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International Recruitment for Social Care Services

New recruitment process from 9 April 2025

For care providers who want to recruit a new worker from overseas you must now first attempt to recruit a worker from within England who needs new sponsorship. If you are based in, or recruiting in Essex, Southend, Thurrock, Hertfordshire and Suffolk complete our online form when you are ready to recruit.

Your details will be passed onto the appropriate Local Authority for response. They will send you contact details of international workers who match your requirements. Where there are no matches we will contact UKVI to confirm you have approached us.

Enquiries: essexsuffolkhertsir@essex.gov.uk 

International Recruitment East - Provider Resources

The International Recruitment East website is an online hub of information, resources and support is for everyone in the East of England involved in the recruitment of international staff for adult social care.

As part of the Eastern Region's programme of support for International Recruitment, Lester Aldridge will be providing up to 30 minutes of free advice from immigration experts.  Contact 01202 786104 or email eastproviderlegal@la-law.com.
This support runs until Monday 30 June.

They can offer advice on:

  • sponsorship licences
  • certificates of sponsorship (CoS)
  • sponsorship management
  • UKVI compliance
  • immigration and sponsorship related topics

Phone lines are open: 8:30 - 18:00 Monday to Friday (outside of these times there will be an answerphone). Please read the terms and conditions available here before you use this service.

Aims of the meetings:

  • Strengthen ethical practices in international recruitment and the employment of staff working in adult social care
  • Share best practice and good news stories
  • Develop shared solutions to prevent and respond to exploitative employment issues
  • Increase employment opportunities for impacted displaced Care workers
  • Reflect on the journey of sponsorship and what we have learnt and improved


Tuesday 20th May 2025, 13:30-15:30- book here
Wednesday 9 July 2025, 10:30-12:30- book here
Tuesday 23 September 2025, 14:30-16:30- book here

Sponsorship management, compliance and obligations  

See below content of this resource:

Resource Guides:

  • SMS Step by Step Guide Manuals 1 – 12
  • Step by Step Certificate of Sponsorship Process Guide

Webinar slides

  • Certificate of Sponsorship
  • Provider support workshop: Home Office compliance & your responsibilities
  • Visa application process
  • How to use the Home Office Sponsor Management System (SMS)
  • Compliance and sponsor duties
  • Leadership and Culture
  • Sponsor Licence Compliance Audits & Revocations
  • Dealing with third Parties in social care (managing cultural diversity)
  • Building a Team in Social Care (addressing cultural barriers in team building)
  • Welfare of International Recruits in social care
  • UK Laws and Regulations for UKVI
  • Adapting your training and induction programme

Suffolk Care Association have created workshops to build employer awareness on:

  • Importance of Sponsorship Management System (SMS) compliance – overview of sponsor duties and responsibilities
  • Sponsorship obligations – record-keeping and documentation requirements
  • Effective use of Sponsorship Management System (SMS) for sponsored migrants
  • Reporting duties, including when and how to report changes or issues related to your organisation or migrant employees

Places are limited to a maximum of 6 providers per workshop.
Book your place

This is an offer for providers to support UKVI compliance and to help reduce risk of revocations linked to record keeping.

If you have recently had a mock UKVI compliance audit, or are planning one, you may qualify for a full or partial refund of the cost.

Eastern Region Care Association Alliance (ERCAA) are the point of contact for information, criteria and refunds - Apply here

Our colleagues in Yorkshire and Humber have worked hard to develop a self-assessment tool for care providers so they can determine they have everything needed in place to be compliant with their Sponsorship Licence. Please visit their page and look at the section titled “We work with regional local authority partners to deliver” and you will find it in the second bullet point down. We hope you find this useful.

Recorded Webinars:

  • Using the IRE Ethical Recruitment Tool
  • Modern Slavery: insights from within the care sector
  • First Responder Training
  • Modern Slavery Working with Third Parties

Bookable webinars:

Understanding modern slavery and exploitation.

The learning outcomes:

  • Improved awareness of modern slavery
  • Confidently able to identify the signs of modern slavery
  • Understand the risks within the care sector
  • Confidence in reporting a case of exploitation

These sessions are for all workers, care providers, frontline care workers and local authority staff:

Wednesday 7 May, 14:00 – 15:00. Book here.

Wednesday 14 May, 14:00 – 15:00. Book here.

 

Assisting Social Care businesses to tackle modern slavery

The learning outcomes:

  • Improved awareness of modern slavery within a business and supply chain context
  • Core understanding of relevant legislation
  • Improved understanding of which due diligence measures businesses should implement
  • Understanding of measures businesses can take to reduce risk within operations and supply chain

This session is for social care providers and those working within local authorities responsible for onboarding and managing third party providers and suppliers, such as: Commissioners, Quality Monitoring Officers.

Wednesday 2 April, 14:00 – 15:00. Book here.

If you have any questions, please email business@unseenuk.org  

Unseen website

Last updated: 08/04/2025