Social care staff should be entitled to the same professional status as nurses and other healthcare professionals, according to a leading disability charity.
This week care services minister, Liam Byrne, announced a new registration, vetting and training scheme for social care workers.
Byrne said plans to register England’s 750,000 care workers were part of a drive to create a more professional workforce and restore confidence in the care system.
However, Clare Smith, director of HR at disability charity Leonard Cheshire, said the plans should go further and social care staff should be on a par with other health workers.
“This scheme will herald a major leap in the right direction in recognising the essential contribution that social care staff make to our society,” said Smith. “But it needs to be part of a wider effort to make social care a genuine career choice for people across the UK.”
“That professionalism must be recognised not only by registration, but by increased investment in the sector to help increase pay, by developing real career paths in social care and by recognising and publicising the incredible work performed by social care workers every day,” she added.
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