Surrey Care Association

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Surrey Care Association
Implementation of the registration of care
workers Kate McMullen Policy Adviser General
Social Care Council
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THE GSCC OUR ROLE

• Social care workforce regulator set up in October
  2001.
• Lay-led Council to take decisions in the public
  interest.
• Our responsibilities
• The Social Care Register
• National codes of practice
• Conduct of Registered Social Care Workers
• High quality social work education and training

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THE GSCC WHERE WE FIT

• We work with other key organisations doing
  different but complementary work
• Regulation of services
• Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI)
• Regulation of workforce
• General Social Care Council
• Guidance on best practice
• Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE)
• Strategic workforce development
• Skills for Care
• Childrens Workforce Development Council

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WHO WILL REGISTER NEXT?

• The Government asked the GSCC to prepare to
  register as the next priority
• Domiciliary care workers and
• Residential social care workers
• This will cover around 750,000 staff in wide
  variety of roles and settings across statutory,
  not-for-profit and private sectors.
• But will not include
• Staff working in day centres
• Staff offering exclusively health care services
• Staff providing care services through direct
  employment by service users.

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NEXT GROUPS CONSULTATION AND REPORT

• A consultation on the approach to registration
  for next groups began on 16 February and closed
  on 12 May 2006.
• A report based on the results of the sector-wide
  consultation went to Ministers in July.
• The main debates during the consultation were
  around the fee and the resources available to
  complete registration, and potential duplication
  of regulatory requirements, for example, CRB
  checks.
• There was general agreement with the approach
  proposed on how registration should be taken
  forward.

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PROPOSAL TO REGISTER NEXT GROUPS

• Recommendations who should register?
• All domiciliary and residential care worker
  settings within the Commission for Social Care
  Inspection (CSCI) regulatory framework should be
  in the next groups to be registered.
• Awareness that there is a risk that some groups
  may fall outside of the CSCI regulatory
  framework.
• The groups to be registered should include
• agency employed workers
• self employed and
• workers employed by employment agencies.

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PROPOSAL TO REGISTER NEXT GROUPS

• Recommendations registration entry requirements
• Competence at the level of induction standards
  contained in the National Minimum Standards
  (NMS).
• Where workers hold a qualification this may be
  taken as evidence of their achievement at
  induction level.
• Intention to approve the use of national common
  induction standard for registration, based on
  national standards developed and implemented by
  Skills for Care and the Children's Workforce
  Development Council.

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PROPOSAL TO REGISTER NEXT GROUPS

• Recommendations length of the registration
  period
• The initial period for these groups should be six
  years.
• Renewal of registration thereafter should take
  place every three years.
• Those with an initial six year registration
  period should carry a condition of working
  towards a qualification within the first three
  years of their registration.

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PROPOSAL TO REGISTER NEXT GROUPS

• Recommendations post-registration training and
  learning (PRTL) opportunities
• Workers who already hold a recognised
  qualification should complete
• 15 days over a three-year registration period or
  
• 30 days over a six-year registration period.
• Workers without a recognised qualification must
  gain a qualification within an initial six year
  registration period.

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PROPOSAL TO REGISTER NEXT GROUPS

• Recommendations registration fees
• A key concern throughout the consultation.
• A proposed fee of 15 a year for all registrants.
• Government should consider the issue of gradual
  introduction of the annual fee to avoid any
  disincentive to early registration.

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PROPOSAL TO REGISTER NEXT GROUPS

• Recommendations compulsion to register
• Employers will be required to check that those
  working for them are registered, subject to a
  period to achieve induction.
• The register will be open first to managers and
  social care workers working in childrens care
  homes and domiciliary care agencies.
• This will require a realistic timetable for
  staging compulsion and will be dependent on the
  numbers in each group.
• Stagger registration to allow parts of the
  register to be opened while progressing with
  another part.

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HOW WILL REGISTRATION WORK?

• The same basic principles will apply as for
  registration of qualified social workers, for
  example
• abiding by the codes
• being of good health and character
• verification of personal details
• endorsement
• Effective registration will take considerable
  preparation and this has started.
• Roll out estimated to begin sometime in 2007.
• We currently await Ministerial decision.

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BENEFITS OF REGISTRATION SERVICE USER

• Increased confidence that those who care for them
  meet the highest standards and are accountable.
• We want safe, trustworthy and reliable staff
  that respect us
• - Service User, Birmingham service user event

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CONTACT THE GSCC

• Telephone [phone]
• Email info_at_gscc.org.uk
• Registration 0845 070 0630
• Email registration_at_gscc.org.uk
• Website www.gscc.org.uk