Adult social care providers across County Durham will be able to access additional training for their staff thanks to a £44,000 grant.

County Durham Care Academy has secured the funding from the Workforce Development Fund to help local care providers cover the cost of upskilling their staff.

Launched by Durham County Council last year, the Care Academy aims to improve skills and resilience within the care sector by offering support across a range of areas including recruitment and retention of staff and managers, training and service delivery.

The grant from the Workforce Development Fund, which is administered through Skills for Care and funded by the Department of Health and Social Care, will assist with the academy’s training role.

Cllr Lucy Hovvels, Durham County Council’s Cabinet member for adult and health services, said: “We are delighted to have secured this grant from the Workforce Development Fund. It will help to ensure the continued professional development of staff across the adult social care sector and is part of a broader range of training and development opportunities being rolled out in County Durham.

“Care workers are working so hard to keep vulnerable people safe and well at the moment and we would like to assure them we are doing everything we can to support them.”

The funding can be used towards the cost of staff completing a broad range of qualifications, learning programmes and digital skills modules. In order to apply, adult social care providers must first join the Care Academy. To request a membership form, contact careacademy@durham.gov.uk

For more information about the Workforce Development Fund, visit www.durham.gov.uk/wdf

To find out more about County Durham Care Academy, visit www.durham.gov.uk/careacademy