Commissioning care homes: common safeguarding challenges
Underlying causes – Training
Care home staff often receive only minimal training in line with statutory requirements. This is of course related to resources, but a lack of investment in staff is likely to be costly in the long run due to increased turnover and recruitment costs.
It is also the case that when staff are trained individually by being sent on a course they find it hard to change their practice on returning to work because of the culture, environment and peer pressure. It is often wiser and more economical to provide training to the staff as a team so that they can support each other to implement changes.
Prevention checklist
- The home has a robust training regime that extends beyond statutory requirements.
- The local authority offers safeguarding training to all providers and addresses issues of cost and staff cover within contractual arrangements.
- Staff receive training in safeguarding, mental capacity and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards as part of their induction and attend regular refresher courses.
- The home carries out a regular training needs assessment within a culture of continuous improvement.
- People who use services are included in the provision of staff training.
- All night staff have the same access to training as daytime workers.
- There is a trained first-aider on duty at all times.
- Each member of staff has a plan for progression and development.
- Staff can demonstrate the benefits of their training and identify changes in practice resulting from it.
- The home demonstrates that it learns from mistakes that lead to safeguarding referrals and includes issues raised in the training programme.
- The home has a culture of continuous improvement taking account of the views of residents, relatives and frontline staff.
