Issue - meetings

To consider the report.

The Interim Managing Director, Care Dorset, introduced the report which summarised the performance of the company over the previous year.

Officers responded to Members’ comments and requests for clarification, details included:

• Referring to Para 22 within the report, it was clarified that ‘local firms’ meant firms operating within the county of Dorset, with the majority being based within the area that Dorset Council served.
• Care Dorset had an ambition to set up its own academy to focus on the training and retention of staff and was hoping to pursue this in 2024. It would also be launching apprenticeship scheme from January 2024 to provide its workforce with training and development opportunities to allow staff to progress with their careers. A Leadership programme would also be developed and would work with skills providers to utilise their programmes for Care Dorset staff. There was also an ambition for the Academy, once launched, to be open to other care providers as well. This this would all be referenced in the upcoming strategy due to be considered at a future meeting.
• To date, there hadn’t been much engagement with local communities in order to recruit staff from local areas, but this was something that Care Dorset was keen to do in the future and this engagement would also include providing outreach services and raising awareness of what Care Dorset could offer. This would also be featured in the upcoming strategy.
• There were challenges within the sector in terms of recruitment, but the pay and terms and conditions of work on offer from Care Dorset allowed it to be an attractive proposition. Care Dorset was aiming to work with schools and colleges to attract future staff and it was considered that with the right marketing Care Dorset would be able to attract and retain its staff.

NOTED