Care staff for services in London
We recruit care and support staff for services across Greater London, from care homes in the outer boroughs to home care in central London, for temporary cover and permanent posts. Our office is in Thornton Heath, in the London Borough of Croydon.
London is not one care market but thirty-three: each of the 32 borough councils and the City of London Corporation runs adult and children’s social care in its own area.
Who regulates care in London
Care services in every London borough are registered and inspected by the Care Quality Commission, and children’s homes by Ofsted. London care workers are not on any national register, so the checking behind each one matters: we confirm identity and right to work, an enhanced DBS check with the right barred list, and references from recent care work before anyone reaches your service.
For nurses we check the NMC register, and for social workers the Social Work England register, before the first shift.
- Care regulator
- Care Quality Commission (CQC) for adult social care. Ofsted registers and inspects children’s homes.
- Criminal record checks
- Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Care roles are usually checked at enhanced level, with the adults’ or children’s barred list where the work is regulated activity.
- Workforce register
- No national register for care workers. Nurses are on the NMC register, and social workers must be registered with Social Work England.
- Councils
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- The 32 London borough councils and the City of London Corporation
- London Councils, their joint body
- NHS integrated care board
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- NHS North East London
- NHS West and North London Integrated Care Board, formed on 1 April 2026
- NHS South East London Integrated Care Board
- NHS South West London Integrated Care Board
Care services in London
Four integrated care boards plan NHS services in the capital. On 1 April 2026, NHS North West London and NHS North Central London joined to form NHS West and North London Integrated Care Board. NHS South East London and NHS South West London have shared a chair and chief executive since February 2026 but remain separate organisations, and NHS North East London is unchanged.
The Greater London Authority has no social care role of its own. Its part in care is skills funding through the Mayor’s Skills Academies, which include a social care academy hub for six south west London boroughs.
Skills for Care estimated around 216,000 filled posts in London’s adult social care in 2024/25, with about 19,000 vacancies and staff turnover of 19.9 per cent. About 36 per cent of posts were on zero-hours contracts, and around half of the workforce had British nationality.
For night shifts, Night Tube trains run on Friday and Saturday nights on the Central, Jubilee, Northern, Piccadilly and Victoria lines, with night services on the Overground’s Windrush line. On other nights, we check how a worker will reach you before we offer them the shift.
Settings and roles we staff in London
We recruit for every setting and role below in all 32 London boroughs and the City of London.
Care settings
- Care homes Residential homes where people live with care and support around the clock.
- Nursing homes Care homes that provide nursing care, with registered nurses on the rota day and night.
- Home care Visits to people in their own homes to help with personal care, meals and medicines.
- Supported living People with their own tenancies and a support team who help them live the way they choose.
- Learning disability and autism Support for autistic people and people with a learning disability, in any setting.
- Mental health services Care homes, supported accommodation and community support for people with mental health needs.
- Children’s homes Residential homes for children and young people who cannot live with their families.
- Housing support Help to keep a tenancy and live independently, in supported housing or in people’s own homes.
- Respite and day services Short breaks for people and their carers, and daytime support and activities.
Roles
- Care assistant Personal care and everyday support in care homes, nursing homes and respite services.
- Senior care assistant Leads the care team on shift, gives medicines and keeps care plans up to date.
- Home care worker Works on runs of home visits, helping people keep living in their own homes.
- Support worker Helps people live independently in supported living, and learning disability and mental health services.
- Senior support worker Leads a support team on shift, guides colleagues and keeps support plans current.
- Registered nurse (RGN) Registered general nurses for nursing homes and care homes with nursing.
- Mental health nurse (RMN) Registered mental health nurses for nursing homes and specialist mental health services.
- Registered manager Runs a care service and is registered with the regulator as the manager responsible for it.
- Deputy manager Second in charge of a care service, leading the team when the manager is not there.
- Residential childcare worker Cares for children and young people living in children’s homes.
- Social worker Registered social workers for assessment, care planning and review in social care services.
- Housing support worker Helps people keep their tenancy and manage day to day, in supported housing or at home.
- Kitchen and domestic staff Cooks, kitchen assistants, housekeepers and laundry staff for care homes.
Questions from managers in London
My service is in outer London. Will your workers get to us for a 07:00 start?
We look at where each worker lives and how they travel before we offer them. For early starts in the outer boroughs we favour workers who live nearby or drive, because the Night Tube only runs on Friday and Saturday nights.
Which NHS body covers my borough now?
Four integrated care boards cover London. Boroughs that were in North West London or North Central London are now covered by NHS West and North London Integrated Care Board, formed on 1 April 2026.
Do London care workers need to be registered anywhere?
No. England has no register for care workers, unlike Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Nurses must be on the NMC register and social workers on the Social Work England register, and we check both.
Staff for your service in London
Call with your borough, the role and the shift times, or send the vacancy in writing.