Resources for home care agencies
By: Unique Iq
Tags: Home Care, Helpful Tips, Useful Websites, Domiciliary Care, Resources

Unique IQ has compiled this list of resources that we think home care agencies might find useful, whether you’re just starting out or have been in the sector for years. We’re adding to this list all the time, but if you have any suggestions, please let us know!

Information & advice

With the continually changing sector, having websites that provide up to date information and advice are vital. These websites include details from UK Government, professional associations and dedicated spokespeople of the home care industry.

Care Quality Commission (CQC) — as the UK Government’s regulator of all health and social care services within England, the CQC website is updated daily with information, news and important updates about the care sector. All homecare service providers within the UK must register with the CQC and undertake an official inspection based on key lines of enquiry. Following an inspection, the CQC will publicly publish the rating and findings on their website. These reports are a great way to provide in-depth evidence of care quality and business methods to potential customers who are looking to hire home care for a loved one.

UKHCA (UK Home Care Association) — the professional association of home care providers from a variety of backgrounds, including independent and voluntary sectors. The website is a fantastic resource for information for those within the home care sector, including news, advice, codes of practice and workshops. Membership is required to access the full website, paid on an annual basis.

UK Homecare Association

Homecare.co.uk - a website providing guidance and reviews of over 9500 home care providers within the UK. The website also offers information about suppliers, such as Unique IQ and details about jobs, opportunities to promote home care agencies, and services available within the sector.

Skills for Care — provides practical tools and support to help the health and social care workforce. Its resources range from online information to videos and conferences suitable for all roles within a home care agency. Skills for Care also provides information on recruitment and retention of staff, and details about the variety of qualifications care leaders and care support workers could benefit from to help improve the care they provide.

The King’s Fund — an independent charitable organisation working to improve health and care in England. With publications ranging from long reads to short articles, the website contains detailed research and analysis reports on health and social care within the UK, including public and private based. Using its data and information, home care agencies can compare current business activity, as well as discovering new ways to improve or change methods of care based on accurate and non-biased results.

Social Care Institute for Excellence — an research agency, aiming to improve the lives of people of all ages by co-producing, sharing, and supporting the use of the best available knowledge and evidence about what works in practice.

ACAS — HR resource dedicated to offering free, impartial advice on workplace rights, rules and best practice. Although it is not focused on the home care sector exclusively, it is a great source of information relating to regulation and management of your workforce.

News & publications

Websites and digital magazines are a great way to follow news, trends and supplier announcements such as advancements in technology and innovations. These three publications are the most well-known within the home care sector.

Home Care Insight — sharing news, trends, market intelligence and guest articles, this website is often viewed as the hub for all home care information. It also has a free newsletter which brings latest articles and most read news bulletins directly to your inbox.

Home Care Insight magazine

Care Management Matters — describing itself as a ‘complete social care management journal for executives and senior managers’ the Care Management Matters website offers a range of news, articles, social events and a knowledge hub. Signing up will provide access to an extensive list of information, resources and guidance which can be shared amongst home care managers to help actively improve business productivity. Care Management Matters also releases a monthly digital/hard copy magazine that sums up the latest in all matters of social care, including domiciliary care.

Care Talk — a digital and print magazine distributed 10 times throughout the year, Care Talk is written exclusively to promote and celebrate positive care. The magazine and website share key industry opinions, case studies and articles, whilst providing additional information on innovative products and services that bring added value to quality care provision.

Awards & recognition

Awards are an excellent way to acknowledge the achievements of a company and its staff. With the home care sector sharing over twenty (and counting!) award ceremonies throughout the year, we have collated some of the most prestigious and recognised below.

Home Care Awards — the Home Care awards recognise companies and organisations across the UK that provide home care or domiciliary care services, including suppliers. Nominations are open from September with the winners announced at a social event early the following year. In 2020, Unique IQ was announced winner of the ‘Best Technology, Data or Software Company’ Home Care Award.

Unique IQ won a 2020 Home Care Award for ‘Best Technology, Data or Software Product’

LaingBuisson — nominations open mid-year with an exclusive black-tie event announcing the winners in the November. Known as ‘the Oscars of Health and Social Care’, the LaingBuisson awards recognise excellence in health and social care, showcasing the very best in care provision, innovation and leadership in the public, private and third sectors. For two consecutive years running, Unique IQ has been a selected finalist for these prestigious awards.

Leaders in Care Awards — in association with Home Care Insight, the Leaders in Care awards hosts two dedicated categories: one for celebrating the achievements of care providers and one for the suppliers that serve them. The annual ceremony is held in September and nominations can be entered via the Home Care Insight website. In 2019, Unique IQ celebrated being a recognised finalist in the ‘Technology in Home Care’ award category, which recognises the investment, technology and innovation that goes into the domiciliary care sector in the UK.

Great British Care Awards — covering the whole of the UK, the Great British Care Awards is a series of regional events celebrating excellence across the care sector. Individuals are nominated via the website to receive an award and recognition for their ability to demonstrate excellence within their field of work. The categories cover a variety of areas within care, including older people or specialist services, home care, training, and impact and innovation.

A complete list of UK awards covering a variety of sectors is available via Boost Awards.

Events & conferences

Events and conferences provide a useful way to share experiences and ideas with others from the home care sector. The industry hosts a number of dedicated shows and exhibitions throughout the year to provide home care agencies with the opportunity to discover new services and suppliers in one place.

Events and conferences provide a useful way to share experiences and ideas with others from the home care sector. The industry hosts a number of dedicated shows and exhibitions throughout the year to provide home care agencies with the opportunity to discover new services and suppliers in one place.

HomeCare Expo — running alongside the Dementia, Care & Nursing Home Expo at the NEC Birmingham, the HomeCare Expo is the UK’s most dynamic event for the sector. The show focuses on discussions, initiatives, technology, products and services that can progress and reinvent the home care industry.

Health Plus Care Show — bringing together four shows at the ExCel, London, the Health Plus Care Show covers the entire health and social care community in the largest collaborative event in the UK. The show covers: healthcare services, residential and homecare, digital healthcare and technology and patient safety within health and care settings.

The Care Show — specifically focused on building a better future for care, the Care Show runs across two days and offers attendees free access to the show’s content. Alongside suppliers, the show also hosts a number of key thought leadership talks and independent experts offering business advice.

Here at Unique IQ we attend as many of the shows as we can throughout the year, whether as a supplier or to learn more about the sector. We look forward to meeting you at a future event.

Unique IQ creates innovative software solutions to help home care agencies deliver better care. For more information, please get in touch.