Winter Recruitment in Adult Social Care: 6 Ways Care Homes Can Prepare for Seasonal Pressure

Winter can bring extra pressure for adult social care services.

Colder weather, seasonal illness, annual leave and the busy Christmas period can all affect rotas at a time when care homes still need to provide safe, consistent and person-centred care around the clock.

For managers, the challenge is not simply finding somebody to cover an empty shift.

It is making sure the right Care Assistants and Healthcare Workers are available when needed, with the appropriate experience, checks and understanding of the people they will be supporting.

That is why October is a good time to start thinking ahead.

CQC Regulation 18 requires regulated providers to deploy sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced people to meet the needs of those using the service. CQC also expects providers to have arrangements in place to respond when circumstances change. Care Quality Commission

So, how can adult care homes prepare for winter pressures before they arrive?

1. Look at your winter rota before the gaps appear

The best time to think about winter cover is not when somebody phones in sick an hour before their shift.

Planning early gives managers a clearer picture of where pressure points could arise and more time to put suitable cover in place.

Start by looking ahead at known commitments. Christmas and New Year leave, planned training, maternity leave and existing vacancies can all be factored into the rota well in advance.

Then think about the things that are harder to predict.

Winter can bring periods of illness and other unexpected absence, while severe weather can also disrupt travel and normal working arrangements. Current UKHSA guidance recommends that social care providers maintain business continuity plans for cold weather and ensure their teams understand what action to take. GOV.UK

A useful question for managers is:

“If two or three members of our regular team became unavailable at short notice, what would we do?”

If the answer is not immediately clear, now is the time to strengthen that contingency plan.

2. Build relationships with temporary workers before you urgently need them

Temporary recruitment works best when it is proactive rather than reactive.

Bringing somebody completely unfamiliar into a service at the last minute can create additional pressure for managers, permanent colleagues and the worker themselves.

Where possible, care homes can benefit from building a small pool of trusted temporary Care Assistants and Healthcare Workers who already understand the service.

That might mean people who know:

• the layout and day-to-day routines of the home
• how handovers are managed
• the expectations of the service
• relevant policies and procedures
• the needs and preferences of the people they may be supporting

Familiarity can make additional cover feel less disruptive.

It also means that when sickness or another unexpected absence occurs, managers may already have access to workers who have previously supported the service rather than starting from scratch.

At First for Support, this is something we place particular importance on: getting to know the service and trying to build continuity through people who are a good fit for that environment.

3. Protect your permanent team from unnecessary pressure

When there is a rota gap, the first response can sometimes be to ask existing employees to do more.

Occasional overtime may work well for everyone.

Repeatedly relying on the same people to cover additional shifts is different.

Adult social care is demanding work, and colleagues still need appropriate rest, support and time away from work. Continually stretching an already busy team can place additional pressure on the people providing care.

Good winter workforce planning therefore considers more than the immediate gap on the rota.

Think about:

• Workload: Are the same people regularly being asked to cover?
• Rest: Are additional shifts affecting appropriate breaks and recovery time?
• Morale: Is winter pressure beginning to affect the wider team?
• Sustainability: Can the current arrangement realistically continue through December, January and February?

Using temporary recruitment strategically can provide breathing space when it is needed rather than expecting the permanent workforce to absorb every unexpected absence.

The goal should be to support the whole team so they can continue giving people the quality of care they deserve.

4. Make sure temporary workers are properly prepared for your service

Finding an available Care Assistant is only part of the solution.

They also need to be ready to work safely and confidently within your particular care environment.

CQC guidance states that providers should have an induction programme that prepares people for their role, alongside appropriate training, supervision and development. Care Quality Commission

For a temporary worker joining a care home, a good introduction to the service could cover practical information such as where things are located, who they report to and how the shift operates.

But it should also help them understand the people they will be supporting.

That may include communication needs, mobility requirements, individual routines, safeguarding considerations and any other information they legitimately need to carry out their role safely.

A strong induction does not need to make temporary cover complicated.

It simply helps everyone start the shift with the same understanding.

This is particularly important during winter, when managers may already have additional pressures to deal with and cannot afford unnecessary confusion.

5. Include infection prevention in your winter planning

Winter preparation is not only about the rota.

It is also about protecting the health and wellbeing of the people receiving care and those providing it.

Respiratory illnesses can present additional challenges within care environments, particularly where people may already be more vulnerable to illness. UKHSA provides specific infection-prevention resources for adult social care services, including care homes. GOV.UK

For the 2026/27 flu season, frontline social care workers without access to an employer-led occupational health scheme are among those eligible for a free flu vaccination from October, alongside residents of long-stay residential care homes. UK Health Security Agency Blog

For managers, winter preparation can therefore include checking that workers:

1. understand the service's infection-prevention procedures;
2. know how and when to raise concerns;
3. have access to the appropriate information and equipment for their role; and
4. understand what is expected if they become unwell themselves.

