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Sector Route-Way
for adult social care
Offering work
experience as
part of the Sector
Route-Way
A guide for adult social care employers
skillsforcare
Contents
Introduction
What is the Sector Route-Way?
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Why you should get involved
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Before the work experience begins
Making work experience worthwhile
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Planning for success
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At the start of the placement or visit
Information exchange
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Induction P14
During the placement or visit
Support and mentoring
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Supervision
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At the end of the work experience
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Feedback and references
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Recruitment
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Introduction
What is the Sector Route-Way?
It’s a form of support that can be offered to unemployed
people to give them the skills and confidence to move into
entry level and other jobs in the adult social care sector.
A key part of the route-way is the Level 1
Award in Preparing to Work in Adult Social
Care that gives learners a good idea of what
it would be like to work in social care, and
at the same time helps them to develop the
skills they need to get started. The Sector
Route-Way has now been established as
the pre-employment support process for
adult social care endorsed by the sector.
Though we call it the route-way throughout
this guide it may be described in different ways
according to how it’s being used - it could be
a sector-based work academy organised by
Jobcentre Plus, a Traineeship run by a local
college, or a pre-employment programme
run by a Work Programme provider using
a name they choose.
Who is this guide for?
This guide is for adult social care employers
thinking about offering work experience to
unemployed people or others considering a
career in social care.
It will also be of interest to employment/careers
advisers who organise pre-employment support
programmes for the adult social care sector.
The guide includes practical advice on how to
set up and get the most out of work experience
opportunities that are offered as part of the
Sector Route-Way for adult social care.
Are any other
guides available?
A number of other guides and resources are available including Getting the most out of
your work experience which is designed for the people undertaking the work experience.
All of the resources relating the Sector Route-Way can be downloaded free of charge from:
www.caresectorrouteway.co.uk
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Why you should get involved
What are the benefits?
Meaningful work experience is
an important part of the Sector
Route-Way. Its aim is to provide
learning and insight into the social
care sector, by exposing people
to a variety of tasks and
experiences.
As well as helping people to make
informed decisions about whether or
not a career in social care is right for
them, offering work experience
can be helpful to employers in
a number of ways.
The Sector Route-Way stages
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1
2
3
4
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Recruiting and retaining new staff
Providing work experience can be a great way to access the local
labour market and explore new talent pipelines. It can also help potential
recruits get a real feel for the work before they apply, reducing the
number of people who discover that social care is not for them only
after the employer has invested significant resources in their recruitment,
induction and training.
Developing, motivating and retaining
existing staff
Planning and delivering work experience opportunities can provide an
excellent opportunity to develop the skills of existing staff, particularly
those who don’t usually have line management responsibilities. Getting
involved can also send a positive message to the wider workforce
about the values of the organisation, which in turn can help with morale,
motivation and retention.
Connecting with the wider community
Offering work experience opportunities can help you to connect with
your local community, creating a positive image of you as an employer,
and of the adult social care sector as a whole. By opening your doors to
new groups of potential recruits, you may also be exposed to the new
ideas and ways of thinking that they bring.
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Does it cost anything?
There is no charge to an employer for being involved in the delivery
of work experience as part of the Sector Route-Way. Most people
on the route-way will continue to receive their benefits and some
may get help with travel or childcare costs. However, employers
often choose to offer lunch and any out-of-pocket expenses and
you would certainly need to provide a uniform or other appropriate
clothing if this is a requirement in your workplace.
Although the financial outlay is negligible, employers should
consider the wider resource implications, as setting up and
delivering high-quality work experience opportunities can take up
a considerable amount of staff time for planning, supervision and
ensuring sufficient support for those on placements/visits.
What’s involved?
Work experience opportunities as part of the Sector Route-Way come in
all shapes and sizes. You could offer anything from a two hour visit to your
workplace, right through to a two day a week placement lasting
several weeks.
Ideally, everyone on the route-way will get first-hand experience of what
it would be like to work in a variety of different settings across the adult
social care sector. For some, this will best be gained by several short visits
to a range of different care and support workplaces. For others, longer
periods of time spent in a single workplace will offer the best insight.
The Sector Route-Way is designed to offer real flexibility and choice over
work experience arrangements. Although work experience opportunities
made up of multiple short visits require good planning and partnership
working, this does mean that all types of employer can get involved and
showcase their part of the sector, even in settings where extended work
placements would not be viable.
