Recruitment in Social Care

According to the latest Skills for Care report, the social care sector in the UK is responsible for supporting millions of people nationwide, employing 1,7 million workers across 18,500 companies and organisations. Although the numbers for 2024 are growing and achieved an increase of 70,000 from the previous year, there are three significant facts to be taken into consideration:

  1. International recruitment. The main reason behind this historic drop in vacancy rates from 10,6 to 8,3% and turnover rates to their lowest level of 24,2%. These improvements are heavily impacted by recent immigration policy changes, which resulted in 31,8% of new care workers coming from abroad. At the same time, domestic recruitment is falling behind, with 70,000 fewer British workers compared to two years ago.
  2. Ageing population. People reaching over 65 years of age are expected to represent 38% of the UK’s population by 2040. More than a third of the residents would have a potential need for social Care, demanding critical long-term workforce strategy.
  3. Ageing workforce. 27% of social care workers are nearing retirement, creating a significant gap and calling for an urgent change in the recruitment and retention plans for the next 5 years.

Despite these short-term trends, the social care sector is still trying to overcome systematic challenges, to ensure sustainable staffing levels and meet increasing social care demands.

Challenges in Social Care Recruitment

Here, you can read more about the top 6 social care recruitment and retention challenges – High staff turnover rates, the skills gap in the social care workforce, limited talent pool, lack of career progression, regulatory and compliance issues and work environment and job satisfaction.

High Staff Turnover Rates

A report’s findings show that the social care sector faces a significant challenge. Almost a quarter of the workforce leaves their jobs annually. Although 57% of the new care workers come from within the industry, the constant change of caregivers creates a discontinuity of Care, leaving people without consistent Care and support and negatively impacting client satisfaction.

If we examine the stats closely, we can notice that almost half of the care workers under 25 leave their jobs within a year, indicating difficulties in retaining the next generation of social care workers. At the same time, only one-quarter of the age group closest to retirement does the same.
We also notice minor discrepancies between two other groups: zero-hour contract workers and full-time staff. The previous had a 36% turnover rate, versus the 29,7% of the latter, suggesting care providers rethink their use of zero-hour contracts and offer more stable employment options and conditions.

Skills Gap in the Social Care Workforce

Recruiting agencies know this fact from their first-hand experience: only 46% of the workforce holds a relevant social care qualification. This skill gap can significantly impact the quality of Care and limit workers’ careers.

Let’s look at the numbers: Only 54% of care workers complete the Care Certificate, one of the essential qualifications. Only 9% of UK social care staff hold an entry-level Level 1 qualification, compared to 38% of workers from abroad.

To tackle this issue, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has been advised to consider a five-year programme to attract and qualify graduates and career changers. This plan includes offering accelerated training possibilities, financial support and incentives, and establishing direct partnerships with colleges.

Limited Talent Pool

This sector’s talent pool contains a limited adult social care workforce, and the gap between demand and supply will continue to expand. Skills for Care reports staggering forecasts for 2040: the UK will need 500,000 new posts in the healthcare sector to match the ageing population.

March 2024’s visa rule changes also affected the social care sector. International recruitment, which provides the most significant influx of social care workers, stepped into challenging times. We already see a massive 33% drop in Health and Care Worker visas.

Expanding the talent pool by attracting people from other sectors, showcasing the success stories of people who have transitioned from different industries, and addressing misconceptions about the required skills and qualifications are necessary. But again, without solving the most crucial issue of better pay (a 20% pay gap in comparison with retail/hospitality) and working conditions, the challenges will remain.

Lack of Career Progression

Although many care providers offer yearly mandatory training options and subsidise the completion of essential courses and certificates, there is still a significant lack of professional development.

Statistics show numbers that work against career advancement:

  • 51% of direct care workers report no opportunities for progression
  • Only 7% of roles are managerial in comparison to the 33% in the NHS
  • There is no significant progression in pay: senior care workers earn just £0.10/hour more than the beginners

Regulatory and Compliance Issues

Local authorities and care providers face substantial challenges while managing regulatory and compliance problems. The biggest of all is the latest one: changes to visa requirements in March 2024 prevented care workers from bringing dependents. This resulted in a 33% reduction in issued Health and Care Worker visas. That’s around 53,000 posts less for this year only.

They are also managing tight budgets and financial constraints. This pushes an increase in part-time roles and zero-hour contracts, which, on the other hand, creates regulatory complexities around worker rights.

Work Environment and Job Satisfaction

Poor working conditions can lead to a decline in the already fragile mental health of the social care workforce. This job is emotionally demanding and can also lead to a disparity in the work-life balance.

Here, we must also address the height of the pay. This research shows that independent care workers’ median hourly rate was £11.00, while at the same time, their counterparts in the NHS had £11.67. Both pays are at close range to the National Living Wage, making them unworthy of serious consideration among the potential hires.

Importance of Recruitment Agencies

Specialist agencies can address the six major challenges in social care recruitment by deploying data-driven strategies and can provide:

  • Values-based recruitment. Prioritising soft skills like empathy, resilience and problem-solving over traditional hard skills and qualifications, you can reduce first-year attrition by 50% and improve job performance by 72%, compared to standard hiring.
  • Upskilling partnerships. Recruitment agencies collaborate with training providers to bridge qualification gaps and fund NVQ certifications, increasing retention rates.
  • Retention-focus matching. Targeting workers with completed Care Certificates and other training instances ensures a lower turnover.
  • Employee referral programs. Traditional referral schemes can allow companies to source up to 7% of their annual hires, and digital ones can at least double that number.

Hire Social Care Staff with Olive Recruit

Olive Recruit’s trademark is its extensive health and social care sector expertise. We have a wider pool of potential candidates seeking roles through traditional and non-traditional channels. We provide domestic recruitment applicants by handling initial screenings, interviews, and background checks, allowing the partnering companies to focus only on the final selection and onboarding.

Our annual Salary Guide, covering more than 60 positions in the healthcare sector, helps candidates and companies align their expectations more efficiently. Leave your email to access the guide, and you will receive this incredible tool directly in your inbox.

You will get a Dedicated Account Manager, an extensive pool of diverse healthcare professionals, monthly analytics, strategic sourcing, proactive talent scouting, psychometric tests, CV screening packages, etc.

Partnering with Olive Recruit, your permanent staffing solutions partner, can save you time and resources and streamline your company’s recruitment process.