Building a Future-Ready Workforce Why Being ‘Care Aware’ Matters
UK businesses are grappling with workforce challenges such as an ageing demographic, skills shortages, and the growing need to attract and retain younger talent. Care Experienced people are often overlooked but they may well be the solution.
Care Experienced people are those who are, or have been, in care such as foster care, a children’s home, adopted, kinship care where they live with relatives or with social work involvement at home. They represent a diverse, resilient, and creative talent pool yet despite their potential, they are often underrepresented in long-term and stable employment. This gap isn’t about ability – it’s about opportunity and whether employers are equipped to create environments where this talent can thrive.
We have supported Care Experienced people for nearly 50 years. In recent years, we now help employers attract, support and most importantly retain this hidden and often overlooked talent through our Care Aware workforce training programme. Delivered in partnership with leading organisations such as the John Lewis Partnership, the CPD-certified training equips leaders, managers, and teams with practical insights into the barriers Care Experienced people face. As well as the steps organisations can take to become more inclusive and socially responsible employers.
To date, more than 1,000 people who work in the John Lewis Partnership have taken part in over 100 Care Aware sessions. The impact has been transformative, both culturally and commercially. The John Lewis Partnership owns and operates two of Britain’s best-loved retail brands – John Lewis and Waitrose. Started as a radical experiment over a century ago, the Partnership is now the largest employee-owned business in the UK, with 70,000 employees who are all Partners in the business. The Partnership is purpose-driven, existing to create a fairer and more sustainable future for Partners, customers, suppliers, and communities.
“The response has been fantastic. People have said the Care Aware training has genuinely changed the way they manage and support their teams, opening their eyes to new perspectives. It’s been delivered with real empathy and thoughtfulness, and people have felt genuinely valued for being part of it.” Sarah Scahill, Building Happier Futures Lead, John Lewis Partnership”.
Why it matters for business
Becoming a Care Aware employer not only strengthens your ESG, DEI, and CSR credentials, it helps address one of the biggest business challenges today – building a loyal, future-ready workforce. By understanding and supporting Care Experienced employees, organisations can improve recruitment, retention, and performance, while creating safer, more inclusive workplace cultures for all colleagues.
“The training was extremely useful — it made me reflect and see things from a different perspective.” Training participant
Lead with purpose
As the world of work continues to evolve, forward-thinking organisations are those that lead with purpose and inclusion at their core. Investing in Care Aware workforce training is a practical step toward unlocking untapped potential and strengthen your organisation’s resilience, innovation, and reputation as a values-led employer.
To find out more about how your organisation can become Care Aware, visit:
www.whocaresscotland.org/careaware or contact [email protected] to discuss partnership opportunities.
Who Cares? Scotland (SC026076) is a national charity working to create a lifetime of equality, respect, and love for Care Experienced people.
