A CAMPAIGN to recruit social care workers in Oxfordshire is set to be launched in a bid to combat soaring demand for home care.

High staff turnover and an estimated need for 7,500 more social care workers over the next decade has prompted bosses to overhaul their approach to hiring.

Oxfordshire County Council said from next year it would roll out a new groundbreaking strategy that focused on the "values, behaviours and attitudes" of new recruits.

Up to 30 per cent of new social care workers are understood to be dropping out of the job in early stages and but the local authority wants them to stay in the job for longer.

Deputy director of joint commissioning Kate Terroni said it was part of plans to transform the public image of social care workers and recognise the work they do with the elderly and other vulnerable members of society.

To push its message, the county council is due to hold six recruitment events around Oxfordshire over the winter.

Ms Terroni said: "Many care workers are doing a fantastic job and we need to celebrate that.

"It is not the easiest job out there, but it is certainly one of the most fulfilling and they go home knowing they have made a real difference to people's lives.

"We want the right people in the job, which is why we launching this campaign."

At present the county's social care workforce is made up of 14,250 people, which the council does not directly employ.

Instead it contracts out services to care providers, who employ home care staff and care home workers and nurses.

There are about 1,800 people receiving care, with the council spending about £19.5m annually on care and a further £9.6m on direct payments.

It has developed its new strategy – aimed at boosting recruitment and the time people stay working in social care – with the backing of the Oxfordshire Association of Care Providers.

The plan has also won praise from the South East Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, which has proposed using the Oxfordshire model as a 'template'.

Using a one-year grant of about £500,000 from Health Education Thames Valley, the county council also undertook a fresh training drive, after concerns were raised about skill-gaps in support for dementia and so-called 'assistive technology' – such as devices that locate people who have left their home and become lost or confused.

In 2014/15, the council trained 252 people in the use of assistive technology and 487 people in dementia learning and development.

Six social care providers took part in its "values-based" recruitment pilot, which included training providers to use new interviewing techniques.

Ms Terroni said she also hoped a wider recruitment campaign for health and social care workers could be taken up in partnership with the NHS in Oxfordshire.

This was because the county's above-average living costs place many employers – including the public sector – at a disadvantage when trying to attract staff.

She added: "We want to show people why they should want to come and work here in health or social care.

"You can't ignore the environment we are in, but we want to change how society values people who work in these homes.

"We want it to be seen as a career and for people to see how incredibly important it is."