We advise submitting references as early as possible in your onboarding journey, referees can be slow to respond which often delays the process.
Here's what we need:
A minimum of 2 references - Your first reference must be from your most recent or current employer, which conveys at least 6/12 months of UK care experience depending on the role you are applying for - 6 months for carers and 12 months for nurses. The reference must be professional (i.e. professional email address; from line manager, home manager, team lead or HR).
Your second reference can be from another employer, a colleague or a character reference, so long as the full 6/12 months of required experience is verified in your first reference.
For all employment references, the referee must hold a senior position to yourself. If the employment reference is from a nurse, they must -
Hold a senior position
Come from a professional email address
Manage you at work
If a nurse provides a reference on a personal email address, this can only be considered as a character reference, and a full employment reference is still required.
What can we accept:
Two References from the same company, ideally however, the two individuals providing the references should hold different positions within the company. e.g. one Nurse and one Home Manager from the same Care Home.
If providing a reference from a place you were continuously employed in for the last 2 years or more, a second reference from a place of work prior to this must be submitted.
An Overseas reference (as long as 6 months UK care experience is validated); must either link to a legitimate website OR be provided on a company letterhead that can be validated via digital footprint (i.e. Facebook page etc).
If a nurse is providing a reference for you they must have held their NMC pin for one full year.
If a nurse is providing a reference for you, we can accept their personal email addresses as we will use their NMC pin number to verify them.
What we can't accept?
If your reference can not be validated e.g. NMC pin not provided and gmail email address used
Personal email address from someone who is not a qualified nurse.
If the Referee has advised that they did not provide the reference.
A Carer has provided a reference for another Carer.
If we can’t validate that the worker has had clinical experience e.g. in a care home setting. Unfortunately caring for a family member, volunteering for example does not count towards clinical experience.
References DO NOT match work history.
Where we can't validate 6 months in total clinical experience for Carers and 1 year for Nurses
Where we can’t validate 6 months UK care experience for a Carer