‘The difference you can make as a care worker is immense’

Mandy is an area manager for a service providing day projects for adults with learning disabilities and nursing home care for younger age adults (Supplied)

Working in adult social care is a hugely rewarding job and for Mandy, from Essex, the difference she feels she can make everyday is “immense”.

“The sheer drive and passion you see among people with disabilities to succeed through all adversity is very inspiring. So many achieve things people don’t think they are capable of. Hearing about how terrible things have happened to people that they have been able to navigate is really inspiring,” she says.

“No day is ever the same. Obviously there are certain tasks, somebody needs their teeth brushed every day for example, but then no two people are the same.

“You're not only supporting that person, their family come along so you get to know the family and the extended family. The difference you can make as their care worker is immense.”

The area manager for a service providing day projects for adults with learning disabilities and nursing home care for younger age adults, adds: “There aren’t many jobs you can get such rewards from. There’s the camaraderie between staff too, and a surprising amount of humour.”

Mandy is one of thousands of adult social care workers making a difference in their communities, and people with the right skills and abilities are being urged to consider similar roles across the country.

The government’s strategy to support the social care workforce includes a commitment to ensuring the UK has a qualified and skilled workforce that is rewarded and feels valued.

This is essential for high quality care that is sensitive to individual needs. The commitment extends to making care work a more rewarding vocation and introducing further reforms to improve recruitment and support for the adult social care workforce.

The government recently announced a package of measures that will reaffirm care work as a career as well as providing new, accredited qualifications, digital training, and funded apprenticeships.

Adult social care work is hugely varied – there are many different types of jobs available, and no two days are the same – and having the right qualities is all you need to start; there’s on-the-job training for everything else.

Working in adult social care can fit around your life with flexible hours, and it’s usually a simple and quick process to start work.

Olusoji is a deputy care manager from north London. After working in the banking industry in Nigeria, he came to the UK and soon enrolled in a part-time job in adult social care.

“The work was so different to what I had always done in a bank. I found I was really getting a lot out of working with people this way,” he says.

Olusoji is a deputy care manager from north London (Supplied)

“I can support individuals go out in the community, attend programmes, go to the cinema, go for dancing classes, arts and craft courses – support them live a fuller life.

“Seeing them doing the things they've always wished to do, and seeing the joy in them, it’s the most fulfilling part of this job for me.”

“There are so many things that are put in place to guide you,” he adds.

“You are shown the different paths you could follow, whether it’s to become a manager, an administrator. And the training you might need to take is always open to you.

“It really makes me feel I have opportunities to progress in a career I enjoy.”

Search for a role in adult social care today at adultsocialcare.co.uk