Care manager

The position of care manager is a front-line leadership role within a residential care setting

As a care manager, you'll be responsible for all aspects of the day-to-day operations within the care setting, including recruiting and managing staff, managing budgets and ensuring that the quality of the services provided meets national care standards.

Care homes are becoming more specialised services, especially for people living with dementia or those at the end of life, and you'll be responsible for homes that provide all year, round-the-clock care.

The best care managers make services visible as a local resource and successfully integrate them within the community.

Types of care manager

You can work in a variety of settings, including:

• elderly care homes or nursing homes
• supported housing (combines housing with support services for vulnerable people - both adults and young adults)
• children's homes
• hospice care (for those with life-limiting or terminal illness).

Responsibilities

As a care manager, you'll be responsible for meeting national minimum standards of care issued by relevant bodies. These include:

• Care Quality Commission (CQC) - the independent regulator of health and social care in England
• Care Inspectorate Wales - the independent regulator of social care and childcare in Wales
• Care Inspectorate (Scotland) - the national regulator for care services in Scotland
• The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) - the independent body responsible for monitoring and inspecting the health and social care services in Northern Ireland.

Roles can vary depending on the setting, but you'll typically need to:

• oversee the day-to-day running of the care setting
• ensure the delivery of quality, person-centred care
• manage budgets, contracts and the financial effectiveness of the setting
• lead and motivate a team of care workers
• recruit and train new staff
• chair meetings and deliver training
• take on a visible leadership role
• maintain quality standards and ensure health and safety compliance
• liaise with and maintain partnerships with other local community organisations
• ensure any regulatory activity, such as personal care and administering medicines, is delivered within regulations
• make decisions about the future direction and growth of the setting
• provide information, advice and support to residents' families
• organise activities for residents and actively promote their independence.

There are also opportunities to manage residential establishments for children. In this instance you'll need to:

• safeguard and promote the welfare of the children
• ensure the quality of care provided is consistent with current legislation
• liaise with local authorities as well as health and other professionals working with the children
• manage child protection concerns and complaints
• contribute to care planning, statutory case reviews and case conferences
• support children's emotional and behavioural needs
• lead homes through Ofsted inspections
• assess new referrals and carry out inductions.

For children and young people, national minimum standards are issued by the Department for Education.

Salary

• Salaries typically range from £28,000 for deputy managers to £60,000 for experienced care managers.
• In some settings, senior managers can earn over £70,000.
• Salaries for care managers can vary significantly, depending on whether you're working for a local authority provision or an NHS trust where there are established pay bands, or for private and not-for-profit provisions. Other factors affecting salary include your location, the size and nature of the home, and your experience and responsibilities.

Benefits may include a pension, private life assurance, and training and development opportunities. Some roles may offer performance-based bonuses.

Income figures are intended as a guide only.

Working hours

Residential care is a 24-hour, year-round service, and you'll usually work between 35 and 40 hours per week. This may include shifts, evening and weekend work, occasional sleep-ins and some on-call duties in the event of an emergency.

What to expect

• You'll spend considerable office time completing paperwork but will also visit carers and residents in the care home setting. Some posts have a live-in requirement.
• Although the role can be challenging, there is now an increased focus on and commitment to providing support and training to those in leadership roles within adult social care.
• Jobs are available within local council, NHS trust and private or not-for-profit provisions throughout the UK.
• You may need to travel during the working day when you have responsibility for more than one residence or to attend meetings.

Qualifications

To become an adult social care manager in England, you'll need both hands-on experience in health or social care and a relevant qualification. The majority of care managers have typically worked in the sector for around five years before moving into a frontline care manager role.

Most care managers undertake vocational qualifications as part of their career progression, some beginning their career as frontline carers, others in more senior positions such as team leader or deputy manager. The Department of Health and Social Care's Care workforce pathway for adult social care details the recommended behaviours, skills and experience for those working in different care roles, including deputy managers and registered managers.

Skills for Care, a charity that advises on adult social care in England, recommends that before becoming a care manager you take the Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Adult Care or the equivalent Level 5 Leader in Adult Care apprenticeship.

To become a registered manager (in day-to-day charge of the regulated services provided at the care home), you must be registered with the CQC. As well as having the required experience and qualifications, you'll also need to pass an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

Although you don't need a degree to work in care management, many care managers have management and leadership qualifications and some go on to do further qualifications within their areas of specialism, for example, in dementia or autism studies.

Having a qualification in nursing, social work or occupational therapy, or a health and social care-related degree, HND or foundation degree may be helpful, though this should be combined with relevant experience. Some care managers will have a mix of qualifications, for example, a nursing qualification and a management qualification.

For more information on working as an adult social care manager, see ThinkCareCareers.

