THOUSANDS MORE CARE WORKERS NEEDED IN WALES BY 2030

Wales will need thousands more people to work in caring roles with adults and children by 2030 if it is to keep pace with the growing demand for care services and provide support for communities across the country.

To help attract more people to work in care, a national campaign called WeCare has been launched today.

The campaign is a collaboration between Social Care Wales and leading organisations representing social care, early years and childcare in Wales, as well as other national bodies involved in job-seeking and careers advice.

It is part of a long-term strategy to develop the workforces in the care and health sectors over the next decade, to provide a high-quality, seamless service to the people of Wales.

The campaign will highlight the breadth of career opportunities in care, from childminders and nursery practitioners to home care co-ordinators and care home managers.

As more people in Wales live longer, more will have specific needs that require support inside and outside the home. Projections indicate that around 20,000 more employees will be needed over the next 10 years1 to answer the growing demands of the population.

Currently, around one in 17 adults in Wales works in social care or early years and childcare (around 113,000 people), making it a bigger employer than the NHS. But this area of work is still growing.

The WeCare campaign aims to show the variety of roles and career progression opportunities available. By using real care workers, the campaign focuses on the challenges they face, as well as what makes their work rewarding and worthwhile.

Aled Burkitt from Monmouthshire works as a care and support worker for people living with dementia. He says: “I used to work quite unsociable hours as a chef. But when my son was born, I needed something with more flexibility.