​As a specialist recruitment agency in the social care and social work sector, we see the positive work done in the industry daily. Every day our consultants are placing qualified social workers, support workers and managers into roles that are supporting the most vulnerable in our society.

Recruitment is crucial in these sectors as there are often high levels of staff turnover and vacancies. There will always be a need for social workers and support workers, and we are passionate about ensuring vacancies are filled to keep services operating to a high standard.

Benefits of working in social care and social work recruitment

In such a robust sector, external financial influences often have less impact than in other industries. Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic unfortunately some sectors, such as construction and hospitality, struggled to stay afloat, while the social work and social care industry remained operational.

The Recruitment & Employment Confederation stated in their annual 2022/2023 report that the recruitment industry contributed over £41 billion to the UK economy. There are abundant opportunities within the industry, from entry-level to senior roles. A role in recruitment is incredibly diverse and with just under 30,000 recruitment agencies in the UK, there are plenty of options to choose from. While some sectors can draw individuals in with exciting prospects, the social care and social work sector has stability that many others don’t.

Having hired both experienced recruitment consultants and consultants who have recruited in other sectors, we have a wide range of knowledge on working in the different sectors.

What our staff who have made the jump have to say

We’ve spoken to a handful of our recruitment consultants who have made the jump:

Luke Longman, a principal consultant here at Charles Hunter Associates, made the move from IT recruitment during the Covid-19 pandemic. He now works on our locum social work team. Luke explains why the move was easy for him.

‘I made the switch during COVID, so for me it was a fantastic choice as I knew it was a sector that wasn’t going to be affected like IT was. The people within the sector are so easy to approach and I feel like I am making a difference in both our candidates and consultants' lives. There are so many clients I can work with, making business development easier and there is incredible longevity in the sector.’

Luke isn’t the only one who jumped from IT recruitment to the social work sector. Grace Gordon made the change back in 2022 and had this to say:

‘My recruitment journey started within the IT industry, I decided to make a switch to the Social Work sector back in 2022. 

The main difference I have found moving from a completely different sector to another is being from a job short market where there is an overflow of candidates, to a sector where there is always plenty of new opportunities. 

I decided to make the switch as I realised the IT industry wasn't suitable to my personality, I would say I pride myself in making a real difference in the lives of Social Workers, whose jobs are to make a difference to Children and Families and being able to really connect with the candidates and clients that I work with is extremely rewarding.’

Are you ready to join us?

It is important to choose a sector you will enjoy working in and we could list a million reasons why it should be the social work and social care sector.

If you are an experienced recruitment consultant, or looking to begin a career in recruitment, get in touch with our Associate Director Mark (mbeaver@charecruitment.com) or check out our open roles here.