Lancaster University Management School - 54 Degrees Issue 12

W ith 1.52 million workers and an adult care workforce expected to grow by 32% by 2035, the social care sector plays a signi fi cant role in the UK labour market. Yet it has su ff ered from a series of signi fi cant workforce challenges over many years. The sector has long been associated with insecure work, poor terms and conditions and, in particular, low pay. This has resulted in many providers facing a struggle to recruit and retain sta ff , with estimates of more than 100,000 vacancies going un fi lled at any given time. Yet new research from theWork Foundation and recruiter Totaljobs highlights that perceptions of sector are beginning to shift, with more people now considering a career in care. More than half of job candidateswe surveyed outside of the social care sector said that their viewof social carework is more positive since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, and 31%of people said that theywould nowconsider a career in care. Of this proportion, 73%of those aged 16-25 reported theywould be likely to do so soon. This fi nding is particularly important given the current labourmarket turbulence that youngpeoplehavebeenexperiencing. RecentWorkFoundationanalysis shows that youngpeoplemakeup60% of the fall inunemployment observed since theonset of thepandemic, having beendisproportionately a ff ectedby the jobs crisis. But if new recruits are to be attracted to join and remain in the sector beyond the short-term, employers will need to take action to address the substantial workforce challenges that have characterised the sector for too long. One such issue is low pay. Our analysis found that low pay within the sector is dissuading candidates from care work, with 38%of respondents selecting this as a reason they would not apply for a role within the sector. Those who currently work in the sector often feel undervalued. When asked about the main drivers for wanting to leave the sector, social care workers raised higher pay (51%), not feeling valued by their employer (50%) and wanting a less stressful working environment (46%). There remain complex, longstanding issues with howcare is funded that impact the sector’s ability to payworkers competitively, resulting in the high turnover and vacancy rates. TheHealth Foundatio n estimate a fundinggapof £1.9bnby2023/24 just tomeet demand for care in England, ballooning to £8.6bn if we are tomeet demand, improve access and increase pay in the sector. In addition to pay, progression opportunities in the sector are limited. 43%of the social care workers that we surveyed who were intending to leave the sector said a lack of opportunities for career progression was a key motivation. Workers who agreed with the statement ‘I don’t feel I can progress in my career’ were more than 2.5 times more likely to be looking to leave social care altogether. Other facets of working in social care have been placed under strain through the pandemic: 41%of care workers we surveyed had experienced an increased workload during the pandemic. Mental health outcomes have also deteriorated throughout the pandemic. 48%of respondents to the carers’ survey reported they had experienced good or very good mental health over the two weeks before completing the survey, in comparison with 60% in early 2020. There is a danger that the additional pressures of the pandemic could jeopardise retention of care workers and clearly providers will need to be alert to additional stress that their sta ff may be feeling, and able to provide support as necessary. HOWTOATTRACTANDRETAINSTAFF So, given the turbulence caused by the pandemic, and the array of challenges in the social care sector overall, what steps can government, sector bodies and employers take to attract and retain thriving workforces? Firstly, it is paramount that now that social carework is seen by a greater number of people as an attractive career, theUKGovernment delivers on Boris Johnson’s promisemade nearly two years ago to “ fi x the crisis in social care once and for all” through reforms that take a long-termview to supporting the sector. Successive administrations have committed to address these problems, but progress is yet to bemade. Together with social care sector bodies and regulators, the governmentmust develop comprehensive strategies to address workforce challenges in tandem with increasing funding. This should include the creation of a Continuing Professional Development Framework. Alongside this, there are a number of actions that employers and sector bodies can take. For example, more can be done to support young people to build a proper understanding of carework. This could include taster days andwork placements, developed through direct engagement with schools and colleges. In addition, wewould encourage employers to adopt a values-based approach to recruitment, re fl ecting the fact that a key driver formany towork in social care is the positive impact on others’ lives that the sector can have. This could be achieved by usingmore scenario-based questions during interviews, or via group assessment days. When thinking about how best to retain sta ff already in the sector, accepting there is unlikely to be a straightforward way to address pay problems, it will be vital for employers to consult with their workforce to understand the rewards and bene fi ts that they would value the most, and develop bene fi ts packages that align more closely with sta ff preferences. By taking these steps to improve employment in the sector, we can take advantage of the shifting perceptions of care we are now seeing and begin to build a thriving social care workforce for the future – underpinned by secure terms and conditions, better pay and good progression opportunities. 44 | TrinleyWalker is a Policy Advisor at theWork Foundation. The report Social care: aguide to attractingand retaininga thriving workforce , was produced b y theWork Foundation and TotaljobsUK . t.walker9@lancaster.ac.uk