To manage a children's residential care home, you'll typically need the Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare (England). You must be working in a deputy manager role in an appropriate setting or have the opportunity to carry out the duties associated with this role to take the qualification.

To be a registered children's home manager, you must register with Ofsted and will need to pass an enhanced DBS check. (If you're also providing healthcare that falls within the scope of the CQC, you will also need to register with them.)

For information on social care qualifications elsewhere in the UK, see:

• Scottish Social Services Council
• Social Care Wales
• Northern Ireland Social Care Council

Get more information on what's involved in working within the social care sector.

Skills

You'll need to have:

• excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to develop relationships built on trust with service users, families and multidisciplinary teams
• excellent written skills for writing reports and creating care plans, for example
• a genuine passion for providing high-quality, person-centred care
• management skills with the ability to lead, support and motivate others
• resilience and a problem-solving approach to work
• the ability to handle challenging situations calmly and effectively
• excellent organisational and time-management, essential for managing both your own and others workloads
• financial skills for managing budgets
• project management skills and the ability to think strategically to lead service improvements and adapt to developments in the sector
• a solid understanding of regulatory requirements and safeguarding responsibilities.

You'll also need the right values and behaviours to work in social care. These include:

• adaptability and flexibility to meet changing needs
• imagination to devise creative responses to problems
• compassion and empathy when dealing with service users and their families who may be in distress
• the courage to make tough decisions and to speak up for what is right
• imagination
• integrity, honesty, reliability and responsibility
• respect for all services users, their families and colleagues
• treating people with dignity to uphold their rights, choices and independence
• confidentiality for dealing with sensitive information appropriately.

Work experience

The majority of care managers have typically worked in the sector for around five years before moving into a frontline care manager role. Experience in a social care, healthcare, nursing or social work setting is particularly useful.

Getting experience in a frontline care role provides a key stepping stone to management positions. Many health and social care degree courses include work placements where you can gain a real understanding of the sector and develop your practical skills.

Part-time or holiday work as a care assistant, support worker or healthcare assistant is also useful and will allow you to build up relevant key skills and knowledge. You can also volunteer with a charity or community organisation to show your commitment to care work. The NHS and many local councils, for example, offer volunteering programmes.

You could also ask to shadow a care manager or experienced team leader in a care home or supported living service. This will give you a valuable insight into what's involved in a management role.

Any experience you have in a leadership role or of managing staff or budgets is also beneficial.

Find out more about the different kinds of work experience and internships that are available.

Employers

Every registered care provider must have a registered manager for every regulated activity it provides (unless it's a health service body). Many of the services carried out in residential care settings fall under the band of regulated activities within the Care Act (2014) and in subsequent reforms such as those included in the Health and Care Act 2022.

The most common employers of care managers are:

• private residential care homes and nursing homes
• NHS trusts
• local authorities
• charities and voluntary sector organisations
• children's homes.

With the number of care homes increasing, especially in elderly and dementia care, there is an increasing demand for qualified registered managers.

Look for job vacancies at:

• Carehome.co.uk
• CharityJob
• Community Care Jobs
• Local Government Jobs
• NHS Jobs and NHSScotland Jobs

Vacancies are also advertised on the websites of:

• care homes
• NHS trusts
• local authorities
• private hospitals.

Professional development

You'll need to keep up to date with regulatory requirements throughout your career, undertake continuing professional development (CPD) activities and seek out opportunities to network with other managers. Depending on your employer, you may have access to shadowing, mentoring and coaching to further develop your skills and competencies as a leader and manager.

Skills for Care provides a range of leadership development programmes, tools and resources for new, experienced and senior managers. For more information, see Skills for Care - support for leaders and managers.

Registered managers are encouraged to become a member of Skills for Care and to join their local registered managers' network to get support and meet other managers in their area.

Employers may also support you in taking a postgraduate qualification in management or a specialist area of work, such as dementia care or learning disabilities.

Career prospects

There are various options available for care managers looking to progress their careers. Large healthcare companies or charities offer regional manager opportunities, which involve the management of multiple provisions within a regional area.

For a different perspective in social care management, you could move between frontline operational roles into strategic roles such as commissioning posts with local authorities and NHS trusts.

The independent regulator for health and social care in England, the CQC, recruits inspectors and inspection managers to inspect social care provisions. As an experienced care manager, you could use your knowledge to help ensure that provisions are meeting the required standards of quality and care. As part of its remit, Ofsted also recruits inspectors to inspect local authority children's services and social care providers, such as children's homes.

If you've got a background in social work or nursing, you may be able to move back into management roles within those areas.

High-level experienced managers may become involved in consultancy work, advising care providers and contributing to research and policy writing on issues of social care management. You might also choose to set up a new care service.