Each week, we receive dozens of stories from care workers and managers across the country as they battle to provide the best care and support possible amid this crisis. These stories are remarkable – like the people behind them. Many of them are uplifting. Here are just a few of our colleagues’ heroic, kind and increasingly widely-appreciated efforts.
Will coronavirus bring care workers the recognition they deserve?
“Recognition has been a long time coming. There is not enough of it, and it’s not consistent. But if one good thing is going to come out of this crisis, it will be that care workers get the recognition that they deserve.”
Those are the words of Lynne Hewitt, regional manager, Scotland. She is far from alone in hoping that this pandemic will leave behind some positive changes in how society views and values the work that care workers do. It has taken a once-in-a-generation pandemic of unprecedented scale for citizens to look up and appreciate care workers’ work – and that is a sad reflection of where priorities lay.
But many, many more citizens are now aware of, and showing their gratitude for, the work that happens across our communities – day in, day out, year in, year out, pandemic or no pandemic.
You have all read about – and perhaps experienced – instances of spontaneous (or indeed coordinated) applause for care workers and health workers. Many of you have talked about how you or colleagues have been ushered to the front of supermarket queues, offered lifts, gifts, and food for yourselves and your clients. Joanne Robinson, branch manager in North Ormesby, sent this picture of care worker Debbie Dabb receiving a basket of goodies from Pound Stretcher. The gift was for the care staff (it included two little boxes of gloves!) But – care workers being the people they are – the team divided it up into ten mini-hampers that were distributed to customers in Pennyman House. “We drew flat numbers and delivered them this afternoon,” said Jo.

Many care workers say they feel more appreciated by their customers, too, during this difficult time. “We are getting a lot of ‘thank yous’”, reports Hannah Marsh, regional manager, Midlands. “People are being more understanding – for instance, when a care worker is late – and more grateful,” she says. Grumpy customers have become less so, as the full burden on care workers becomes clearer to everyone. “Care workers have always been seen as a low-rank in society. Now they’re being seen for what they are – so important,” says Hannah.
In Wales, an 102-year old customer in Ebbw Vale went outside in her wheelchair, alongside her daughters, ringing a bell and proclaiming “clap for our care workers!” during the planned 8pm applause on 26 March, recalls branch manager Samantha Price.
Will this show of support for front-line care workers, nurses and others continue, post-COVID-19, when non-key workers are allowed back to their desks?
It’s easy to believe it won’t. It’s easy to believe that care workers will again be forgotten, once the public’s attention has shifted back to their own jobs, commutes and concerns, and news bulletins move off coronavirus.
Yet the scale and nature of this pandemic might just enable more lasting change. There may not be as much clapping in the street, but this virus could trigger a re-think among many people – including youngsters – seeking impactful employment. Scott Higgins-Wright, regional manager in Cannock, hopes that one silver lining in this cloud is “that social care is seen as a career, and that it meets an important societal need.”
Some managers are reporting spikes in recruitment as people line up to help. “It’s hard to keep on top of the candidate screening,” says Kim Nicholson in Biggleswade. Recruitment is “through the roof. That has never happened in our industry,” she says. DBS checks are coming back next-day – also unheard of. “They know we need them fast,” says Kim.
Sarah Thomas, regional director, South, interviewed one candidate whose planned university research project had been postponed, and who wanted to “give something back” during the current pandemic. Another young woman planning to study human rights law at Cardiff University was likewise passionate about doing something hands-on.
It’s not the same picture across the board; other branches report cancellations and no-shows – including as potential new hires get scared.
But the fact that young people like those Sarah has recruited are rolling up their sleeves is a huge positive. They may not be intending to spend the entire career as care workers. But their experiences will shape their own, and their friends’, awareness of the care worker role and its crucial importance in society.
Care workers themselves also have a role in ensuring they earn the respect they deserve. They must be even prouder of what they do. They must take confidence from their role in this outbreak, and shout louder. There are far too many care workers who say “I’m just a care worker”, recounts Hannah. Just a care worker?
