Workers in adult care sector to get the support they need for lifelong career and raise standards

People in need of care across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent are set to benefit from a new platform that will support those working in the care sector to be the best that they can be.

The Social Care Academy for Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent platform brings together the very best of ‘learn-at-your-own-pace’ adult care training so that care workers and those interested in the sector can learn in a way that suits them.

Skills for Care, registered charity and workforce development body for adult social care, is pooling its courses with Staffordshire County Council, Stoke-on-Trent City Council and the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board to help care workers easily access regular training

The new Academy platform, which can be found at www.staffsstokecareacademy.co.uk means that everyone working in care, whatever role they have, can take their career as far as they want to go and provide the best possible care to our area’s most vulnerable residents.

Staffordshire County Council Cabinet Member for Health and Care Jeremy Pert said: “The Academy is not just about ease of access to quality, free or low-cost courses for our care workforce.  This is about providing everyone working in the sector a very practical way to learn.

“It’s also about recognising that care is a professional role. We want our workforce to have what they need to stay and progress, but it also sends a very strong signal that working in the care sector is a very diverse and supported career. Most people don’t realise that there are so many different roles and careers in care, and that investing in the workforce is one of our area’s key priorities.  They do the most important jobs out there.

“I’m extremely proud that Staffordshire is part of this pilot which will help develop how training is delivered nation-wide.”  

The Social Care Academy for Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent aims to capitalise on good collaboration already happening in the county and city area.   

Cllr Duncan Walker, Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s Cabinet member for Adult Services said: “We’re proud to be working with our public sector partners to bring
together quality training opportunities into one convenient online location, as well as a number of opportunities being on offline.

“These courses are top quality and developed by care workers for care workers. It
will make a huge difference to the independent care sector across the city.”

Shirley Way, Head of Area for the Midlands at Skills for Care, said, “This Academy is a very important pilot as part of the national Workforce Strategy; the first strategy of its kind developed by the care sector for the sector; and is an essential part of making sure that enough of the right people with the right skills are able to provide the best possible care. 

“We’re delighted to be working with colleagues across Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire to make the Academy happen to boost the local sector but also set the scene for future development across the country.” 

The Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board, the organisation which makes decisions about how the NHS is run in the area, says that this is great step towards a resilient and vibrant care sector. 

Mish Irvine, Chief People Officer for the ICB, said, “As a partnership we’ve listened to what our current and potential workforce want, and that’s the awareness and ability to take their career in care wherever they want to go.  They’ve got that in the Academy, and we’re delighted to see how it progresses over the next twelve months of the pilot.” 
 
Interested in taking your CV to the next level? Or curious about what a career in care could look like? Find out more about The Social Care Academy for Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent – www.staffsstokecareacademy.co.uk