Job of the month

As a care manager, you will manage a team of care workers and/ or a care service to ensure your organisation and everyone in it provides high quality care and support.

There are lots of different management levels in social care including:

• first line managers such as service managers or residential unit managers
• middle managers such as assistant director or department head
• senior managers such as service director or chief executive.

Managers can work in any social care setting including care homes, supported living flats, in the community, or local authorities.

Depending on your organisation and your level, your role might include:

• overseeing the day to day running of a care service
• leading and managing staff so they can perform their roles safely and to the best of their ability
• managing budgets and contracts
• making strategic decisions about the future and growth of your care service
• leading on specific projects or clinical areas, for example setting up a new care service

Find out more about the role here: https://www.skillsforcare.org.uk/Careers-in-care/Job-roles/Roles/Manager.aspx

Or watch Averil's story below. Averil chose adult social care as a career as she wanted a job in which she could make a difference in people's lives. Adult social care enabled her to achieve this, with the work being as rewarding for her as for those she supports.

Care workers can work in a care home, in people’s own homes or in the community. Care workers who work in the community are sometimes called domiciliary carers which often involves traveling to different people’s houses.

You could work with lots of different people including adults with learning disabilities, physical disabilities, substance misuse issues, mental health conditions, and older people.

Your role might include:

• supporting people with social and physical activities
• booking and going with people to appointments
• helping with personal care such as support with showering and dressing
• supporting people with eating and drinking
• monitoring individuals’ conditions by taking their temperature, pulse, respiration, and weight, and possibly helping with medication.

Find out more about the role here https://www.skillsforcare.org.uk/Careers-in-care/Job-roles/Roles/Care-worker.aspx or you can watch the sample video below by BVS (the leading provider of video-based training solutions for the care sector) which shows examples of the roles a care worker might have.

Child nursing involves everything from nursing a sick newborn to an adolescent road accident victim. You'll need to consider the care and support needed by the wider family, including parents and carers. Find out more about this career here https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/nursing/roles-nursing/childrens-nurse or check out https://www.nursco.com/paediatric-nurse/ 

Watch the video below to see the different roles a Paediatric nurse/Children's Nurse do.