If you have a story please let us know: Covid19response@candchealthcare.co.uk
Weekly Blog 28 August
Professional Care Workers’ Week
From 1st-4th September, the Care Worker’s Charity will be hosting virtual events for Professional Care Workers’ Week. Topics cover everything from wellbeing to the impact of Covid-19.
You can see the full schedule and get involved here.
Heartfelt thanks to our teams from across the UK
Area Manager Zoe Buckley wanted to send a huge thanks to Hannah, Cathy and Amy at Parrmount Court Extra Care scheme in St. Helens.
Zoe told us, “The daughter of one of our service users found him unconscious on the bed. She alerted the Care Team who then called the ambulance. Hannah, Cathy and Amy then had to commence CPR due to the rapid deterioration of his condition.”
After an ambulance and paramedic attended, the service use was taken to Whiston Hospital ICU. He was placed in induced coma where his condition was critical.
Zoe said, “I have spoken to his daughter today. He remains in the ICU and is sedated but is out of critical condition. His daughter wanted me to pass on her thanks to the care team on site. She said her dad would not be here if it was not for their quick actions.”
John Abreu, Deputy Manager at Guardian Homecare in Chorley, contacted as after one of their service users sadly passed away. John told us, “She was very fond of the care staff that attended her visits and would always be happy to see them”.
The service user’s family sent a beautiful bouquet of flowers to thank all the care staff in our Chorley team. “It was absolutely lovely and humbling to receive such a delivery showing how the family appreciated the care and support that we provided over the past five years,” said John. “It is a testament to the staff that their efforts were commended after her passing.”
Finally, another of our Guardian Homecare teams received a heart-warming message after the passing of one of their service users. “Guardian looked after my mum on release from hospital. Mum passed away yesterday but she was at home and surrounded by those she loved. I would like to thank the teams who cared for mum, especially Mike, as they went above and beyond. Not just for mum, for the family.”
Amazing work all round – thank you for the wonderful job you’re all doing for our service users and their families.
Don’t forget to nominate your Care Heroes!
Don’t forget that nominations are now open for this year’s Care Heroes Awards which will be the centrepiece of Care Heroes Month in October.
There are eight categories and the deadline for nominations is next Friday 4th September, so please submit your nominations here as soon as you can.
Weekly Blog 20 August
A thank you to our Darlington Careline team
Arnold, the husband of one of our service users, recently contacted our Careline Homecare team in Darlington to thank them for their support. Following a fall outside their home, Arnold’s wife was admitted to surgery.
Arnold felt so strongly about the quality of care that his wife had received from the Darlington team and local NHS staff that he sent gifts to the branch, and even wrote a letter to his local paper.
Sharps and needle stick injuries
We have continued to see a small but steady number of needle stick injuries. If there are sharps present in a service user’s home, even if they are used by someone else, these should be included in the risk assessment.
To avoid injury to yourself and the risk of contracting blood-borne viruses, you should always be alert for sharps which are not being properly disposed of. This might be because there is no sharps box or because the sharps box is full, or because the box is just not being used properly. As always, please report concerns to the office.
Robert makes a difference
Our Guardian Homecare team in Morecambe received some outstanding feedback about one of their care workers, Robert.
Congratulations Robert, you clearly had a big impact on their family during a very difficult time.
Contract win secures two Kent Extra Care Schemes
The bid team today received formal notification that London Care has been successful in its bid to retain contracts at two Extra Care schemes in the Medway Council area of North Kent. The company will now continue to provide care at Atlas Place and Rogallo Place until at least 2024.
Well done to the bid team and those in the local ops team that contributed to the bid, which received the highest scores in the evaluation, along with excellent feedback.
30 July Weekly Blog
Our London Care team helps Rosemary celebrate turning 88
Maria Gerardo contacted us this week about a service user who recently celebrated her birthday with our London Care team at the Pullen Centre. Maria, who is a Day Care Coordinator at the centre arranged for two members of the team, Bisi and Tina, to visit Rosemary as she turned 88.
