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How blended roles are making a positive impact in Tameside

01 Jul 2025

3 min read

ذكذكتسئµ for Care


  • Delegated healthcare activities
  • Learning and development

Investment in blended roles is a key commitment of the Workforce Strategy for Adult Social Care. Andrew Burridge, Programme Manager, Northwest ADASS, shares how blended roles are working in Tameside.

Blended roles first came into place in the Tameside area around five years ago, and it was really driven forward in more recent years with the recruitment of a dedicated blended roles facilitator.

The purpose of blended roles is to allow care workers to carry out more clinical tasks such as insulin administration, catheter care and changing dressings.

It was thanks to good relationships between the local authority and local providers, and a willingness to try out something different that the idea for blended roles in Tameside was first sparked.

The first task which was introduced was insulin administration.

Initially there was of course some apprehension from both the health and care side – nurses were nervous to hand over their responsibility while care workers were unsure if they would have capacity to take on any new tasks. But alongside this there was an excitement to learn new skills.

It was good relationships which were again pivotal in the introduction of blended roles, in this case the good relationship and communication between care teams and district nurses. The work only furthered these relationships too, allowing each side to work closer together and get to know each other. This has longer term benefits too as improved communication between these teams means quicker health interventions when needed.

It was the nursing team who initially provided the training for care teams but ultimately the recruitment of a dedicated facilitator saw the training start to be delivered by them, which has been really effective. Care workers have praised the facilitators’ creative and thorough training methods which have made them feel much more confident carrying out clinical tasks.

Blended roles aren’t mandatory across all providers in the area but more and more providers are starting to work in this way.

There has been benefits for everyone. It frees up nursing teams to focus on other medical tasks; care workers are learning new skills making them feel more valued and motivated in their roles, and crucially it's meaning better, more consistent care for people supported. Less footfall of different people providing care brings many benefits for people supported including more personalised care and increased infection control.

An example of this has been that one person who draws on care and support said that because their care worker is now able to care for their dressing, they don’t need to wait until the day that their district nurse visits to have a shower. These types of changes are so freeing for people.

The impact is so much more than administration of tasks, it’s about real positive change for people.

We’ve got some top tips on our website about how to get started with blended roles, and some include:

  • DO invest time in building relationships between teams who will make change happen
  • DO ensure you’ve got senior level support before progressing
  • DO start small and grow your approach
  • DON’T start without district nursing support
  • DON’T overthink it
  • DON’T impose it

 

Find more information about and other on the North West ADASS website.

Find out more about the Workforce Strategy for Adult Social Care and delegated healthcare.


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