• The Government should raise the national minimum wage for adult social care workers across the sector, and care providers should mirror the NHA Agenda for Change pay scale to ensure a parity of esteem between health and care workers

• There should be the establishment of a Royal College of Care Professionals to recognise and set the status of the care workforce, and raise its public perception as Florence Nightingale did for Nursing

• Volunteering must be incorporated into the governments’ workforce strategy and planning for social care, and workforce HR systems need to be adapted to better support volunteering

A new report by Public Policy Projects (PPP) has called for a ‘Nightingale Shift’ in the social care workforce.

The report, The Social Care Workforce: averting a crisis, explores the extent to which the sector has been suffering from high staff turnover rates, chronic recruitment and retention issues, and low morale, finding that pre-existing workforce issues have been exacerbated by the pressures of the Covid-19 pandemic on the care sector.

The report was chaired by former Deputy Prime Minister, the Rt Hon Damian Green MP, and was co-produced with individuals with lived experience of the social care sector. It finds that social care staff do not enjoy the same status in the minds of the public as their NHS counterparts, despite the similarity in roles and skills required.

In reference to the boost in status, pay and working conditions received by nurses following the work of Florence Nightingale in the Crimean War, the report argues that a similar shift in public perception towards social care is necessary to help the sector attract and retain staff.

The report highlights the immense need for changes in pay and conditions for care professionals; at present, many care workers are paid significantly less than other less technically skilled professions, including cleaners and dog walkers.

The report therefore advocates  for a raise in the minimum wage for care workers, facilitated by local authorities committing to pay the fair cost of care to care providers rather than relying on self-funders to make up the cost of proper wages. Care providers should mirror the NHS Agenda for Change pay scale, in order that care professionals can be paid equitably to their NHS counterparts.

PPP’s report argues that the reputation and public image of care work must undoubtedly be elevated, and this report calls for positive advertising campaigns for care work, for care providers to work with schools to promote care work as a technically skilled and fulfilling career, and for the establishment of a Royal College of Care Professionals.

The report calls on the government to reconsider its position on the part-funding of the Social Care Leaders Scheme, an initiative dubbed the ‘Teach-First for Social Care’, which aims to bring bright graduates to the sector and train them for leadership roles within care homes. Strong leadership will be key to the reconfiguration of the care workforce, and the scheme will serve to elevate the entire care workforce.

The PPP report also emphasises the necessity if the inclusion of volunteers into the care workforce, given the immense support they provide to the workforce and individuals in receipt of care. The government must make the most of the nation’s motivation to volunteer in the wake of the pandemic, for the good of the care system and workforce.

Commenting on the report:  

The Rt Hon Damian Green MP, former Deputy Prime Minister, and Chair of the report, said:

“We need more care workers, we need them to stay longer in their jobs, and we need them to be better paid and more highly regarded. This report by PPP says that a shift in public perception is part of what is required to address this. The report contains a number of practical proposals which would make the reality of the necessary change, and requires urgent action by the Government”

Catherine Johnstone CBE, Chief Executive, Royal Voluntary Service

"The benefits of volunteering to the health and social care workforce have consistently been demonstrated in terms of better patient outcomes and staff morale, but is also a powerful recruitment tool; given the public appetite to volunteer in support of our health and care services, a more structured volunteer-to-career pathway could be truly transformational in term of workforce recruitment and supply, as suggested in this report by PPP."

Jonathan Freeman MBE FRSA, Chief Executive Officer, Caretech Foundation

“The recruitment and retention crisis in social care is a chronic condition not an acute one. We have to invest in long-term solutions, and we can learn from the experience of Teach First and similar schemes to attract a whole new cadre of leaders into the sector. To do otherwise will see us continuing to pour water into an increasingly leaky social care recruitment and retention bucket. I am, therefore, delighted that this important report urges the Government to reconsider backing the Social Care Leaders Scheme, that has support from across the entire sector.”

Key insights of the report:   

1. The government should raise the minimum wage for adult social care workers across the sector.
2. The government should provide specific funding for workforce wellbeing, including for the provision of wellbeing resources and counselling. This should aim to alleviate the emotional and psychological burdens of care work, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.
3. The adult social care sector should work with young people in schools to positively promote social care work as a technically skilled and fulfilling career, in which care professionals improve the quality of life of those most in need through relationship building and practical care.
4. The Royal College of Care Professionals should be established, to recognise and set the status of the workforce, and raise its public perception
5. The government should reconsider their case for part-funding alongside the funding pledged by care operators for the new Social Care Leaders Scheme, learning from the success of similar schemes such as Teach First.
6. Volunteering should be integrated into workforce strategy and planning for social care given the benefit to staff and system users, and to workforce recruitment.