“Rosemary is a very keen knitter and has found this a real saviour in lockdown,” Maria told us, “this has enabled her to use her hands and keep her busy”. Rosemary showed the team some impressive table mats that she’d knitted with wool that Bisi and Tina had given her earlier in the year.
The team wished Rosemary a happy birthday and even took some cake to celebrate. Happy birthday Rosemary.
A thank you to Kent SCP
This week, we received an inspiring thank you letter from the niece of a service user living at the Bowles Lodge Extra Care scheme in Kent:
“I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of my Aunt, my husband and myself to pass on our extreme thanks and praise to your team who operate from Bowles Lodge, Hawkhurst. They are part of Kent SCP, Maidstone and provide a care service for residents at Bowles Lodge where my Aunt resides.
“Ever since my Aunt’s arrival in 2016, they have provided 24 hour care which includes four visits during the day and emergency cover 24 hours a day. In recent years, the care team has been led by Debbie Willett who is the Care Manager at Bowles Lodge.
“Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Debbie and her team have provided a service which in our view exceeded our expectations and as a result, we feel that the care provide under Debbie’s leadership has been commendable and worthy of recognition.”
A well-deserved congratulations to everyone at Bowles Lodge, you’re making a huge difference every day to the people you support.
NHS Help At Home Hub
The coronavirus outbreak means many of us and our families may need to access health and care services from home. You may not be aware that services including ordering repeat prescriptions and contacting a GP are readily available online from the NHS.
To help find available online services, the NHS have launched a Help At Home hub which brings everything together in one place. The hub covers can help you:
Accessing support using a smartphone, computer or tablet in this way can help with social distancing and also reduce the workload on local NHS services.
13 July Weekly Blog
Intrepid Robin sets sights on Snowdon
An adventurous member of the Nottingham finance team is undertaking a new challenge for charity and would love your support.
“I shall be doing the third most difficult route up Mount Snowdon in wales,” she told us, “which is roughly a 12.7 kilometre loop trail near Caernarfon.”
Robin hopes to complete the hike in under six hours and has set up a Justgiving page to collect donations, but is also making a call to action to everyone – “I urge people to become donors if they cannot donate”.
Robin’s climb is on 12th September. You can donate and see Robin’s training updates here and you can find out more about Anthony Nolan and their work here.
Your stories from around the UK
There were celebrations in Scotland this week as the branch welcomed its new manager.
Congratulations from us to Christine on her new role – we’re sure she’ll be a great success!
We also had lovely news from Regional Manager in the Southeast Magda Trepczynska who witnessed what she described as a “really heart-warming moment” at Bowles Lodge Extra Care scheme in Cranbrook, Kent.
“One of the service users came to the office with his little trolley,” says Magda, “and brought a bunch of flowers and a box of chocolates for the manager and the team. He had tears in his eyes and just wanted to say a big ‘thank you’ to the team for all the support he is getting and especially for the fact that that morning the manager herself came and prepared him a bacon sandwich for breakfast.”
Good news also from Help at Home in Leicester where the team received a commendation certificate from Leicestershire County Council for showing a particularly high standard of care to one service user whose package was recently increased.
Regional Manager Charlotte Dean wrote to tell us about the well-deserved recognition – “they are getting so much better here,” she told us. Well done to all at the branch for the continued improvement.
And a final special mention goes to Regional Trainer in the Northwest, Paul Kershaw. We reported back in 2018 that Paul had achieved his Batchelor’s Degree in 2018 and now he has achieved a further landmark by obtaining his PGCert In Leadership and Management through Huddersfield University.
Paul, 51, told us “you’re never too old to learn and I am now onto my next challenge. As a Regional Training Officer, it is important to learn and gain new skills to keep the brain active and it has certainly done that in many ways.”
What an inspiration you are, Paul – congratulations and well done from us all!
