Skills for Care develops workforce data set service  

Skills for Care has developed its workforce data set service by adding more features so providers can better manage records and benchmark against other similar operators.

Its adult social care workforce data set (ASC-WDS), funded by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), first went live in 2019 and has undergone development work following feedback from 20,000 employers in the sector.

The workforce development body has also introduced a benefits bundle for social care employers who have an ASC-WDS account.

ASC-WDS allows employers to manage team records, keep on top of training needs, and benchmark their service against other similar providers on metrics, including pay, sickness, turnover, and qualifications.

The insights provide support to businesses for workforce planning, and the data shared is used by Skills for Care to offer analysis of the sector across England. The data helps in the development of the body’s annual State of the adult social care sector and workforce in England and Size and structure of the adult social care sector and workforce in England reports.

As part of the service, users gain access to training programmes and are eligible to claim from the workforce development fund. The bundle, launched this week, will provide new and existing ASC-WDS account holders with offers and discounts across Skills for Care’s products and services.

Skills for Care chief executive Oonagh Smyth said: ‘Following our initial go-live two years ago we already have 20,000 employers using the service and providing us with valuable insights which are used to create our national reports and feed into key decisions and discussions among the government, DHSC, and other key stakeholders.

‘We are excited to now officially launch the service and we want to encourage more social care employers to sign up to share their insights. It also means they can make use of all of the practical benefits which the service offers to easily manage key workforce data, including staff records and training needs.’