The Greater Manchester Social Care Academy are working with Skills for Care to promote several initiatives :
1.The Care Workforce Pathway – The first ever universal career structure for the sector detailing the knowledge, skills, values and behaviours essential to deliver high-quality, personalised care and support. This comprehensive framework aims to help address recruitment and retention issues by providing a shared vision for the workforce and a recognised platform for career progression and individual learning.
There are currently 8 roles that appear in the pathway with new ones currently being developed:
- New to Care: usually in their first care role, for up to 12 months.
- Care or Support Worker: established in their role, they’ve consolidated their skills and experience.
- Enhanced Care Worker: is delegated healthcare activities by regulated professionals or provides specialist, condition-specific support.
- Personal Assistant: supports an individual to live more independently, usually in their own home.
- Supervisor or Leader: may be a team leader with some staff management responsibilities.
- Practice Leader practices a care specialism and helps others develop theirs but does not have line management responsibilities.
- Deputy Manager: has staff management responsibilities and helps to run the service
- Registered Manager: is focussed on regulatory and legal requirements and runs the service.
Find out more about the Care Workforce Pathway
2. The Quality Assured Care Learning Service (QACLS) –A key part of selecting the right learning and development for your organisation is finding the right training provider and course/qualification. Over time, it is the Government’s ambition that all training and development identified or funded through the Learning and Development Support Scheme for the adult social care workforce will be quality assured by the Quality Assured Care Learning Service. This will take time to achieve, therefore quality assurance of training provider’s courses and qualifications will occur in phases. This service will help providers find high-quality learning and is intended to be a route to funding through the DHSC’s Learning and Development Support Scheme (LDSS).
Find out more. You can access a spreadsheet of all the training providers, courses and accredited qualifications that been quality assured through the new QACLS. Find out more about the QA service for training providers.
3. Adult Social Care Learning and Development Support Scheme (LDSS) – Claim your Funding for Training
The LDSS scheme was launched in September 2024 by the Department of Health and Social Care. It supports adult social care employers to invest in learning and development for their staff, by providing a financial contribution towards the costs of eligible training. Please note an up-to-date Adult Social Care Workforce Data Set account (ASC-WDS) is required before funding can be reimbursed. The scheme supports the non-regulated ASC workforce to advance their careers, develop new skills and specialisms and gain recognition for their existing expertise. It does this by allowing eligible ASC employers to claim towards costs they have incurred when putting their staff on certain courses and qualifications.
The overall funding pot is limited and there are currently 2 separate, ring-fenced funds for:
- Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism.
- all other eligible course claims.
Find out more including guidance for employers and a list of courses and qualifications eligible for funding can be found on the Government website. (Updated to include Oliver’s Training information).
Find out more about ASC-WDS
