Care England has welcomed the Government’s focus on recruitment and retention of social care staff and has called for ‘golden hellos’ to be extended to the social care industry from the NHS.

Professor Martin Green OBE, Chief Executive of Care England, said: “If health and social care really are hand in glove as the Government purports it is important to offer the same opportunities in terms of recruitment, retention and training to staff, albeit nursing or care workers in the NHS and social care.

“As demonstrated by the Teaching Care Home Initiative, the importance of nursing in social care cannot be over emphasised.”

Caroline Dinenage MP, Care Minister, said the Department of Health and Social Care is working with arm-length bodies and Skills for Care to address workforce barriers to integration, including the development of new roles and training resources.

Mr Green said: “With confusion over Brexit upon us it is even more important to promote the varied and rewarding roles that are available in social care and not see it is as the poor relation to the NHS. The social care sector is the bedrock of the NHS.”