How to get care assistant job in a hospital with no qualification or experience.

samwich1979

Just wondering if anyone knows.

If someone with no GCSE's or other formal qualifications wants to get into care work and also has no experience or specific care courses what can they do?

My husband hasn't had any work for 2 years and has been a stay at home husband for the past 20 months while i work.

He has an SIA License and has been a cleaning supervisor in his last job but would like to try something different as no jobs seem to come up in these roles and when he does apply hears nothing.

To get a job in care, especially in hospitals you need to be experienced and have NVQ qualifications but he doesnt have any of these. I would assume the people who have these jobs must have somehow got it BEFORE they did their NVQ? but there just isn't any chances of training these days you HAVE to been qualified and have experience.

I cant afford to fund these courses at college as they are expensive so not sure how to go about this?

I know our local hospital takes volunteers, if he did this on the wards would this be enough to get a foot in the door?

Any help would be appreciated.

Hmm71

Are there any care homes near you? My sister is a care worker with NVQ level 2 but when she started she had no experience or the NVQ. She got a job in a BUPA care home and they funded her NVQ.

Looking after the elderly may not be what your husband wants to do to start with but it could be a sideways route into hospital care work. I think volunteering at your hospital could be an excellent start as well.

samwich1979

Hmm71 wrote: »

Are there any care homes near you? My sister is a care worker with NVQ level 2 but when she started she had no experience or the NVQ. She got a job in a BUPA care home and they funded her NVQ.

Looking after the elderly may not be what your husband wants to do to start with but it could be a sideways route into hospital care work. I think volunteering at your hospital could be an excellent start as well.

He has emailed several of our local care homes asking if he could get work without experience but train on the job towards NVQ's but he has had no replies at all. This seems to be what happens with ANY job he applies for these days. Everyone wants experience or so it seems.

I will definitely suggest the voluntary work, i think this may be the only route in and it looks good on a CV.

cavework

My son started in the kitchen in a care home, he then progressed to an alcohol and drugs unit working for the NHS , still as a "domestic" but he was trained and learned an awful lot about care while he worked there
He is now a carer for a woman with MS working for a private charity.
It has taken him 5 years to get to this stage but the background he has now means he can deal with difficult situations, has some medical knowledge and is CRB checked, He now has a background of care for many different groups of people.
Perhaps this is the way to go.
xxx

Realbairn

Have you considered your local NHS staff bank. Obviously can't speak for all staff banks but many recruit care assistants on a casual basis including people without experience. Rather than contacting care homes nearby look for the larger groups to see who is recruiting and where the jobs are, as stated before you could always go in on a different job then convert over when an opening appears

kingfisherblue

My daughter started work as an unqualified care assistant with an agency. The agency paid for her level 2 NVQ, and she later had the opportunity (as a direct result of agency work) to apply for a job in a retirement village, where she was successful in getting the job. She sometimes did agency work in the hospital, and she did quite a lot with the district nurses, but didn't want to apply to the NHS herself. It is a possible way forward though.

I also think volunteering is a great idea. It can help boost self esteem and confidence, be an opportunity to learn new skills, and give an up-to-date reference, as well as possibly being a way to get a foot in the door. It also shows commitment and a willingness to work.

elsien

samwich1979 wrote: »

To get a job in care, especially in hospitals you need to be experienced and have NVQ qualifications but he doesnt have any of these.

Any help would be appreciated.

I can't comment on the position for hospital care assistants but this is not necessarily the case in the private or voluntary sector.
It is possible to get a job without experience - I'd rather have someone with the right attitude because I can teach them what they need to know - in fact to do the NVQ you do need to be working in the sector and to be assessed in the role. I would expect someone to have undertaken the usual mandatory training and have passed their probationary period before putting them forward for NVQ,
So your husband could consider getting a care role outside of a hospital, gain his NVQ then move over. However he's unlikely to be getting much more than minimum wage, so would need to consider whether that is liveable on while he retrains.
And think outside of the usual homes for older people - there are also homes for younger people with learning disabilities and or physical disabilities who might appreciate more male staff. Or agencies - domiciliary ones for older people, but there are now also jobs out there in supported living setting helping younger disabled people to live independently which he could look out for.
BTW anyone who tells you you can get an NVQ just by going to college is mistaken. You can do the underpinning knowledge but you do need to be assessed actually in the workplace to complete the NVQ properly.
(Although in care it's no longer NVQ it's now called a diploma in health and social care. Works the same way though.)

samwich1979

kingfisherblue wrote: »

My daughter started work as an unqualified care assistant with an agency. The agency paid for her level 2 NVQ, and she later had the opportunity (as a direct result of agency work) to apply for a job in a retirement village, where she was successful in getting the job. She sometimes did agency work in the hospital, and she did quite a lot with the district nurses, but didn't want to apply to the NHS herself. It is a possible way forward though.

I also think volunteering is a great idea. It can help boost self esteem and confidence, be an opportunity to learn new skills, and give an up-to-date reference, as well as possibly being a way to get a foot in the door. It also shows commitment and a willingness to work.

My husband did contact an agency about possible work through them even though he has no experience and again no reply.

