A council-led partnership will help people access training and education so they can develop the skills needed for a career pathway in health and social care.

The Caring Plymouth partnership will work with the city’s health and social care employers to connect local people with opportunities for skills, training, education, careers and jobs.  

Councillor Mary Aspinall, cabinet member for health and adult social care, said: “I’m absolutely thrilled that we’re launching Caring Plymouth. Making Plymouth a great place to grow up and grow old in is one of our key priorities and ensuring that the right care is available for people is incredibly important.”

Caring Plymouth aims to improve the information, advice and guidance that is available to people new to the sector, as well as supporting the existing workforce with career progression. To support better access to training and education, a new Adult Social Care Skills and Training Directory is under development and due for release in 2024.  

The partnership will also host a new awards ceremony, Plymouth’s Celebrating Excellence in Care Awards. This event, set to be held on 23 March 2024, will celebrate and recognise the hard work of the city’s valued frontline care workers.

Speaking at the initiative’s launch event, Neil Eastwood, author of the book, Saving Social Care – How to find more of the best frontline care employees and keep the ones you have, and founder and chief executive of Care Friends, said: “Health and care sectors across the UK and internationally are facing huge and worsening workforce challenges. Local responses to these challenges are commonly piecemeal and uncoordinated.

“That is why it is so exciting to see Plymouth bring stakeholders together with a clear mission and a strong combined offer to both those considering a career in health and care and those already in the workforce. Caring Plymouth shows what is possible and I am sure it will be held up as an example of how by working together we can tackle this challenge effectively.”

To find out more about Caring Plymouth, visit  www.skillslaunchpadplym.co.uk/caringplymouth