Careers in adult social care can be challenging and rewarding

Adult care workers Gem Croft (top left), Sara McGeechan (top right), Kelly Innes and George Sparrow are all supporting the Scottish Governments recruitment campaign.Adult care workers Gem Croft (top left), Sara McGeechan (top right), Kelly Innes and George Sparrow are all supporting the Scottish Governments recruitment campaign.
Adult care workers Gem Croft (top left), Sara McGeechan (top right), Kelly Innes and George Sparrow are all supporting the Scottish Governments recruitment campaign.
A national campaign is encouraging people to consider working in the adult social care sector – especially those looking for a change of career.

The ‘There’s More to Care Than Caring’ recruitment campaign features stories from adult care workers.

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Across Scotland around 145,000 people currently work in adult social care in a range of roles, including supporting people with physical disabilities, dementia, autism, older people and those with mental health conditions.

Working in adult social care can be challenging and requires resilience, but it offers the opportunity to have a hugely positive impact on others’ lives on a daily basis.

For many it’s not just a job, it’s a calling.

Sara McGeechan (35) has always been a people person but only found her calling later in life when she became a care worker.

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She’d initially started her career working at a supermarket before moving to a call centre but has found her passion in adult social care over the past three years and is urging others to do the same.

“I’ve always wanted to help people and earned recognition in my previous jobs for customer service and going out of my way for others,” she said.

“I decided to put this to good use and get into adult social care when I realised a job in a call centre just wasn’t for me.

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“I’d recommend anyone to consider a career in adult social care.

“I’m making a real difference to people’s lives every day. Don’t get me wrong, you have to be resilient and like any job, it poses its challenges but so long as you’re understanding, calm and empathetic it’s one of the most special jobs going.”

Kelly Innes (39) started out as an early years’ practitioner but then found her passion as a support worker in mental health where she developed to become a team leader.

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Kelly said: “One of the best things about working in mental health support is providing emotional support to those who really need it.

“Helping vulnerable people make positive life changing decisions is a feeling that never fades.

“Knowing that you’ve positively improved someone’s life and mental wellbeing is the reason I do what I do.”

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George Sparrow is a 26-year-old service manager, who got into care after moving back from Australia with his girlfriend.

He has enjoyed rapid career progression and immense job satisfaction.

“My mum is a service manager for a charity so I’ve always had that link and interest to try it so I decided I wanted to give it a go,” he explained.

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“Since then, I’ve not looked back. I’ve absolutely loved the job and found that there’s great scope to grow both professionally and personally.”

Gem Croft (27) has worked in adult social care for five years, and would encourage others to follow her career path.

She found her passion for helping others when she went to Costa Rica to do humanitarian work.

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Gem said: “There’s certainly no such thing as a typical day in social care – you have to be prepared for the unexpected, but this is what makes it such a special and interesting job.”

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman hopes the campaign will encourage more people to consider a career in adult social care.

She said: “One of the main difficulties services face when trying to fill vacancies is not having enough applicants or the right applicants.

“That is exactly what this campaign seeks to address.

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“Brexit presents a clear threat to the future of our health and social care services and the EU workforce make a valuable contribution to this sector as well as others.

“As a responsible government we will continue to do all we can to support our health and social care services.”

Find out more information about careers in adult social care at Care to Care

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