He never seems to get replies from anyone and i just dont understand why. He really is desperate to get back to work and i feel so bad for him when no-one even replies to suggest what he can do even if they cant help.

samwich1979

elsien wrote: »

I can't comment on the position for hospital care assistants but this is not necessarily the case in the private or voluntary sector.
It is possible to get a job without experience - I'd rather have someone with the right attitude because I can teach them what they need to know - in fact to do the NVQ you do need to be working in the sector and to be assessed in the role. I would expect someone to have undertaken the usual mandatory training and have passed their probationary period before putting them forward for NVQ,
So your husband could consider getting a care role outside of a hospital, gain his NVQ then move over. However he's unlikely to be getting much more than minimum wage, so would need to consider whether that is liveable on while he retrains.
And think outside of the usual homes for older people - there are also homes for younger people with learning disabilities and or physical disabilities who might appreciate more male staff. Or agencies - domiciliary ones for older people, but there are now also jobs out there in supported living setting helping younger disabled people to live independently which he could look out for.
BTW anyone who tells you you can get an NVQ just by going to college is mistaken. You can do the underpinning knowledge but you do need to be assessed actually in the workplace to complete the NVQ properly.
(Although in care it's no longer NVQ it's now called a diploma in health and social care. Works the same way though.)

Ive done NVQ's myself and i did them after finding a job, bare in mind this was 14 years ago and people took you on and gave you a chance then, it all seems to have changed drastically now.

I just thought about college based courses because that may help him get somewhere but i know job based qualifications are the best way to go. Just trying to think of anything tbh as i want to help him so much.

The only downside to him going back to work full time is that it has to be worth it money-wise. I work 3 days a week and i'd need to get childcare for our son on those days as hes only 20 months and im well aware that would probably take most of his wage. Plus we wouldnt get any help with our rent(we currently get £120 a month off rent of £515) so thats more expense on top. Yes there are CTC but i dont know how much of a dent that would make and as i earn £22000 a year im not sure if we would get anything with his minimum wage job on top of that.

Lots to think about but the voluntary work is the best idea to start with i think and see what happens.

elsien

We get a few people emailing or phoning re jobs but to be honest unless we're recruiting at the time, we tend not to keep the details. There's a lot of people who contact us from the jobcentre who are keeping the benefits people happy rather than really interested in doing the work. It tends to foster a slightly cynical attitude at times.

Your OH needs to sell himself. If he's emailing saying he's got little to offer re care experience employers might not look much further than that. So download some job specs and think about how he can meet them. He may not have worked in care but if he has looked after children or elderly relatives in any capacity then he has relevant caring skills.
He might also want to think about how he would uphold people's dignity and respect while doing possibly intimate personal care. A lot of it is statements of the blindingly obvious but you'd be suprised how many people don't say it. He's been a cleaning supervisor so he knows the importance of following procedures, health and safety etc. Get an up to date CV that shows how his experience at home and in his previous paid employment is relevant to roles in care.
That's the sort of thing that will get people to take note of his application.
And if the home is run by a larger organisation then phone them or google their HR or recruitment department and ask them to send out a speculative application form. If he's willing to start slowly, say that if they're not taking on permanent staff he's happy to be bank/relief staff. It'll be the short notice/unsociable shifts, but it's a foot in the door.

Alternatively look at social services jobs in day centres or private day care. These are being cut at the moment, but they might also be looking for bank staff and again it's a possible route towards NVQ.

NB - just seen your comment about daycare - a lot of jobs in care are shiftwork. If he can offer to work evenings or weekends, then employers are going to see that as a plus and that might then avoid your childcare costs.

samwich1979

elsien wrote: »

We get a few people emailing or phoning re jobs but to be honest unless we're recruiting at the time, we tend not to keep the details. There's a lot of people who contact us from the jobcentre who are keeping the benefits people happy rather than really interested in doing the work. It tends to foster a slightly cynical attitude at times.

Your OH needs to sell himself. If he's emailing saying he's got little to offer re care experience employers might not look much further than that. So download some job specs and think about how he can meet them. He may not have worked in care but if he has looked after children or elderly relatives in any capacity then he has relevant caring skills.
He might also want to think about how he would uphold people's dignity and respect while doing possibly intimate personal care. A lot of it is statements of the blindingly obvious but you'd be suprised how many people don't say it. He's been a cleaning supervisor so he knows the importance of following procedures, health and safety etc. Get an up to date CV that shows how his experience at home and in his previous paid employment is relevant to roles in care.
That's the sort of thing that will get people to take note of his application.
And if the home is run by a larger organisation then phone them or google their HR or recruitment department and ask them to send out a speculative application form. If he's willing to start slowly, say that if they're not taking on permanent staff he's happy to be bank/relief staff. It'll be the short notice/unsociable shifts, but it's a foot in the door.
Alternatively look at social services jobs in day centres or private day care. These are being cut at the moment, but they might also be looking for bank staff and again it's a possible route towards NVQ.

The only thing about bank work is the shifts fitting around childcare and if he doesnt get many shifts what we would do for money.

Its a case of all or nothing with us i think. Either he gets full time 40hrs a week or we stay as we are and he just looks after our son.
Affording childcare is our main worry as we have no-one who can help us out with this we would have to pay.