C AREERS IN THE S OCIAL C ARE S ECTOR A brief introduction

L EARNING OUTCOMES By the end of this assessment task, you will be able to: P1 Describe the requirements of two careers in the social care sector M1 Explain how the requirements of social care workers can contribute to providing a positive experience for service users D1 Evaluate the requirements of social care workers in terms of providing a competent workforce in social care services

C AREERS Social worker Manager (social care) Care worker Support worker

S OCIAL W ORKERS A social worker helps individuals overcome difficult life circumstances, such as developmental disabilities, drug abuse problems, homelessness, bankruptcy, or domestic abuse. There are many different types of social worker jobs, as professionals usually specialize in children and family services, mental health treatment, drug abuse counseling, or public health

player.asp?guid=c5412d2f-9f9e-452d-965f- 49c3905bbe02 Observe the film and identify the qualities required by the social worker to enable her to carry out her duties

_jd.pdf Review the job description attached and identify the roles that the social worker must carry out in order to fulfil his/her job title – What would the social worker have to know, in order to be able to fulfil the job?

What educational requirements would a person need in order to work as a social worker?

F URTHER INFORMATION

S OCIAL C ARE MANAGER Social care managers can work in a variety of settings, and don’t necessarily need a social work degree! They do however require a ‘management’ degree such as Housing management

W HAT DOES A S OCIAL C ARE M ANAGER DO ? He/she oversees the services that are being provided in a social care service area E.g. This could be a manager of a health centre, a team leader, a manager of a homeless agency He/she is involved in the management of staff (ensuring that staff are following policies, equipment is available, service users needs are met, health and safety/risk assessment)

Social care managers will most likely have had experience in a specialist area prior to applying for a job as manager What qualities do you think a Social care manager would need / require to ensure that the service provided was of a satisfactory standard?

C ARE W ORKER Care workers are involved with the care of service users in any establishment This could be in a nursing capacity e.g. Residential home/nursing home/day care centre Some activities that the care worker is involved in with a service user, includes: assisting with eating/drinking, toileting, advocating, communicating, going to doctor appts etc

Observe the following clip and review the resources available on this site for further information player.asp?guid=a649e33f a5a ccaa0f960ab2

B ECOMING A C ARE WORKER QualificationsQualifications that will enable you to become a social care worker / care worker include NVQ level 2 or level 3 Literacy Numeracy By achieving an NVQ in health and social care will enable you to gain appropriate work experience whilst you learn....

S UPPORT W ORKER Support workers provide emotional and practical support to individuals and their families who struggle to live independently because of health issues, emotional problems or relationship difficulties. There are a range of jobs as a Support Worker. He /she may be involved with family and children services and be part of the Leaving and After care Team

Support workers must have a range of skills, and must be prepared to work closely with people who have a range of social problems He/she will work closely with a social worker in most cases, and will provide support to the service user, when the social worker is unavailable

Support workers and care workers differ in what is expected of each role Support workers support people Care workers care for people – including Activities of Living (may have to take part in some intimate care needs)

Family support worker information: support.htm Job description example (home care support worker) HCSWJD02%20Home%20Care%20Support%20 Worker%20Job%20Description.pdf

S UMMARY A number of websites are available to help you find out more about each of these job roles Very useful

P1 In your groups, under one of the job roles identified A) Find out about education/training requirements B) Find out about the practical skills, knowledge and understanding you would need C) Find out about what personal attributes/qualities you would need in order to fulfil this role adequately Present your findings in power point