Care charity's £10 an hour pay rate

A social care charity that has services in Sunderland has announced it will pay its frontline support workers £10 per hour.

Community Integrated Care says the new pay rate will come into effect on April 1 for its 5,000-strong workforce and will see the charity pay more than both the Government’s National Living Wage and the voluntary Real Living Wage.

The move represents a £3m investment by the organisation.

The charity says that, as the UK faces a looming costof-living crisis and inflation at a 30-year high, it is hoped that the rise will help alleviate some of the worry facing its frontline workforce.

This industry-leading rate of pay means that a frontline support worker working 40 hours a week will receive an extra £625 a year. Mark Adams, chief executive officer, said: “As the social care sector continues its battle with low pay and skills shortages, our charity is proud to be in a position where we can go some way in fulfilling our commitment to valuing and rewarding our colleagues fairly for the outstanding work they do.

“We know that for many providers, this is an impossibility, tightly bound by the Government’s funding constraints and a recruitment crisis that is buckling our sector.

“We urgently need action from Government, including sustainable funding and an effective workforce strategy, to address the challenges social care is facing. In the meantime, our charity will continue to campaign for real change, so that these rates become the norm and not the exception in our sector.”