To kick off 2024, we shared a poll on our LinkedIn to better understand the biggest challenges that our followers and customers are facing this year.

The results are in, and coming out on top with a whopping 93% of votes, is staffing and recruitment challenges.

Since 2020, after years of relative stability, social and care worker vacancies and agency rates have steadily risen. Many children’s homes have since been struggling to navigate worsening recruitment issues, and this unfortunately can have a knock-on effect on the quality of care delivered.

In fact, staff shortages, management turnover and a lack of skills amongst care workers were cited as the main reasons as to why 9% (43) of 480 children’s homes inspected for the first time during 2021-2022 received an inadequate rating.

 

Part 1: New Agency Requirements for Children’s Services

Commenting on the increased rates of social worker and agency staff vacancies, Ofsted has said that there was an “over reliance on agency workers which undermines the consistency of the support that children experience”.

In February 2023, as part of the Social Care Reform agenda, the Department for Education set new agency requirements for children’s services. The new rules proposed regulating the use of agency staff, and capping their pay to the levels of permanent staff, in a bid to improve levels of staff recruitment and retention.

The Independent Review of Children’s Social Care found that the DfE’s suggestions provided in February 2023 were moving in the right direction, but criticised the failure to take forward certain recommendations.  Josh MacAlister, who led the review, found that “a transformative whole system reset” is needed, and without that, “outcomes for children and families would remain stubbornly poor.”   The Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) also urged faster implementation, warning that the target date of April 2024 could worsen staff shortages.

 

DfE Ditches Proposed Agency Staff Pay Cap

Despite positive reception towards the proposed new rules – towards the end of 2023, the DfE made significant changes ,to its original plans, notably ditching the proposed cap to locum pay.  During the consultation process, mixed views were expressed as to whether pay really was higher once contractual differences were accounted for. Many locums told the department that higher pay was the main reason they chose agency work, and several said they would leave the profession if the pay cap plan were introduced, which could put further pressure on the sector. 

 

Project Teams Now Permitted but Must be Under Council Management

The recently updated proposals now allow the use of project teams, but their practice must be fully under councils’ management with the engagement of each individual worker subject to all the national rules. ADCS President John Pearce expressed disappointment with the original proposals not being taken forward in their entirety, particularly highlighting the DFE’s decision to allow project teams.  

Pearce and colleagues have warned that some agencies are increasingly only supplying agency staff as project teams, rather than individual practitioners, which is pushing up costs and removing control over their management from councils. Despite concerns, new agency requirements are widely supported and the ADCS has said the finalised rules will help to “better manage the agency market and reduce churn.”

You can read the new agency rules in full here.

 

Part 2: Qualification Levels and Pay has Fallen for Care Workers

While new agency rules are hoped to ease the staffing crisis, qualifications and pay have fallen for care workers. 

Skills for Care found that the number of care workers holding a Level 2 qualification had fallen from 49% in 2018 to 42% in March 2023, making it difficult to recruit skilled carers. Furthermore, half of care workers (52%) had no relevant qualifications, and of this group, half (51%) had been working in the sector for five years or more.

An analysis of factors influencing staff turnover found that the likeliness of a staff member leaving in 2022 – 2023 was significantly higher if they were:

  • Lower paid
  • Aged under 25
  • Less experienced
  • On a zero-hour contract
  • Without relevant qualifications
  • Lacking in training
  • Off sick more often
  • Travelling further for work

The findings come as an analysis shows that care staff with higher pay, a relevant qualification, access to training and more job security are significantly less likely to leave their roles than counterparts without these characteristics.

 

Investing in Staff Training Can Help to Fight Recruitment Challenges and Improve Care Quality

Providing regular training sessions can help to develop staff knowledge, contribute to increased care quality and, perhaps most importantly, retaining good quality carers.

Many childcare providers in Parenta’s “Biggest Challenge” survey reported having problems developing the confidence and self-belief of many of their practitioners.  Investing in regular training boosts staff members’ confidence and morale, making them more likely to stay in their position.

 

Retention Breeds Retention

When you successfully retain team members, their hard-earned wisdom is passed down. 

However, staff retention is a significant challenge within the care sector. With poor staff retention rates, knowledge is being lost and not passed on to new hires. This is further compounded by increasingly low levels of qualifications for care workers, which can have a negative impact on care quality.

With this in mind, it’s vital that all children’s homes and supported accommodation providers put retaining experienced staff members on their priority list for 2024.

 

Better Manage Employee Qualifications and Training

Clearcare allows you to keep track of your employees and their qualifications digitally. In just a few clicks, you can build a picture of what your staff needs to progress, whether that be obtaining a new qualification or shadowing existing staff members to address skills gaps. Even having a team member’s address on file can help – you can see who travels the furthest and try to accommodate this in your rota planning. 

 

Improving Employee Satisfaction

Our software was designed to ease the ever-increasing workload of care providers, enabling them to collect and manage care delivery information in a way that’s both simple and secure. We have seen from our customers that staff satisfaction increases when using Clearcare, as it significantly reduces their administrational workload. Staff simply log in to Clearcare via mobile phone, tablet, or desktop and get instant access to the care information they need, wherever they are. 

Care data is easily recorded with our library of standardised forms that meet Ofsted or CQC guidelines. With all of this – and more – at their disposal, your staff have more time to focus on delivering outcomes for young residents!

 

Find out more about the benefits of Clearcare or get in touch to book your demo.