Care services
Lead adult care worker
Leading frontline care for vulnerable adults within their own homes, day care centres, residential and nursing homes and other healthcare settings.
Summary
Lead Adult Care Workers are the frontline staff who help adults with care and support needs to achieve their personal goals and live as independently and safely as possible, enabling them to have control and choice in their lives. In addition, Lead Adult Care Workers have responsibility for providing supervision, frontline leadership, guidance and direction for others, or working autonomously, exercising judgement and accountability. As a Lead Adult Care Worker you will make a positive difference to someone’s life when they are faced with physical, practical, social, emotional or intellectual challenges. You will be expected to exercise judgement and take appropriate action to support individuals to maintain their independence, dignity and control. By providing leadership, guidance and direction at the frontline of care delivery you will be instrumental in improving the health and wellbeing of those receiving care and support. Lead Adult Care Workers will in some circumstances have delegated responsibility for the standard of care provided and may supervise the work of other care workers. This exercising of autonomy and accountability means leading and supporting others to comply with expected standards and behaviours. Lead Adult Care Workers may work in residential or nursing homes, domiciliary care, day centres or some clinical healthcare settings. As well as covering Lead Adult Care Workers this standard also covers Lead Personal Assistants who can work at this senior level but they may only work directly for one individual who needs support and/or care services, usually within their own home.
Typical job titles include
- Lead Adult Care Worker | lead adult carers | lead carer | Lead Personal Assistant
Knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs)
K1:
Their job roles and other worker roles relevant to the context of the service in which they are working. This could include supporting with social activities, monitoring health, assisting with eating, mobility and personal care
K2:
Both their own and other workers professional boundaries and limits training and expertise
K3:
Relevant statutory Standards and Codes of Practice for their role
K4:
What the ‘Duty of Care’ is in practice
K5:
How to create and develop a care plan based on the person’s preferences in the way they want to be supported
K6:
How to monitor, plan, review a care plan in response to changing physical, social, and emotional needs of individuals
K7:
How to lead and support others to ensure compliance with regulations and organisational policies and procedures
K8:
How to ensure that dignity is at the centre of all work with individuals and their support circles
K9:
The importance of respecting diversity, the principles of inclusion and treating everyone fairly
K10:
The barriers to communication and be able to both identify, and determine, the best solutions to achieve success when communicating with the individual they are supporting
K11:
How to communicate clearly both verbally and non-verbally and able to influence others to maximise the quality of interaction
K12:
The role of advocates and when they might be involved
K13:
Their own, and other workers’ responsibilities for ensuring confidential information is kept safe
K14:
What abuse is and what to do when they have concerns someone is being abused
K15:
The national and local strategies for safeguarding and protection from abuse
K16:
What to do when receiving comments and complaints ensuring appropriate and timely actions takes place
K17:
How to recognise and prevent unsafe practices in the workplace
K18:
The importance and process of whistleblowing, being able to facilitate timely intervention
K19:
How to address and resolve any dilemmas they may face between a person’s rights and their safety
K20:
The health and safety responsibilities of self, employer and workers
K21:
How to keep safe in the work environment
K22:
What to do when there is an accident or sudden illness and take appropriate action
K23:
What to do with hazardous substances
K24:
How to promote fire safety and how to support others to so
K25:
How to reduce the spread of infection and support others in infection prevention and control
K26:
How to use and promote with others where relevant, risk assessments to enable a person centred approach to delivering care
K27:
What a professional relationship is with the person being supported and colleagues
K28:
How to work with other people and organisations in the interest of the person being supported
K29:
How to be actively involved in their own personal development plan and, where appropriate, other worker’s personal development plans
K30:
How to demonstrate the importance of excellent core skills in writing, numbers and information technology
K31:
How to develop and sustain a positive attitude and address signs and symptoms of stress in self and other colleagues
K32:
How to carry out research relevant to individuals’ support needs and share with others
K33:
How to access and apply good practice relating to their role
K34:
How to access and apply specialist knowledge when needed to support performance in the job role
Technical Educational Products
- ST0006: Lead adult care worker (Level 3) Approved for delivery
- TQL3S11022RN5156: NCFE CACHE Level 3 Technical Occupational Entry in Social Care (Diploma) (Level 3)
- TQL3S11024RN5156: NCFE CACHE Level 3 Technical Occupational Entry in Adult Care (Diploma) (Level 3)
- Reference:
- OCC0006
- Status:
Approved occupation
- Average (median) salary:
- £25,518 per year
- SOC 2020 code:
- 6136 Senior care workers
- SOC 2020 sub unit groups:
- 6136/03 Senior residential care workers
- 6135/02 Home care workers
- 6135/03 Residential care workers
- 6135/99 Care workers and home carers n.e.c.