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Before the work
experience begins
Making work experience worthwhile
What do people want from their work experience opportunity?
People going through the Sector Route-Way want to be given as
much insight as possible into the world of adult social care. They
are on a time-limited pre-employment support programme so need
to be able to make a quick, but well-informed decision about their
own suitability for a career in social care.
They want to be involved in genuine work
activities and tasks so that they can get a
real feel for the workplace and be able to
demonstrate their practical experience to
potential employers.
They also need to get a feel for the wide
range of job roles and work settings that are
available throughout the sector, even if their
own work experience is limited to just one or
two social care workplaces.
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What do you need to consider before you begin?
Before you start any detailed planning for offering work experience opportunities, there are a
number of important issues that you need to think through.
DBS checks and safeguarding.
Although the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has issued guidance saying that employers are
not required to get Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks for people on short-term work
experience as part of a Sector Route-way programme, you will still need to have clear plans in
place over safeguarding. As an absolute minimum, those on work experience placements/visits
should be fully supervised at all times. For the latest CQC guidance go to: www.cqc.org.uk
and search for criminal records or DBS checks.
The type of activities/tasks you can realistically offer.
To make sure that the work experience is meaningful, those coming on placements/visits
need to see the real work that you do and be actively involved in genuine workplace
activities and tasks.
Depending on the type of workplace, this could be a challenge, particularly in terms of gaining
the informed consent of people using care and support, and ensuring their privacy and dignity
is maintained.
There may be additional challenges where the work experience mentor/supervisor is working
alone, for example, when trying to arrange work shadowing of domiciliary care visits.
One idea that might help is to offer a one-off project or task that people could work on at any
point during the placement where it isn’t appropriate for them to observe or be involved in care
and support activity.
Once you have identified the type of activities and tasks that you can offer, you should be able
to decide whether longer-term work experience placements are viable or whether it would be
better to restrict your offer to short, one day or even half-day visits.
As people on work experience need to get a feel for the breadth of job roles and work settings
across the sector, an ideal solution would be for a number of different social care employers to
work together to deliver a series of short workplace visits or taster sessions. If you are interested
in this, you would need to get in touch with a local employer partnership to see what’s possible
and agree who will take the lead in co-ordinating this kind of combined work experience offer.
For more information about employer partnerships in your area contact info@skillsforcare.org.uk.
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Finding out about the people that will come to your workplace.
Employment/careers advisers (from Jobcentre Plus, local colleges or Work Programme
providers) co-ordinate the Sector Route-Way and are ultimately responsible for deciding
who joins the course and goes on work experience. However, they would probably welcome
employer help at selection and/or at allocation of work experience opportunities, so do let
them know if you would like to be involved.
Even if you don’t get actively involved at this stage, you will need to know how you will
find out about the particular needs and circumstances of the people coming to you for
work experience.
You will also need to know how much of the pre-employment training course and
qualification they will have completed by the time they come to your workplace as this
will affect the amount of information and support you will need to provide. For more
information about the content of the pre-employment course and qualification go to:
www.skillsforcare.org.uk/caresectorrouteway.
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Planning for success
For work experience to be of high quality, meaningful to those
considering a career in social care and beneficial to employers,
it needs to be carefully planned. There are four key points to
cover in your plan.
1
Be clear with everyone in your workplace how the work
experience will happen.
■ What role will those on work experience play? What types of tasks and activities will
they get involved with?
■
■
■
■
■
■
■
2
How will they be supported and supervised? Who will do this?
Will they have a named ‘buddy’ or mentor?
ill those directly involved have any training for this role? Will they have ring-fenced time
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away from normal duties?
How might other staff be involved?
How will people using care and support and/or their families be involved?
Are any policies or procedures required, particularly around safeguarding or consent?
Will there be a plan or schedule that summarises everything?
2
Be clear with those coming on work experience, so they know
what to expect.
■ Will you arrange a pre-meeting or telephone call before people come in for induction?
■ What does the person want to get from their work experience? Will what you have
planned for them meet this expectation?
■
■
■
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What will they be doing? Who will support, supervise or mentor them?
Are there any rules, policies or procedures that they must be aware of before they begin?
re there any job opportunities now? How can you help build networks and find jobs
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once the work experience ends?
