Podcast: Care England chief talks coronavirus, social care crisis and his love for the North

Care England’s chief executive reveals his passion for social care and to give people a ‘better quality of life’, how the government can fix social care and how the North East of England will always be home to him.

Professor Martin Green also spoke about coronavirus. Please note, this interview was recorded before the current government regulations came into place.

He told the 'Let's Talk About Care' Podcast: “Do all the things that are being asked of you, make sure you are washing your hands and have a clear contingency plan.”

Professor Green warned the government cannot use their ‘sticking plaster’ and their 'one size fits all' policy for much longer. The chief executive believes the time is now to produce a ‘white paper’ for social care.

He said: “My view is there won’t be a green paper. What we need is a white paper and a government with its 80-seat majority to come up with a long-term solution. I don’t want another green paper, we have done the consultation to death. There needs to be a suite of ways the citizen can contribute rather than being a one size fits all.”

Professor Green also commented on the recent shortage of 220,000 care workers in the UK which will be impacted next year if the Home Secretary’s proposal of the changed immigration system comes into force.

This will include all those applying for a visa to live and work in the UK will need to have a job offer paying a minimum of £25,600, although workers who earn above £20,480 will be eligible if their job is on the government’s Shortage Occupation List.

“I think it will have a major impact in particular areas. It is really difficult to get staff, so you need staff from overseas. I wanted the home secretary to say my objective for 2025 will be a more homegrown workforce but between now and 2025 we need to have a transition plan.”

Professor Green has a long and varied career in social care including spending nearly four years working for UNICEF in Africa. His passion started when he volunteered at a care home for people with physical disabilities when he was at school in Morpeth, Northumberland.

He said: “It was quite depressing because there were people who had very severe physical disabilities. The services didn’t actually understand that they have to give people a life, not just keep them alive. One thing I have noticed working in the care sector is how much things have improved. I think we still have a long way to go but I think we’ve come a long way.”

Care homes have improved immensely over the past decade so when asked what his ideal care home would be, he said: “A collaborative approach between residents families and staff, it would be flexible in regards to how food is prepared so have grazing stations rather than the traditional three meals per day.”

Professor Green believes care homes should be at the heart of the community where visitors and families are continuously coming in and out visiting the home. He would like to see care homes encouraging residents to be as independent as they can. “It would also be a home where not everything was done for you but you would have to do things for yourself.”

'If anyone says to me where's home? I would say Northumberland'

Professor Green is a profound orator and speaks at many conferences and events. Apart from having a great team behind him who researches statistics and analysis for his speaking, he said: “The secret behind it is, we were taught at school. I was on the public speaking team I had a headmaster that used to give really great instant feedback. When I am giving a speech even now, I’ve got Mr Chapman in my ear.”

Growing up in the north east, Professor Green spoke about his upbringing and said: "There is probably no better place in the world to be brought up than in Northumberland. There is a real sense of community and you feel as though you belong somewhere. If anyone says to me where's home? I would say Northumberland rather than London."

To listen to Professor Martin Green speaking as a guest on 'Let's talk about care' podcast click here