371 care employers in Gloucestershire could find you

Working in care in Gloucestershire

Gloucester, Cheltenham, the Stroud valleys or the Cotswolds: where would you care?

Gloucestershire has two busy neighbouring centres, Gloucester and Cheltenham, wrapped in a lot of countryside: the Cotswolds to the east, the Stroud valleys to the south and the Forest of Dean across the Severn. Care employers follow that shape. Gloucester accounts for the largest share by far, Cheltenham has the next biggest group, and Stroud and Cirencester trail behind. Home care agencies are the largest single type, so a lot of the work is visiting people at home.

The two halves of the county are very different. Census 2021 figures from the ONS put the median age at 39 in Gloucester and 40 in Cheltenham, but 47 in Stroud district and 48 in the Forest of Dean. In practice that means busy town rounds where buses can help, and longer rural runs through the Cotswolds or the Forest where a car makes most jobs possible.

Gloucestershire County Council explains that people who take their personal budget as a direct payment can spend it on employing personal care assistants, as well as on agency care or equipment. Proud to Care Gloucestershire, which supports the county's independent care sector to recruit and keep staff, lists local vacancies and career pathways if you are new to care.

For hospital work, Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust runs Gloucestershire Royal Hospital and Cheltenham General Hospital, plus maternity services at Stroud. Gloucestershire College teaches Health and Social Care at its Gloucester campus with a full sized training ward, and runs an Adult Care Worker Level 2 apprenticeship for people already working in care.

87% of the inspected care employers in Gloucestershire are rated Good or Outstanding by the CQC, below the 90% across the South West and in line with England as a whole (85%).