3
Make sure the work experience you offer gives as much insight
as possible.
■ Which real workplace tasks and activities can they undertake? Could they be given any
other one-off projects?
■
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ow can you help them to learn about some of the other job roles and work settings
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that exist in the adult social care sector?
Make sure that those visiting your workplace have an enjoyable
and positive experience.
■ How do you plan to give feedback? How will you make sure it is honest, open and
constructive?
■
ow can you help them to relate their existing skills and experience to the social care
H
workplace and to reflect on what they are learning during the work experience?
■
re there opportunities to celebrate success and encourage those on work experience
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to become more confident in their abilities?
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At the start of the
placement or visit
Information exchange
Before visiting your workplace for the first time,
those on work experience will need some basic
information so they know when and how to start.
You might do this through a pre-meeting or perhaps a telephone
call or letter, but do bear in mind that some people coming on
work experience may not have recent experience, if any, of the
world of work. This means you can’t assume that they will know
some things you might take for granted or that they will have the
confidence to ask if they are unsure.
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You will probably want to create a checklist
to make sure you cover everything.
Information about the person
coming on work experience
■
■
■
Name, address, telephone number.
■
ny particular needs or circumstances that you should be aware of at
A
this stage.
Details of the Sector Route-Way programme they are on.
ame and contact details of the employment/careers adviser arranging
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the work experience.
Information about your
organisation or workplace
■
■
Name of employer or organisation, address, telephone number.
rief description of the type of care and support offered in your
B
workplace.
Information about the work
experience opportunity
■
ame of supervisor, mentor or the person they should report to on the
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first day.
■
upervisor or mentor’s telephone number (if different from workplace
S
number above).
■
■
Where to go on the first day and what time to arrive.
■
■
■
What their hours of work will be including information about breaks.
■
etails of any policies they need to be aware of or processes that
D
need to be started before they come for induction.
hat to wear and what to bring with them. If a uniform is required, this
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may need to be ordered now. Also check they have a copy of Getting
the most out of your work experience which you can download free
of charge from: www.skillsforcare.org.uk/caresectorrouteway.
If they need to provide their own lunch.
rief details about their role and the type of tasks and activities they
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will be involved with.
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Induction
As well as helping them to settle in quickly, a thorough induction
makes the person on work experience feel valued.
Why is a thorough induction
so important?
Everyone coming on work experience needs
a good introduction to the workplace that will
allow them to settle in quickly and start to
learn what working in adult social care
might be like.
Many of the people on Sector Route-Way
programmes do not have recent experience of
working life and almost all have no experience
of a social care workplace. A young person
entering the world of work for the first time
may find the workplace intimidating, as they
will not know what to expect or how they
should behave. An older person who has been
working in a different sector or who has been
out of work for some time may lack personal
confidence or be unsettled by a new or
different workplace culture.
As well as helping them to settle in quickly, a
thorough induction makes the person on work
experience feel valued and gives them the
chance to ask questions and discus anything
they are unsure about. Even though the work
experience you are offering may only last for
a few hours or days, you should still prepare
thoroughly for their arrival.
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What should you include
in the induction?
Induction is an opportunity to get to know the
person coming on work experience. You can
use it to start building a good relationship, find
out about their skills and previous experience,
talk about the expectations on each side and
allow space for questions and discussion.
■
Information about the organisation or
workplace. Covering its history, services,
culture and values.
■
I ntroduction to others in the workplace.
Including an overview of the staffing
structure and personal introductions to the
key people they will have contact with.
■
T
our of the workplace. Including work
areas, where to get food/drinks, where the
nearest toilets are, first aid facilities, fire
exits, evacuation procedures and all other
health and safety information.
You can use it to start building
a good relationship, find out
about their skills and
previous experience.
■
■
lear explanation of requirements and
C
expectations. Including an overview of the
day-to-day duties that the person will be
responsible for and a detailed discussion
about policies and behavioural expectations
relating to people who use care and support
(for example confidentiality, dignity and
person centred support). Although everyone
on a Sector Route-Way programme will
learn about social care values as part of
their pre-employment training, this may
still be a very new area to them and so
you should check their understanding and
confidence at this point.
lan or schedule of work experience
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activities and tasks. Giving a clear outline
of what they are doing when, including
any meetings set aside for feedback and
review. Please note that everyone on work
experience should have a copy of Getting
the most out of your work experience
which includes a section that they can use
to complete a daily log of their learning,
and another that you can use to record
feedback. If they don’t already have a copy,
you can download it for them free of
charge from: www.skillsforcare.org.uk/
caresectorrouteway.