June 2020 Weekly Blog
MPs debate social care petition
Many of you will have signed the petition that circulated recently calling for social care to be given equal recognition to the NHS – yesterday Parliament debated the matter.
MPs from both sides of the House of Commons debated the petition, which has gathered more than 43,000 signatures, and many positive comments were made about the contribution of social care and care workers in particular during the pandemic.
Care Minister Helen Whately (left) wound up the debate by saying the government would be looking at how it could build a long-term solution for social care so that care workers get the rewards they deserve.
You can watch the full debate here.
Tracey’s fundraising bike ride
We never ceased to be surprised to the extra lengths that our wonderful front-line staff will go to in order to make the difference to their service users’ lives.
Tara Penn from ICCM wrote to us to tell us about the amazing effort that one of their PAs has been making to raise funds for an excellent cause.
Tracey Seabury, who has worked for ICCM since 2014, is cycling the equivalent distance of her home to Land’s End to help raise funds for her three-year-old client, a boy with severe epilepsy.
Tracey explains on her JustGiving page that the boy “will be totally dependent on others all his life and so his family need to adapt their home for his special needs.
“We were recently told that we could no longer carry him upstairs so the family are going to need to adapt their home. I am hoping to raise money towards a specialised bath that he will need to help make his life a little easier.”
Tracey has already raised over £7,000 of the £12,000 needed for the specialist equipment. If you’d like to lend your support, you can do so here. Well done, Tracey!
Your stories of kindness
We’ve had more great stories of kindness and gratitude this week from across the group.
Manager at Guardian in Morecambe, Samantha Mozer, got in touch to tell us about a “lovely gesture from a service user’s family”.
When the team began providing care to this particular lady, she had been diagnosed with coronavirus and had also recently lost her husband to the disease. Yet, in spite of the sad and difficult circumstances, care workers Sophie, Lorraine, Danuta and Michelle really rose to the occasion.
To show their gratitude, the family sent a gift package (right) to each of the care workers to say “thank you for being there through a very tough time”.
We were also deeply moved by news from Constance Care in Glenrothes, where manager Dominic Curran received correspondence in praise of the branch’s End of Life team from Dr Jo Bowden, Consultant in Palliative Medicine.
Dr Bowden noted how care workers Mary Hamilton and Kellyann Nicol had quickly “built a great and trusting rapport” with one particular young man on a palliative pathway, and that his mother “had valued their input right from the beginning”. In particular, she noted how the two staff had switched their shifts around in order to be present during her son’s final days of life.
“They supported her son’s comfort and dignity right to the end,” Dr Bowden said, “including giving him a wash, repositioning and emptying his stoma all in his last hours of life. This can’t have been easy.
“We all know how difficult it can be to facilitate continuity of care, but in this case it was achieved and it meant a great deal to the patient and his family. They were having the worst time of their lives with a lot of emotional distress and difficult physical symptoms, but having friendly, caring, sensitive and supportive input from your team made all the difference.”
Jane Jones, manager at Abacare in Powys, Wales, wrote to us recently to tell us how their local Morrisons supermarket made contact with the branch to make a donation of food and drink to their service users.
“As you can see,” wrote Jane, “it was a very generous donation and we are also going to receive another one next Tuesday from Morrisons. We are now busy making up baskets to give out.”
Field supervisor Kelly Butler is pictured here collecting the donation from Morrisons.
Loneliness Awareness Week 2020
Loneliness Awareness Week #LetsTalkLoneliness
As the week draws to a close, so does the Marmalade Trust’s campaign to highlight and raise awareness for those amongst us struggling with loneliness. Set up in 2016 and running from 15-19 June 2020, LAW has likely never been more necessary in this the most isolated of times as our communities and world around grapple with the Covid crisis.
Together with raising general awareness, a key aim of the campaign is helping people talk about feeling alone and to make new connections. Loneliness is a normal and commonplace emotion but there still exists a stigma around acknowledging and talking about it. We can even feel lonely with people directly around us, particularly when we feel misunderstood or uncared for. We may also not realise the people, relatives, friends and neighbours who are feeling lonely and isolated beside us.
