A care worker from Houston is urging other people in the area to consider a career in care.

Kate Houston works for specialist child and youth care charity Kibble. 

In a bid to combat the challenges faced by the care sector around recruitment and retention, Kibble has announced a package of financial and training support to people actively seeking a career in care.

Kibble, which provides specialist services for young people facing adversity or who have experienced trauma, is aiming to recruit and train a record number of 40 new Child and Youth Care Workers (CYCW) this autumn as part of its Career Start training programme. 

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The initiative is nominated for Best Apprenticeship Programme in the Investors in People awards that will be announced in November.

All recruits at Kibble are provided with extensive support, including training and mentoring from an experienced in-house team for one year, while earning a salary.

Kate embarked on the Career Start programme in 2022 after a 15-year career as a dental nurse.

She said: "It was such a leap of faith for me to leave a career that I had worked hard to build up over a fifteen-year period – it was all I had ever known and I really enjoyed being a dental nurse but I just got to a point where I wanted more from my job. I wanted to feel like I was having a real impact, making a real difference to someone’s life.

"As a mum myself, I am passionate about the welfare and opportunities available for young people and when I saw Kibble was recruiting for Child and Youth Care Workers (CYCW) I had to take the chance to find out more. 

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"It was a necessity to find a role that also offered a salary so to find this entry level position, with salary, and opportunity to gain a national qualification - I couldn’t really see any downsides to it.

"I knew I had a range of transferrable skills from my time as a dental nurse and also being a mum. I was thrilled to see the recruitment process focused on the attitude you would bring to the role as Kibble ensures you receive the required training and qualifications."

For further information on the programme or to apply for the next cohort visit https://kibblecharity.org/career-start.

Applications close on Thursday, October 26.