Worthing-based social care charity Guild Care has announced a 12 per cent pay increase for its carers and support workers.
From April, all care rates of pay at Guild Care will be set at a minimum of £12.00 per hour. This is above the government’s compulsory National Living Wage, which rises by 9.8 per cent to £11.44 per hour when it comes into force in April. Overall, this will benefit more than 240 employees in a care role or support role and represents a significant investment for the charity.
Guild Care provides a comprehensive range of training initiatives, delivered both in-person and virtually, to support individuals' learning and development at every stage of their career. Apprenticeships are also available for staff looking to gain more formal qualifications, an initiative developed last year. A diverse range of benefits is offered to all staff to support the wellbeing of employees and their families.
The increased pay rate will apply to everyone at Guild Care in a care role, including new employees once they have passed their probationary period. It will also include support workers in the diverse range of day services provided by Guild Care for people living with dementia and children & adults with learning disabilities.
Guild Care CEO Alex Brooks-Johnson said: “Our priority whilst setting the budget this year was to increase our care pay rates as much as possible. While Guild Care is a not-for-profit charity, we firmly believe the value of the work of our carers should be reflected in their pay packets as far as we are able.
“In recent months we have been working closely with our highly experienced Board of Trustees to enable this investment in our care employees. These new, higher rates of pay for care and support workers would not have been possible without the continued hard work of the whole organisation as we recover post-Covid and get this amazing charity back on our feet financially.
“Government funding for social care continues to decline, and despite the headline grabbing announcements about investment in social care, we do not see any impact of this. But thanks to the innovation, drive, and determination of our team, we are able to make this investment in our people.”
Leanne Jones, HR director at Guild Care, added: “We appreciate that pay, amongst other things, is an important part of employee’s terms and conditions so it was important for us to do the best we can to improve this element, particularly given the rising cost of living.
“As well as increasing pay, we are also reviewing all financial and non-financial benefits for the people who do so much to care for others across our charity. We hope that through continued improvements and growth, along with hopefully a fairer level of funding from Government, we will be able to make a similar investment in our housekeeping roles in the near future.”