The Marmalade Trust has joined with other charities during Loneliness Awareness Week to launch the Let’s Talk Loneliness campaign. Here are just some of the ways you can get involved this week:
And remember, it’s not just this week but every week that people are affected. Make chatting to and helping others an everyday part of your life.
More heart-warming stories of kindness
More heart-warming stories of kindness
With Mental Health Awareness Week and its ‘kindness’ theme having come and gone, we continue to hear about extraordinary tales of kindness and humanity from across the group.
Sylvia Wisna, manager at SCRT Homecare in Stirling wrote to tell us about something from the “positive side of lockdown”. Care worker Sheena Duncan (right) contacted her local Tesco which donated juice drinks that she then distributed to elderly patients at Forth Valley Hospital in Larbert.
Sylvia said, “Sheena is an amazing caring person who also did knitting of ‘twiddle muffs’ for patients. As a service manager, I can easily say that my staff are truly very dedicated and passionate”.
We agree that everyone across the group will appreciate what Sylvia calls Sheena’s “gold heart”.
And there was more compassion in evidence at Guardian Homecare in Preston. Manager Ross McCrann wrote to share “a little heartfelt thank you to one of our care staff Maxine Johnson”.
When service user and dog lover Mrs Wylie sadly died, Maxine knew exactly how to commemorate her. “Maxine, very thoughtfully got a flower arrangement made for Mrs Wylie’s funeral – in the shape of a dog!” (left), writes Ross.
“It’s humbling to have such thoughtful care staff on our team, and what a lovely way to send off Mrs Wylie – the arrangement would have made her smile.” We’re sure it would, Ross, and we share your appreciation of a gesture that must have meant a lot to the family.
Another inspiring tale came from Maria Gerardo, who, in normal times, works with the clients at the Pullen Day Centre in London. Unfortunately, the wonderful resource has been closed since the coronavirus pandemic took hold, leaving clients isolated at home.
As we have reported previously here, students from Westminster School often volunteer to attend Pullen, but the temporary closure of the centre hasn’t stopped them maintaining contact.
Says Maria, “this week I have arranged with their teacher for the students to write to all our clients that are at home. They have been writing letters and finding appropriate poems and pictures for our clients and so far the response has been really positive and our clients are so grateful to have some contact with them.”
Student volunteer Andrew wrote to one client, John, and included a poem by American novelist and poet Rachel Field. In his letter to John, he said that the poem was “about travelling or journeying to new places and remembering them after you have left – I thought you might like it!”. We’ve reproduced it here:
If Once You Have Slept on An Island
If once you have slept on an island
You’ll never be quite the same;
You may look as you looked the day before
And go by the same old name.
You may bustle about in street and shop
You may sit at home and sew,
But you’ll see blue water and wheeling gulls
Wherever your feet may go.
You may chat with the neighbours of this and that
And close to your fire keep,
But you’ll hear ship whistle and lighthouse bell
And tides beat through your sleep.
Oh! you won’t know why and you can’t say how
Such a change upon you came,
But once you have slept on an island,
You’ll never be quite the same.
Andrew was delighted to receive a reply from John reminiscing about his own travels as a younger man. “I do remember sleeping on the beach on Hydra in the Mediterranean, but we got bitten by mosquitoes. My daughter says we will get bitten here too later in the summer. Thank you for the poem. I look forward to receiving more, if you have time.”
To see such a lovely inter-generational relationship blossom really cheered us up in these difficult times – we hope it cheered you up too. And well done to Maria for thinking creatively to bring some light during days that have been somewhat dark of late.
Stories from the front line #5
Clapping for Carers Really Does Mean Carers
“When we “clap for carers”, it is not just for those in the NHS; it is a collective thank you from the nation to all our social care workforce across the country too for the sacrifices they make every day”
In the last post, we asked whether this crisis would, finally, bring carers the recognition they deserve. Many of you and your teams have already shared heart-warming stories of support from the public and businesses across the country. There are strong signs of more formal recognition for the sector from the country’s leaders.
