Hiring the Next Generation of Talent | The King's Trust + Salutem Care & Education
Welcome to the next episode of Engage Care Talent. We find out how partnering with The King's Trust's helps tackle youth unemployment.
Social care has a workforce problem. The experienced talent pool is shrinking and yet thousands of motivated young people are applying for roles and hearing nothing back. Something has to change.
In this episode of Engage Care Talent, Chris and Rowan are joined by Kirstie Jones at Salutem Care and Education, and Laura Cashman from The King's Trust - two people who've built a genuine partnership to tackle youth unemployment in the sector. They share what's working, what needed adapting, and why the results speak for themselves.
What you'll hear:
- How Salutem and The King's Trust designed a programme that gets young people job-ready and into roles
- Why values matter more than experience, and how to build a hiring process around that
- The myth-busting case for giving young people a guaranteed interview
- How to handle the manager who says "we need someone experienced" - and win
- What support actually looks like for young people facing mental health challenges
- A real example: Chris, 24, from Nottingham - unemployed, uncertain, now thriving in social care
About the guests:
Kirstie Jones is Chief People Officer at Salutem Care and Education, a UK-wide provider supporting around 3,000 staff across 150 sites. She's a passionate advocate for growing talent from within and building career pathways that start on the front line.
Laura Cashman leads Health and Social Care at The King's Trust - formerly The Prince's Trust - which has supported over 20,000 young people into health and social care careers since 2019. Their programmes are free to employers and backed by Department of Health funding.
Want to work with The King's Trust? Email them here workwithus@kingstrust.org.uk
Connect:
Kirstie Jones - Salutem Care and Education
Laura Cashman - The King's Trust