2 The social care context

  1. In 2003, the Department of Health (DH) allocated £2 million to SCIE to 'assist the social care community to make the best use of information and communication technologies for teaching and learning, to deliver an improved service to users and carers' (DH 2003). As part of this programme, SCIE and TopssEngland are jointly developing an e-learning strategy for social care in England. This discussion paper is intended to help clarify that strategy.

  2. The social care workforce

    Social care accounts for some 1.2 million workers in the UK, spread over more than 25,000 employers in the public and independent (i.e. private and voluntary) sectors. Social care includes residential care, domiciliary care and social work with all its specialisms.

  3. The social care workforce is predominantly female (over 80%) and more than half the workforce is part-time. The proportion of social care workers with dependents ranges from 35 to 75% for different types of worker. Around 80% of those working in social care have no qualifications for their work - although many are highly competent. The diffuse structure of the sector has led to complex career pathways (see View 23kb image in new window Figure 1). While some care workers may not be interested in a 'career' or the formal learning associated with it, they are interested in promotion, prospects and learning new skills.

  4. Government responsibilities

    The Department of Health is responsible for adult social care in England, and is developing a new vision for adult services (SCIE 2004). Children's social care is the responsibility of the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), which has set out its visions and plans in Every Child Matters: The Next Steps (DfES 2004). Within DfES, an integrated approach to priorities for care and education is provided for through the Children and Young People's Directorate.

  5. Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE)

    The establishment of SCIE was a key proposal in the DH Quality Strategy for Social Care, which recognised the importance of knowledge in changing practice and service delivery. SCIE works across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and its remit is to gather, synthesise, disseminate and promote knowledge in the social care sector, so that knowledge is used to facilitate better practice.

  6. Training Organisation for Personal Social Services (TopssEngland)

    TopssEngland is the employment-led strategic body for workforce development in social care in England, now in the official development stage of forming a UK-wide Sector Skills Council (to be called Skills for Care) with its UK partners. TopssEngland aims to support employers in improving standards of care provision through training and development, workforce planning and workforce intelligence.

  7. UK context

    While this e-learning strategy will cover social care in England, it also seeks to reflect and draw on developments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Scottish Executive is funding e-learning initiatives in social work education, which are referenced later in this paper (Stor Curam 2004), and e-learning is being developed by the Care Council for Wales.

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