Health and Social Care Task Group
The Task group is the only one of the groups to operate Pan-Sussex across East and West Sussex and Brighton and Hove, reflecting the make-up of the NHS across the region.
The Health and Social Care sector is large and wide-ranging with over 350 job roles. Pan Sussex the sector is facing major challenges in recruitment and retention in some areas such as care, adult social care and allied roles including midwifery and nursing. Alongside this digital technology is changing the face of healthcare, creating efficiencies, changes to processes as well as requirement for a digitally skilled workforce to meeting these changes.
The group includes representatives from local employers and national bodies this includes:
- Skills for Care
- NHS England – South East
- NHS Sussex
- Adult Social Care from East and West Sussex and Brighton and Hove Councils
- Community Pharmacy
- East Sussex NHS Healthcare Trust
- East Sussex Integrated Care Board
There are also representatives from education and training and other stakeholders including:
- East Sussex College Group
- University of Brighton
- Sussex Council of Training Providers (SCTP)
- DWP Job centres
- Reed in Partnership
- Spear Hastings
The task group is chaired by Kathy Martyn of University of Brighton.
Chair Kathy Martyn, Principal Lecturer Nutrition University of Brighton
Quote coming soon
2025/26 Strategic Plan activities
| Partnership activities | |
|---|---|
| 1. Raise the profile of the sector | Engaging with national and regional bodies. Using and sharing their resources, access support and expertise (e.g. NHS, Skills for Care, ESHT). |
| Utilise the ESPIC Annual Care Awards (and any other appropriate awards) as a mechanism for profile raising in the sector. | |
| Promote health and social care recruitment hub campaign resources to encourage curiosity and interest in the sector. Increase the number of role models from the sector as Industry Champions, and by offering encounters such as Open Doors. | |
| Work with Skills for Care and the emerging Carers Careers Plan to support activities within it. | |
| 2. Help industry to engage with education | Map routes and levels into health and social care. |
| Work in partnership via the Careers Hub on year 2 of the Aspirations Project, raising the profile of health and social care careers amongst primary school pupils in Hastings and Rother. | |
| Work in partnership with Skills for Care on the Sussex Carers Careers Plan. | |
| Build real world opportunities for teaching staff (e.g. Open Doors) and students through meaningful placements and experiences in the sector. | |
| Support the government's new Modern Work Experience, live from September 2026. | |
| 3. Curriculum and Training programmes | Support the delivery of Skills Bootcamp programme, particularly those related to Health and Social Care. Providing knowledge, opportunities, support and networks to promote the programme. |
| Keep a watching brief on the new apprenticeships and skills levy and its impact for the sector. | |
| Support care providers to access the LDSS funding for staff development. | |
| Consider opportunities for introducing a new Allied Healthcare degree via the University of Brighton as part of the pathway into job roles. | |
| Look at opportunities for a leader in adult care apprenticeship or training. | |
| Consider opportunity for Sussex digital care skills passport. | |
| 4. Widening the net of recruitment | Support the delivery of the Connect to Work programme, providing opportunities and support to participants. |
| Promote the Health and Social Care foundation apprenticeship as an entry route into the sector for young people. | |
| Support those in drug and alcohol treatment programmes into employment, utilising resources available, such as Connect to Work. |
Health and Social Care Task Group meetings
Contact Skills & Employment East Sussex if you are a sector employer, training or education provider and want details. Other than your time, and occasional travel, there are no costs to joining Skills East Sussex meetings.
The next meeting of the group is on 24 February 2026.
We use an action tracker instead of traditional minutes. The action tracker includes ongoing actions, decisions, the task groups strategic plan, and attendees/apologies.
2025 26 Health & Social Care Task Group Meeting Activity Decision Tracker [219.3 KB] [xlsx]
If you have difficulties viewing or accessing these documents, or require the information in a different format please contact the Skills & Employment East Sussex Team.
Task Group achievements
- East Sussex College Group (ESCG) responded to demand in developing an ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) course specifically for workers in health and care.
- Supported development and delivery of a Health and Social Care Teachers Encounters day, enabling curriculum teacher and careers leads to link with local businesses through facilitated workshop to increase their knowledge and embed this knowledge through the curriculum and careers provision.
- Set up a Task Group subgroup focussed on Pharmacy to address recruitment challenges and to support the community sector to navigate the apprenticeship process. Recruitment for 2024 has increased and on an ongoing relationship developed with community and pharmacy and NHS England.
- A joint presentation was given by the universities of Brighton and Chichester on Nursing Associate programmes. A task group sub-group worked with providers on making these courses more attractive and accessible, particularly to those with level 2 maths and English but not GCSEs.