The government’s “Action Plan for Adult Social Care,” published last month, includes the quote at the top of this post. It reminds everyone that adult social care “is one of the most important ways we can help support people to stay well, as independent as possible, and connected with families and communities in such difficult times.”
It’s just a report, for now. But if even some of the plans and recommendations are put into action – many are already underway – then it is really good news. It could have a long-lasting, positive effect on how adult social care is viewed, supported and rewarded.
The “Care” brand (see left) is being formalised and promoted to sit alongside the familiar NHS logo, in order to ensure that carers feel just as valued as their counterparts. That should make it easier for you and your teams to access benefits available to health workers.
Of course, a badge isn’t enough (though it is an important symbol). But the Action Plan also includes more money (over £3.2 billion has been committed to adult social care in the last weeks), better coordination across community health, GP and social care services, and goals for more organised PPE provision and distribution (still in woefully short supply).
There’s a nationwide recruitment drive, too. The idea is to attract 20,000 more people into social care in the next three months. Hopefully, that may mean that fewer of you feel under pressure to work over-time to support your clients. There are also guidelines for how care providers can access the groundswell of volunteers that have signed up to help health and care workers. There are 750,000 such Volunteer Responders! These individuals may not be able or qualified to provide actual care, as you do, but they can help with some of the additional tasks, like shopping, friendly calls, and errands that so many of you are going out of your way to provide.
As this pandemic continues, it is increasingly clear that the entire nation’s thoughts really are with you, your teams, and the many thousands of vulnerable, and often lonely, people that you care for.
“Those working in social care are heroes on the frontline of the response too. We must ensure that social care gets the recognition and parity of esteem that it deserves. An important legacy of this crisis must be the value that we place on social care as an essential service, core to delivering the frontline response to this crisis, and to ensure everyone understands that people who work in social care are key workers, in every sense.”
Those are, surely, encouraging words.
A thought on kindness during Mental Health Awareness Week
As we reach the third month of lockdown, it is becoming clear that many of the challenges we have faced since March will be with us for some time. Alongside the sustained loss of things we enjoy – holidays, meals out with friends, trips to the cinema or to sporting events – many of us are also suffering from loneliness, isolation, and nervousness about income and job security. As we emerge from this health crisis into a period of social and economic uncertainty, we have a greater sense of our own fragility. The pandemic will have an enduring impact on us all.
There are no magical cures. But we have defences. What has always struck me as so special about our business is the difference we make to people’s lives – pandemic or no pandemic. What drives me are the recollections of seeing the smile on the face of someone we care for as their care assistant comes in through the door. Or that grateful look at the end of a call – that brief pat on the arm or lingering clasp of hands. Kindness is our business and we have the kindest workforce in the world. I write letters regularly to thank care assistants and branch teams for being remarkable – for showing deeply humbling levels of dedication, care and skill. One care assistant has voluntarily gone into 12 weeks of isolation, losing physical contact with her young kids to protect those she cares for, and taking on end-of-life care on her days off to minimise the risk of cross-infection. She is not alone. For me all this is deeply impactful. For many at the frontline it is just what they do. I only wish I could better convey how special they are.
“Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.” Mother Teresa’s words resonate even more now. Our business is an unending flow of acts and words of kindness across 50,000 hours of care a day. This pandemic has stolen away many important things from our normal lives, leaving us feeling hollow. But that hollow makes the echoes of kindness louder, and more meaningful. With our acts of kindness, we not only help those whose needs are greatest, but we also fight back. Just maybe we can emerge from this period as a better, kinder and more appreciative society.
Meanwhile, amidst the echoes, please hear my own “thank you,” spoken in awe and admiration.
