Alicia’s passion for the sector is in every story she tells. Now Head of Quality and Pathways at Catalyst Choices, her journey from 18-year-old apprentice carer to senior leader isn’t just impressive, it’s a glimpse into what good social care leadership looks like.
We sat down with Alicia to talk about the state of the care workforce, her personal journey, the stigma that still surrounds care roles and how Catalyst and partners like Yonder are working to bring more young people into the sector.
Hi Alicia, let’s start by talking about careers in care. Why is it still so hard to attract people into social care roles?
Pay is definitely one of the biggest issues. We want to pay people more, but the funding just isn’t there. When Aldi opens down the road, paying £4 more an hour, that’s hard to compete with.
But there’s a deeper issue – the story the public still tells itself about social care. There’s such an old-fashioned view of care. People think it’s just helping someone to eat or go to the toilet. But it’s so much more than that. You’re changing people’s lives.
COVID briefly shifted attitudes. Remember ‘clap for carers’. That helped, but the sector was also labelled ‘unskilled’ by the Health Minister. That hurts. Because not everyone can do this job. You have to be the right person.
And shift work, especially in 24/7 services, can be a challenge. Unsociable hours put people off, but it can also work better for some people. We’ve had staff say their shift fits perfectly around family life. So, it can go both ways.
Lone working can also be intimidating, particularly if you’re new to care. Some of our supported living means working with clients one-to-one. If you’re a less experienced carer, that can be daunting. So, we ease people in. We put them first in houses with more staff until they feel confident.
How did you work your way up into a senior leadership role? Is that common in the care sector?
I started at 18 as an apprentice and worked my way up through different roles – carer, deputy manager, registered manager and then senior leadership. That move into leadership came a lot sooner than I expected.
At 24, I was offered the role as a registered manager. I rang my dad and said, ‘what do I do?’ He was like, ‘do it.’ So, I did. It was absolutely terrifying. I didn’t have the support system we have at Catalyst. I didn’t have other managers who’d been through it. Here, we’ve got a whole structure – Heads of Pathways, training leads, directors – all people who started on the frontline. I’d have loved that when I was coming up.
Everyone in leadership at Catalyst started as a frontline worker. It makes a massive difference. You actually understand what the staff are dealing with.
Tell us about the work Yonder has been doing with Catalyst?
Working with Grace and Lucy has been great. Our partnership with Yonder has focused on one of the biggest challenges in the sector – getting more young people into care.
Grace and Lucy have really helped create a strong relationship between us and Warrington & Vale College. Last year, students spent six weeks with us. This year, they’re staying until July. Building routes from education into social care roles is so important. Not just for us but right across the country.
One of my favourite parts of working with Yonder and the college is showing young people the range of roles in social care. We want people to be frontline carers, but there’s also training, marketing, finance, and recruitment. There’s so much progression.
But the college curriculum doesn’t reflect real social care. That’s something we’re working on. I remember doing health and social care A-level and thinking none of it really prepared me for the job. Even my sister, who teaches it, says the same thing.
So much of our work is about relationships, communicating with people who are non-verbal, supporting people with behavioural needs. You can’t learn that from a textbook.
What motivates young people to stay in care?
Two years ago, I interviewed a 16-year-old apprentice. He was so shy – really quiet. But we gave him a chance. Now he’s thriving. The clients adore him. He’s come out of his shell completely. When he’s not there, the clients really miss him.
He comes with me to college presentations. The students love him. But he’s just a genuinely good person.
So, confidence is sometimes the biggest thing care gives young people. I was shy when I started, too. Care forces you to grow.
Now he’s got a real purpose. And the benefits of care work are both ways. Working in care doesn’t just give support to people who need care, it changes the lives of carers too.
Last question, Alicia. If you could redesign one part of social care recruitment, what would it be?
People need real-world experience. Being in our services, meeting clients, taking part in activities, and seeing the joy. It’s the only way to understand that social care isn’t what people think it is. You can’t bring many of our clients into a classroom. It’s far more meaningful for students to come to us.
Our job is to make people’s lives the best they can be. How amazing is that?
That’s a great place to wrap things up, Alicia. Thanks for your time.
If you’d like to find out more about the work Catalyst Choices is doing across Warrington and St Helens, check out their website.
If you’d like to recommend someone doing brilliant things in public service innovation for a future Capacity Conversation, please get in touch comms@thisiscapacity.co.uk
