18 Jul 2025

New preceptorship package to strengthen social care nursing workforce in England

Skills for Care has unveiled a new nursing preceptorship package designed specifically for adult social care providers in England - a key step in delivering on the ambitions of the Workforce Strategy for Adult Social Care.

The Adult Social Care Workforce Strategy identifies tailored support for the "Small but Mighty" workforce of regulated professionals and registered managers who make up 6% of the social care workforce but make a huge impact on quality of care and support.

Funded by the Skills for Care ‘Small but Mighty’ programme, the package supports providers to develop structured preceptorship programmes for newly-registered nurses and nursing associates working in social care where this type of support is not currently widely developed or standardised.

The new package of support aims to address that gap and is designed to help providers improve recruitment and retention by embedding preceptorship programmes confidently and sustainably within their organisations.

Claire Leenhouwers, National Professional Lead – Nursing, Skills for Care, explains:

“As we see a shift in focus from hospital-based care towards community care, and prevention over treatment, there are many opportunities for newly-registered nursing staff to build a career outside of the traditional hospital setting.

“I’m really excited to offer this programme. Preceptorship is a vital step in building an effective and sustainable social care nursing workforce which is why it’s one of the key recommendations in the national Workforce Strategy for Adult Social Care.

“Social care nurses and nursing associates play an incredible role in supporting people to live their lives well, and so it’s crucial they are provided with all the tools they need to be confident and effective in their roles.”

The package from Skills for Care includes a series of virtual events, including an introduction to preceptorship, a workshop for preceptors, and a workshop for preceptorship leads who will lead on embedding and championing preceptorship in their organisations.

The introductory session, delivered in partnership with the Nursing and Midwifery Council, will run on 3 September 2025, with the other workshops taking place on dates through September, October and November.

Preceptorship leads will also be invited to join a bi-monthly community of practice to network, receive peer support and ongoing guidance on how to continue to embed and monitor the quality of their preceptorship programme.

Marisa Spice, Head of Learning and Development, Nellsar Care Homes says:

“The Skills for Care offer around preceptorship will make all the difference. Easily accessible, reliable and relevant resources, guidance, and opportunities to attend free events which are not too long. Also, a great platform to network, find out more and feel safe in the familiarity of social care.”

Donna O’Boyle, Acting Executive Director of Professional Practice at the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), says:

“Nurses and nursing associates working in adult social care are a lifeline for people and communities across the UK. Social care nursing offers a uniquely rewarding career path. That’s why preceptorship is so vital; it lays the foundation for confidence, connection, and professional growth from the beginning.

"Preceptorship offers newly-registered professionals the structured support they need to build confidence, apply the Code in everyday practice, and feel a part of the team from the very start. At the NMC, our Principles of Preceptorship define what effective preceptorship looks like across all health and social care settings, helping to ensure a consistently high standard of support.

“We welcome Skills for Care’s tailored package for social care providers. Helping employers embed consistent, high-quality preceptorship will not only support those new to the register – it will also strengthen retention, grow leadership, and help ensure people receive the safe and effective care they deserve.”

Sarah Gilbert, Head of Workforce Strategy Implementation Unit, Skills for Care, adds:

“It’s great to be launching this new package of support during the one-year anniversary of The Workforce Strategy for Adult Social Care.

“The strategy is all about working together and I’m delighted we can use some of the Small but Mighty funding, to join with others from across the sector, on something which promotes safe, confident practice and fosters that strong sense of belonging in social care.”

Find out more about the preceptorship package and book on to a workshop.

-Ends-

Contact Information

Catriona Wilson
catriona.wilson@skillsforcare.org.uk

Notes to editors

About preceptorship

Nursing preceptorship is a structured period of support and development for newly registered nurses and nursing associates as they transition into their professional roles. It is designed to smooth the transition into the workforce, promote safe, effective, and confident practice and foster a sense of belonging and professional identity. Newly-registered nursing staff ‘preceptees’ are supported by more experienced nursing staff who act as ‘preceptors’.

About The Workforce Strategy for Adult Social Care in England

The Workforce Strategy for Adult Social Care in England is a sector-wide strategy developed through partnership working. It is not owned by any one single organisation - it is written by the sector, for the sector.

It reflects the shared vision and priorities of people who draw on care and support, care providers, workforce representatives, commissioners, local authorities, national bodies, and regulators.

Adult social care in England employs an estimated 1.59 million people across approximately 18,500 organisations. Despite this, the sector faces ongoing challenges, including a vacancy rate of around 8.3% (approximately 131,000 vacant posts as of 2023) and persistently high turnover.

England is likely to need an extra 540,000 posts in adult social care by 2040 if we look at changing demographics. Added to the vacancies that we have today, we could need more than 650,000 more people working in adult social care.

The strategy, published in July 2024, sets out a long-term vision (15 year) to build a sustainable, skilled, supported, and recognised workforce, and aims to improve recruitment, retention, career progression, wellbeing, and professional development across the sector.

Skills for Care is a partner organisation which supports the implementation of the workforce strategy through developing resources, leading on local delivery, contributing evidence, or championing workforce voices

For further details on the Strategy, the evidence base, and the organisations involved, visit www.ascworkforcestrategy.co.uk

For media enquiries about the Strategy please contact Catriona.Wilson@skillsforcare.org.uk

About Skills for Care

Established in 2001, Skills for Care is the strategic workforce development and planning body for adult social care in England. We work with employers, Government and partners to ensure social care has the right people, skills and support required to deliver the highest quality care and support now and in the future.

Our role is to work across the whole system to understand the key drivers of workforce change using insight, data and evidence. We provide managers and those involved in the delivery of social care with guidance on best practice, tools, resources and intelligence to support workforce recruitment, capabilities, and culture. This combination of strategic and operational activity is the cornerstone of our reach and insight into the sector.

Our vision is of a fair and just society where people can access the advice, care and support they need to live life to the fullest. We know that we can’t deliver this without

collaboration – one of our core values. By working with our partners we’re able to bring together a vast array of expertise, support, and influence – which in turn increases the impact and reach of our work. Convening and developing networks is one of our core strengths.