Stories from the front line #4
Each week, we receive dozens of stories from care workers and managers across the country as they battle to provide the best care and support possible amid this crisis. These stories are remarkable – like the people behind them. Many of them are uplifting. Here are just a few of our colleagues’ heroic, kind and increasingly widely-appreciated efforts.
Will coronavirus bring care workers the recognition they deserve?
“Recognition has been a long time coming. There is not enough of it, and it’s not consistent. But if one good thing is going to come out of this crisis, it will be that care workers get the recognition that they deserve.”
Those are the words of Lynne Hewitt, regional manager, Scotland. She is far from alone in hoping that this pandemic will leave behind some positive changes in how society views and values the work that care workers do. It has taken a once-in-a-generation pandemic of unprecedented scale for citizens to look up and appreciate care workers’ work – and that is a sad reflection of where priorities lay.
But many, many more citizens are now aware of, and showing their gratitude for, the work that happens across our communities – day in, day out, year in, year out, pandemic or no pandemic.
You have all read about – and perhaps experienced – instances of spontaneous (or indeed coordinated) applause for care workers and health workers. Many of you have talked about how you or colleagues have been ushered to the front of supermarket queues, offered lifts, gifts, and food for yourselves and your clients. Joanne Robinson, branch manager in North Ormesby, sent this picture of care worker Debbie Dabb receiving a basket of goodies from Pound Stretcher. The gift was for the care staff (it included two little boxes of gloves!) But – care workers being the people they are – the team divided it up into ten mini-hampers that were distributed to customers in Pennyman House. “We drew flat numbers and delivered them this afternoon,” said Jo.
Many care workers say they feel more appreciated by their customers, too, during this difficult time. “We are getting a lot of ‘thank yous’”, reports Hannah Marsh, regional manager, Midlands. “People are being more understanding – for instance, when a care worker is late – and more grateful,” she says. Grumpy customers have become less so, as the full burden on care workers becomes clearer to everyone. “Care workers have always been seen as a low-rank in society. Now they’re being seen for what they are – so important,” says Hannah.
In Wales, an 102-year old customer in Ebbw Vale went outside in her wheelchair, alongside her daughters, ringing a bell and proclaiming “clap for our care workers!” during the planned 8pm applause on 26 March, recalls branch manager Samantha Price.
Will this show of support for front-line care workers, nurses and others continue, post-COVID-19, when non-key workers are allowed back to their desks?
It’s easy to believe it won’t. It’s easy to believe that care workers will again be forgotten, once the public’s attention has shifted back to their own jobs, commutes and concerns, and news bulletins move off coronavirus.
Yet the scale and nature of this pandemic might just enable more lasting change. There may not be as much clapping in the street, but this virus could trigger a re-think among many people – including youngsters – seeking impactful employment. Scott Higgins-Wright, regional manager in Cannock, hopes that one silver lining in this cloud is “that social care is seen as a career, and that it meets an important societal need.”
Some managers are reporting spikes in recruitment as people line up to help. “It’s hard to keep on top of the candidate screening,” says Kim Nicholson in Biggleswade. Recruitment is “through the roof. That has never happened in our industry,” she says. DBS checks are coming back next-day – also unheard of. “They know we need them fast,” says Kim.
Sarah Thomas, regional director, South, interviewed one candidate whose planned university research project had been postponed, and who wanted to “give something back” during the current pandemic. Another young woman planning to study human rights law at Cardiff University was likewise passionate about doing something hands-on.
It’s not the same picture across the board; other branches report cancellations and no-shows – including as potential new hires get scared.
But the fact that young people like those Sarah has recruited are rolling up their sleeves is a huge positive. They may not be intending to spend the entire career as care workers. But their experiences will shape their own, and their friends’, awareness of the care worker role and its crucial importance in society.
Care workers themselves also have a role in ensuring they earn the respect they deserve. They must be even prouder of what they do. They must take confidence from their role in this outbreak, and shout louder. There are far too many care workers who say “I’m just a care worker”, recounts Hannah. Just a care worker?
If you have a story please let us know: Covid19response@candchealthcare.co.uk