Nominations open for Skills for Care's Accolades Awards

News release 10 August 2011

Nominations are now open for Skills for Care's Accolades Awards celebrating the achievements of very best of the best adult social care employers in England.

The awards - often referred to as the Oscars of the social care world - reward innovation and excellence in workforce development in eight categories.

The categories are:

1. Best employer of under 250 staff

2. Best employer of over 250 staff

3. Best individual employer who employs their own staff

4. Best provider of learning and development

5. Best employer support for social care Apprenticeships

6. Best employer support for newly qualified social workers

7. Best recruitment initiatives

8. Most effective new approach to service delivery

The awards ceremony will be held at the Hilton Manchester Deansgate on Thursday 8 March 2012 and to enter download an entry form at www.skillsforcare.org.uk/accolades

"At the Accolades awards last year I was incredibly impressed by the outstanding achievements of all the employers who made it through to the final," says Skills for Care CEO Sharon Allen.

"All of them had achieved a huge amount to make it to the finals stage of the Oscars of adult social care and I would urge every employer to enter because we have a lot to be proud of in adult social care but need to be much better at celebrating our achievements."

Media enquiries:

Paul Clarke: 0113 2411297/ 07977519287. paul.clarke@skillsforcare.org.uk

Notes to editors:

1. Skills for Care is the employment-led strategic body for workforce development in adult social care in England, which is licensed jointly with its UK allies by UKCES to be the 'Skills for Care and Development' Sector Skills Council (SSC). Both organisations are chaired by Professor David Croisdale-Appleby. The other members of the SSC are the Children's Workforce Development Council (also for England), the General Social Care Council, the Scottish Social Services Council, the Care Council for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Social Care Council.
2. Skills for Care forms a strategic overview of workforce needs in adult social care, which accounts for nearly 1.6 million workers or 5 per cent of England's workforce, spread over 40,600 establishments employing care staff. Skills for Care members are drawn from groups representing public, private and voluntary sector care employers, along with representatives of staff, trainers, service users and informal carers. Social care includes residential care, domiciliary care and social work with all its specialisms.
3. Skills for Care and its SSC allies promote and develop the social care sector's National Occupational Standards which are statements of competence that describe 'best practice'.
4. Skills for Care regional committees are major brokers of funding for social care workforce development.