Again, preparation makes the difference.

Clear processes mean people know what to do rather than trying to work things out during an already challenging shift.

6. Have a recruitment partner you can call when plans change

Even the best winter plan cannot predict everything.

• Someone may wake up unwell.
• A worker's childcare arrangements may suddenly change.
• Bad weather might make travel difficult.

A person receiving care may develop additional needs that mean more support is temporarily required.

That is where a reliable recruitment partner can become part of your contingency planning.

The important thing is not simply having the telephone number of an agency.

It is having a partner that understands adult social care, knows your service and can respond with appropriately vetted and trained people when additional support is needed.

Before winter becomes particularly busy, it is worth asking your recruitment provider:

• What happens if we need cover at short notice?
• What checks are completed before workers are supplied?
• What training do temporary workers complete?
• Can we request workers who have been to our service before?
• Who do we contact outside normal office hours?
• Can you support both planned leave and unexpected absence?

Those conversations are much easier to have in October than at 7am on a freezing January morning when somebody has called in sick.

Winter recruitment should support continuity, not disrupt it

Temporary recruitment can sometimes be viewed purely as a response to an empty space on the rota.

Good temporary recruitment is much more thoughtful than that.

It should help a service continue operating safely while respecting the routines, relationships and individual needs of the people receiving care.

That means looking beyond availability and considering experience, values, training and suitability for the particular setting.

At First for Support, our approach has always been people-focused. We work to understand the services we support as well as the professionals we place within them.

Because when somebody joins a care home for a temporary shift, they are not simply filling a gap.

They are supporting real people.

Temporary care home recruitment across Hampshire and Dorset

As part of our continued growth within adult social care, Chris is leading First for Support's care home recruitment division, supporting adult care homes that need reliable temporary Care Assistants and Healthcare Workers.

The division covers Hampshire and Dorset, with a particular focus on Southampton, Portsmouth and Bournemouth.

Support can include temporary cover for:

• sickness and unexpected absence
• annual leave
• maternity cover
• planned rota requirements
• periods when additional care workers are needed

Whether the requirement is known weeks in advance or something changes unexpectedly, our aim is to provide a responsive and personal recruitment service that understands the pressures care home managers are working under.

As the division continues to grow, First for Support is also offering preferential rates to care home providers, alongside free induction for new starters.

Don't wait until winter pressure becomes a winter problem

There will always be things managers cannot predict.

But putting the right foundations in place now can make responding to those changes much easier.

Review the rota. Identify possible gaps. Think about contingency cover. Make sure induction and training arrangements are clear. And build relationships with temporary workers and recruitment partners before you urgently need them.

A little preparation in autumn can provide valuable reassurance when winter becomes busier.

And, most importantly, it helps keep the focus where it belongs: on providing safe, reliable and person-centred care.

Need temporary Care Assistants or Healthcare Workers this winter?

If you manage an adult care home in Hampshire or Dorset and want to strengthen your winter recruitment plans, First for Support can help.

Chris and the team support services across Southampton, Portsmouth, Bournemouth and the surrounding areas with temporary Care Assistants and Healthcare Workers for planned and short-notice requirements.

Talk to First for Support about your winter recruitment needs and find out more about our preferential rates and free induction for new starters.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why can winter create additional pressure for care homes?

Winter can bring a combination of seasonal illness, annual leave, Christmas and New Year commitments, adverse weather and unexpected absence. Having contingency arrangements in place can help care homes respond while continuing to provide safe and consistent care.

When should care homes start planning for winter recruitment?

Ideally, planning should begin during the autumn. Reviewing requirements in October or earlier gives managers time to identify known rota gaps, plan holiday cover and establish relationships with suitable temporary workers before demand increases.

How can temporary care workers help during winter?

Temporary Care Assistants and Healthcare Workers can provide additional cover for sickness, holidays, maternity leave and other rota gaps. They can also help reduce the need to continually ask permanent colleagues to work additional shifts.

What should a care home look for in a temporary Care Assistant?

Care homes should consider relevant experience, training, safer recruitment checks, communication skills, reliability and whether the individual has the right values and approach for the people they will support.

Do temporary care workers still need an induction?

Yes. CQC guidance states that providers should have an induction programme that prepares workers for their role. Temporary workers should also receive the service-specific information they need to carry out their responsibilities safely. Care Quality Commission

How do I find temporary Care Assistants in Hampshire?

First for Support provides temporary adult social care recruitment across Hampshire, including Southampton and Portsmouth, supplying Care Assistants and Healthcare Workers to care homes requiring planned or short-notice cover.



Does First for Support provide temporary care workers in Dorset?

Yes. First for Support supports adult care homes across Dorset, including Bournemouth, with temporary Care Assistants and Healthcare Workers for sickness, holiday, maternity and other cover requirements.