New Scheme Develops Paul’s Caring Side

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Throughout the Care sector there are a disproportionately low number of male workers. In order to address this, Zodiac Training launched their Diversity in Apprenticeship scheme.

The Diversity in Apprenticeship scheme is designed to highlight and actively promote Apprenticeship opportunities for males within Care and to find them sustainable employment within the sector.

The first person to complete the Diversity in Apprenticeship scheme is Paul Errington of Wheatley Hill, County Durham.

Paul Errington: "It’s vital to encourage more men to work in the Care sector"

Paul has had an interesting and varied employment history. After leaving school in 1980 he began his working life as a general labourer and then as a painter and decorator. In 1990 Paul secured a job as a metal treatment processor, a role he stayed in for 10 years until the struggling company was forced to let staff go in 2000. Following a period of unemployment Paul spent his next 8 years working in a hardware store but unfortunately the company was forced to make redundancies and Paul found himself out of work once more.

In 2010 Paul heard about Zodiac’s Diversity in Apprenticeship scheme to encourage males into a career in Care. He was excited by the idea of career in which he would be working closely with people and have the opportunity to ‘give something back’ to the community. Paul contacted Zodiac’s Diversity in Apprenticeship Co-ordinator, David Culley, and a meeting was arranged.

Paul was impressed by the range of opportunities outlined by David, which included finding him sustainable employment and providing him with Care sector qualifications. David was equally impressed by Paul’s determination and work ethic.

Paul signed up to the Diversity in Apprenticeship programme in December 2010 and David quickly secured an interview for him at the Sacriston branch of Carewatch, the UK’s leading provider of care and support.

Paul’s interview was a success and he was employed by Carewatch as a Community Care Assistant.

Following Carewatch’s rigorous induction and work-shadowing process Paul began working in and around County Durham, supporting elderly people in their own homes and enabling them to maintain, and retain, independence, dignity and security.

Paul said, “I was really pleased that David secured an interview for me with Carewatch, I know of the company and the work they do and I wanted to be part of it. My typical day consists of going to a clients home, the client may need a bath or shower so I help them with that, I’ll prepare breakfast or other meals for the client and assist with any other domestic tasks that they would find difficult to do themselves, such as making beds and so on. I also check that the client takes their correct medication that day. Just as importantly I also interact with the client, it might just be a bit of banter about football but that level of social interaction is crucial”.

David Culley said, “One of the best things about Carewatch is the work trial; the people we sign up to the Diversity in Apprenticeship scheme can go out and shadow more experienced workers and get a feel for the work straight away, which is ideal because they haven’t worked in Care before”.

From left to right: Zodiac Diversity in Apprenticeship Co-ordinator David Culley, successful apprentice Paul Errington, Zodiac Training Advisor Sacha Finkle, Carewatch Manager David Wilkinson

Carewatch manager David Wilkinson added, “We’re aware that a career in Care is not for everyone so we make sure that on the first day every new member of staff goes out with their supervisor to visit a Carewatch service user and get first-hand experience of the services we provide. If they like it at the end of the day then we carry on with the induction and training process. After the induction Zodiac take over and the staff begin their formal training and qualifications which are an Apprenticeship or NVQ in Health and Social Care, usually at level 2. Once that is complete, staff can move onto a higher level Apprenticeship or NVQ qualification, so it’s an ongoing programme of development”.

Commenting on working with Paul, his Zodiac Training Advisor, Sacha Finkle, said, “Paul has been a pleasure to work with. He took to his new role and the qualification really well. It’s been fantastic to see him grow in confidence and really satisfying to know that he’s now in sustainable employment and will be nurtured by Carewatch and Zodiac to carry on achieving and fulfilling his potential. We’re committed to his continuing success and I look forward to working with him on his level 3 qualification.”

The prospects for Paul are bright says David Wilkinson, “The one thing we always do is promote from in-house, so the opportunities are there. The next step on the ladder is Senior Carer and then Deputy Supervisor, Supervisor and then it’s onto the Management scale. It’s a new career path where you can grow with the company”.

Paul believes that the Diversity in Apprenticeship scheme is an important one, he said, “It’s vital to encourage more men to work in the Care sector. Some of our clients simply do not feel comfortable unless they’re visited by a male Care Assistant, so if we don’t get more men into the sector it makes it more difficult for the client to get the support they want and deserve. In my experience it’s been extremely worthwhile and has led to an interesting and rewarding career”.

David Culley added, “Paul was the first of many who will complete the Diversity in Apprenticeship programme, he’s a great success story and a shining example of how our scheme can attract males into the sector and bring long-term benefits to individuals, to companies like Carewatch and to their clients. I would encourage any man who finds himself out of work to consider a career in Care and to get in touch to find out more about the Diversity in Apprenticeship scheme”.

Anyone who would like further information about Zodiac Training’s Diversity in Apprenticeship scheme should contact Zodiac on 0845 330 8184 or David Culley directly on 07595 272 305.