Hartlepool chiefs hope to build on growing reputation for social care training with new academy thanks to government cash

A Health and Social Care Skills Academy is one of the projects to be delivered in Hartlepool using funding from the £25 million Town Deal pot secured from Government.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities approved the business case for the scheme earlier this year, paving the way for work to begin.

The academy will be located in Ward 10 at the University Hospital of Hartlepool and it is estimated more than 3,000 learners will pass through its doors every year.

According to Jill Harrison, director of adult and community based services at Hartlepool Borough Council, the town already has a good retention rate for social care staff due to training opportunities, a record bosses hope to build on with the academy.

She said: “The hope is that we’ll be able to train local people and grow our own capacity,” she told the most recent meeting of the council’s Adult and Community-based Services Committee.

“We know the vast majority of people who work in the care sector don’t travel very far for work.

“Hopefully by encouraging our providers to offer local placements to support people through that route we hope that we’ll be able to retain them.”

Council chiefs added they have already have “fantastic examples” of people starting at the bottom rung of the ladder, such as a team clerk in a social work team, and rising through the ranks to positions such as team manager.

The committee also heard work is being carried out on regional recruitment campaigns promoting the different roles available and highlighting the benefits of a career in the industry.

Ms Harrison added: “We are working on it, hopefully it will be successful in us supporting local people.”

The social care skills academy is a partnership between North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust and Hartlepool College of Further Education.

Other projects to benefit from Town Deal funding include the renovation of the former Wesley Chapel and connectivity improvements around the Waterfront.

A civil engineering skills academy will also be provided, while the fifth and final Town Deal project – the redevelopment of Middleton Grange Shopping Centre – is expected to be approved soon.