- 6136/02 Senior home care workers
S1:
Support individuals they are working with according to their personal care/support plan
S2:
Take the initiative when working outside normal duties and responsibilities
S3:
Recognise and access help when not confident or skilled in any aspect of the role that they are undertaking
S4:
Implement/facilitate the specialist assessment of social, physical, emotional and spiritual needs of individuals with cognitive, sensory and physical impairments
S5:
Contribute to the development and ongoing review of care/support plans for the individuals they support
S6:
Provide individuals with information to enable them to exercise choice on how they are supported
S7:
Encourage individuals to actively participate in the way their care and support is delivered
S8:
Ensure that individuals know what they are agreeing to regarding the way in which they are supported
S9:
Lead and support colleagues to understand how to establish informed consent when providing care and support
S10:
Guide, mentor and contribute to the development of colleagues in the execution of their duties and responsibilities
S11:
Demonstrate dignity in their working role with individuals they support, their families, carers and other professionals
S12:
Support others to understand the importance of equality, diversity and inclusion in social care
S13:
Exhibit empathy for individuals they support, i.e. understanding and compassion
S14:
Exhibit courage in supporting individuals in ways that may challenge their own cultural and belief systems
S15:
Demonstrate and promote to other workers excellent communication skills including confirmation of understanding to individuals, their families, carers and professionals
S16:
Use and facilitate methods of communication preferred by the individual they support according to the individual’s language, cultural and sensory needs, wishes and preferences
S17:
Take the initiative and reduce environmental barriers to communication
S18:
Demonstrate and ensure that records and reports are written clearly and concisely
S19:
Lead and support others to keep information safe, preserve confidentiality in accordance with agreed ways of working
S20:
Support others, to recognise and respond to potential signs of abuse according to agreed ways of working
S21:
Work in partnership with external agencies to respond to concerns of abuse
S22:
Lead and support others to address conflicts or dilemmas that may arise between an individual’s rights and duty of care
S23:
Recognise, report, respond to and record unsafe practices and encourage others to do so
S24:
Lead and mentor others where appropriate to promote the wellbeing of the individuals they support
S25:
Demonstrate the management of the reduction of infection, including use of best practice in hand hygiene
S26:
Promote healthy eating and wellbeing by supporting individuals to have access to fluids, food and nutrition
S27:
Carry out fire safety procedures and manage others to do so
S28:
Develop risk assessments and use in a person centred way to support individuals safely including moving and assisting people and objects
S29:
Manage, monitor, report and respond to changes in the health and wellbeing of the individuals they support
S30:
Take the initiative to identify and form professional relationships with other people and organisations
S31:
Demonstrate, manage and support self and others to work within safe, clear professional boundaries
S32:
Take the initiative to evaluate and improve own skills and knowledge through reflective practice, supervision, feedback and learning opportunities
S33:
Demonstrate continuous professional development
S34:
Carry out research relevant to individuals’ support needs and share with others
S35:
Demonstrate where necessary mentoring and supervision to others in the workplace
S36:
Demonstrate good team/partnership working skills
S37:
Demonstrate their contribution to robust recruitment and induction processes
Technical Educational Products
- ST0006: Lead adult care worker (Level 3) Approved for delivery
- TQL3S11022RN5156: NCFE CACHE Level 3 Technical Occupational Entry in Social Care (Diploma) (Level 3)
- TQL3S11024RN5156: NCFE CACHE Level 3 Technical Occupational Entry in Adult Care (Diploma) (Level 3)
- Reference:
- OCC0006
- Status:
- Approved occupation
- Average (median) salary:
- £25,518 per year
- SOC 2020 code:
- 6136 Senior care workers
- SOC 2020 sub unit groups:
- 6136/03 Senior residential care workers
- 6135/02 Home care workers
- 6135/03 Residential care workers
- 6135/99 Care workers and home carers n.e.c.
- 6136/02 Senior home care workers
B1:
Care – is caring consistently and enough about individuals to make a positive difference to their lives
B2:
Compassion – is delivering care and support with kindness, consideration, dignity, empathy and respect
B3:
Courage – is doing the right thing for people and speaking up if the individual they support is at risk
B4:
Communication – good communication is central to successful caring relationships and effective team working
B5:
Competence – is applying knowledge and skills to provide high quality care and support
B6:
Commitment – to improving the experience of people who need care and support ensuring it is person centred
Technical Educational Products
- ST0006: Lead adult care worker (Level 3) Approved for delivery
- TQL3S11022RN5156: NCFE CACHE Level 3 Technical Occupational Entry in Social Care (Diploma) (Level 3)
- TQL3S11024RN5156: NCFE CACHE Level 3 Technical Occupational Entry in Adult Care (Diploma) (Level 3)
- Reference:
- OCC0006
- Status:
- Approved occupation
- Average (median) salary:
- £25,518 per year
- SOC 2020 code:
- 6136 Senior care workers
- SOC 2020 sub unit groups:
- 6136/03 Senior residential care workers
- 6135/02 Home care workers
- 6135/03 Residential care workers
- 6135/99 Care workers and home carers n.e.c.
- 6136/02 Senior home care workers
