A recent survey has shown that elderly and disabled people are being put at risk because of inadequate training for care workers. The research included more than 1,000 care workers employed by councils and private companies across the UK.
I understand that training needs arise because of the constant change in our day-to-day operations and the service we aspire to provide for our clients. So where does training for employees really fall in your priorities? Can you really afford the time off for employees to be trained?
What you can do at little cost
I am pleased to recognise that training has always been regarded with high importance with the clients and services that we support. So what can you do to ensure your employees don’t fall into the percentage of employees that don’t receive adequate training?
There is a temptation to associate training with a cost, but here are some examples of training techniques that won’t hit your budget.
- Supervisory meetings: how frequently are these held? They don’t have to be long, drawn out meetings. Focus on one thing each time and go through this with all your staff.
- Identify your more experienced team members and make them mentors. Employees feel they have a sense of responsibility if you ask them to be a mentor for a less experienced staff member.
- Introduce work diaries and log books; employees can then review best practice in black and white.
Job rotation: rather than employees always doing the same job, rotate the duties with someone at a similar level. - Have you ever considered ‘YouTube’ as a learning aid? You’d be surprised at how many videos there are that could assist you.
- Is there funding available? Have a look at this website, you may be surprised to find that there could be. Restrictions may apply to the funding, but if you don’t look you will never know.
Some businesses put off training and usually this is because of the cost. Using these techniques there is no reason to be put off training any longer.
You can also contact our partner company, Access Skills and speak to one of their training experts about the training and funding available with them. They can be reached on 0121 510 2169.
Anita Manfredi of Employer Solutions – QCS HR Expert Contributor
