"The health and care sector is one which is anticipating the largest growth in the sub-region"

Sectors: Health, Care & Early years

This is a large and complex sector with a wide range of employers and occupations, a growing workforce and growth forecast to continue.

Advantage West Midlands has identified the health and care sectors as being of significant regional importance and the Coventry and Warwickshire LSC has identified a number of growth areas in the economy in the period to 2010 which include education, health and social care.

Skills for Health has identified that nationally, 'a combination of replacement demand and growth will necessitate replacing over 80% of the existing professional and assistant professional workforce in the health sector in the period to 2010'.

As the Coventry and Warwickshire LSC 19+ Strategic Area Review, notes: the health service is one of the sectors anticipating the largest growth in the sub-region: Demand for NHS staff is especially acute in Coventry and set to increase with large-scale new developments and building programmes. There will be a considerable requirement for workforce development programmes together with a continued demand for more new entrants to the sector...In addition, the drive towards occupational standards in...the health and care sector will put pressure on providers to meet demand.

Skills for Care's State of the Social Workforce Report (2004) estimated the wider social care workforce at over 1.6 million, including adult and older people care, children's services and mental health. In October 2006 the 'Options for Excellence Report' (Des) stated that 'not enough people were being attracted to work in social care' with a vacancy rate double that for all types of industry, commercial and public employment. The vision for the social care workforce of 2020 is for a populated, highly skilled and accountable workforce within a social model of care.