadleigh hosted a classic car show in the heart of the community, whilst raising funds for the NSPCC. Residents, staff, families and the community enjoyed a day of refreshments, raffles and an array of classic cars. Customer relations manager Lindsey Fletcher, said: “We were thrilled to see so many fantastic cars on display. For some of the residents the cars brought back many memories from their youth, and for others it was their first time seeing the cars in person. “We want to thank the community and the team at Waterfield House for coming together to make this such a special day, whilst raising money for a fantastic cause.” On display at the show was a 1974 Triumph Spitfire, a VW Beetle, a Wolseley 1955 model, a TVR and a 1953 MGTD. The event raised £117 for the charity.