The professionalisation of domiciliary care workers in England following COVID-19

Abstract

The growing pressure of an ageing population has resulted in an increased focus and interest in home or domiciliary care. This, plus changing lifestyle trends and the COVID-19 pandemic, necessitates a review of care in the UK. The number of domiciliary carers has increased; of the 1.62 million social workers active in 2018, 685 000 were categorised as domiciliary carers. However, this group of carers are not recognised as healthcare professionals. Indeed, there is no formal recognition or definition of the role of the carer in the UK, and there seems to be an overlap between support workers and carers, without adequate explanation of what either of these roles mean in practice. This article highlights the need to pay particular attention to this care sector, particularly in light of both the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit.