A new campaign highlighting the variety of career opportunities available in the adult social care sector has launched in Plymouth.
The campaign is run by the Plymouth City Council-led Caring Plymouth partnership, which works to connect local people with opportunities for skills, training, education, jobs in health and adult social care.
Caring Plymouth launched last year and aims to support the need for a sustainable, skilled workforce in the sector.
The partnership’s initial focus is to tackle staff recruitment and retention in adult social care through raising awareness of the opportunities of working in domiciliary care, care homes and supported living as there are currently hundreds of vacancies in the city, with more than 50 career pathways to choose from. There are lots of job and training opportunities available, with options to suit a range of lifestyles, skills and experience.
Councillor Mary Aspinall, Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Social Care said: “Care work really matters. Making Plymouth a great place to grow up and grow old is one of our key priorities and to do that, we need to make sure that the right care is available for adults and that they are supported to live independently for as long as possible.
“This means there are some great opportunities for caring, compassionate and committed individuals looking for a career where they can make a real difference in their local community.
“And importantly, our campaign not only highlights all the exciting opportunities available in the adult social care sector right now for people looking for work or training, or to progress in their career, but also celebrates our brilliant existing care staff, some of whom feature in our new adverts.”
The campaign invites people interested in learning more to get in touch with the Caring Plymouth team either by completing a short form, emailing, or attending a weekly drop-in event. An enquiry will lead to free impartial 1:1 support for interested individuals to help identify their existing skills and advice on the next steps, which could include support for applying for a job or accessing training.
The support on offer includes:
- Access to impartial careers information, advice and guidance
- A face-to-face skills assessment to identify your transferrable skills and values-based behaviours to help you more confidently apply for jobs in care
- Help to prepare for interview and applying for jobs
- The opportunity to gain entry level skills to build confidence
- Support for mental health and well-being
- Advice to overcome barriers to starting work including access to financial support for work clothing, initial travel to work costs as well as guidance on benefits calculations
- Access to ongoing training and skills development to promote upskilling and encourage career progression.
Anyone who wants to find out more can visit www.plymouth.gov.uk/workincare.
Alternatively, Caring Plymouth host a Health and Social Care Drop-in every Tuesday, 10am to 3pm, at Skills Launchpad Plymouth on the first floor of Barclays Bank in Plymouth city centre, PL1 1LA.