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During the
placement or visit
Support and mentoring
You should ensure there is a named person who
has ring-fenced time set aside from their normal
work to support and supervise the person on work
experience. This could be a good development
opportunity for an employee who wants to develop
their management capability.
How to review, record and give feedback
on progress
If you are working closely with the person on work experience, you will
have plenty of opportunity to observe them and give regular, informal
feedback throughout the day.
However, it is also good practice to have a couple of more formal
feedback meetings scheduled in, probably mid-way through and at
the end of the work experience.
You can use the reflective log and feedback templates at the back
of Getting the most out of your work experience to help structure
your review meetings and record your feedback.
It is possible that issues will arise during the work experience or that
further development needs will be identified. It is important to discuss
and address any issues to maximise the learning achieved during the
work experience. However, all feedback should be provided sensitively
and an opportunity for discussion given.
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Tips for providing
effective support or
mentoring to a person on
work experience
■
llow them plenty of time to ask
A
questions at the induction and
throughout the placement/visit.
■
ake an interest in them and build
T
a supportive working relationship
with them.
■
Make time to have lunch with
them on their first day.
■
ake yourself available to act
M
as a point of contact for any
concerns they might have.
■
Support and mentor them during
the working day, helping them
with their communication
skills and other essential
workplace skills.
■
rovide on-going constructive
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feedback, reflect on their
progress and have regular
conversations about their attitude
to work in social care.
Supervision
As already mentioned, it is the employer’s
responsibility to ensure that the safety and
dignity of people using care and support is
protected.
Organisations and individuals offering work
experience opportunities can choose to have
a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check
for anyone that comes into the workplace for
work experience, although the Care Quality
Commission (CQC) has issued guidance to
say that this is not a mandatory requirement
in the case of people on short periods of work
experience organised via government funded
pre-employment training programmes. For
full details of the CQC guidance go to:
www.cqc.org.uk and search for criminal
records or DBS checks.
Whether you expect people on work
experience to have a DBS check or not,
you will still need to ensure that they are
fully supervised at all times.
You will also need to make sure that you have
procedures in place to get consent for any
interactions between people who use care and
support and those on work experience, and
to ensure the health and safety of everyone
in your workplace (including those on work
experience, visitors, staff and people who
use care and support).
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At the end of the
work experience
Feedback and references
At the end of the work experience a meeting should be arranged to
review how everything went, for the person on work experience and
for the employer.
Use the feedback forms at the back of Getting the most out of
your work experience to structure this meeting and record your
feedback.
At this point, you may also wish to offer further support by agreeing
to act as a referee and encouraging the person to stay in touch.
Although some employers have a policy of not giving detailed
references, it would still be helpful to provide a more detailed
‘summary of progress’ so that when the work experience
ends, they can focus on their key achievements and
what they have learned, and then use this to help
promote themselves to potential employers.
At this point, you may also wish to
offer further support by agreeing to
act as a referee and encouraging
the person to stay in touch.
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Recruitment
If you have a vacancy and the work experience
has been successful, you can offer the person
a job. If you don’t have an immediate vacancy
but would consider employing them in the
future, you could encourage them to stay in
touch. But it is important to manage people’s
expectations and to be clear if there are no
expected vacancies, so that they are able to
move on to seek employment elsewhere.
By providing work experience opportunities
for those on a Sector Route-Way programme,
you are already taking active steps to improve
recruitment and retention in your own
organisation or workplace.
You may also wish to consider getting involved
with I Care…Ambassadors. This initiative
supports enthusiastic social care staff to
promote the positives of working in social care
to those who are considering their own career
options or advising other on theirs. For further
information visit: www.skillsforcare.org.uk/
icareambassadors.
I care...
For a wide range of other
ideas and resources
to help with recruitment
and retention, go to:
www.skillsforcare.org.uk/recruitment
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www.skillsforcare.org.uk/caresectorrouteway
0113 245 1716
info@skillsforcare.org.uk
© Skills for Care 2015