Support workers are highly valued for so many reasons. They keep our elderly company and care for their every need. They show compassion and understanding to those with disabilities. They work in hospitals, care homes and care facilities to help those who need it. They are modern day heroes and should not have to explain anything to anyone.
If that is you, thank you from us at Resume.io. We salute you.
Having said what a magnificent job you do, the fact remains that you do still need to outline your accomplishments and approach to your work when you need to find a new job. You give your all at work, but in a job search you are up against a whole load of other heroes. That is when the competition gets tough, but you have come to the right place. We will share some insights to get your care worker cover letter right to the top of the pile.
The cover letter differs somewhat from a CV. Your CV should be a factual record of your accomplishments, while the cover letter allows you to show just a little more personality and passion. Just what you want to do when you spend your careers helping people who aren’t in a position to help themselves. In this writing guide, we cover:
- How to write a support worker cover letter (plus a cover letter sample)
- Formatting the letter to make the most of your career story
- Side-stepping mistakes that may harm your application.
Looking for some more inspiration? Take a look at our wide library of cover letter examples now. We have created field-tested examples for a broad range of professions.
Best format for a support worker cover letter
Support workers will have so much to say about what they do for others and why they love their work. Fitting all this into one page (no more) of a cover letter is no easy task. It is important to be selective in your stories and stick to a tried-and-tested format.
The hiring manager will have the opportunity to chat with you in more detail during an interview, so start some conversations. You need to intrigue them so that they want to find out more.
The cover letter format should contain the following elements:
- The cover letter header
- The greeting / salutation
- The cover letter intro
- The middle paragraphs (body of the letter)
- The ending paragraph of your cover letter (conclusion and call-to-action)
Our comprehensive cover letter guide shares lots of detailed advice about every aspect of writing a cover letter. If you are unsure about what font to use, give it a read. If you are wondering about the impact of design on a hiring manager, it will have some answers. It will suggest all sorts of advice on cover letter etiquette. Make the most of your research.
This support worker cover letter sample may offer some inspiration:
Dear Ms Merryweather,
I recently read your advertisement for the role of support worker. I am an experienced support worker in mental health and with children in a variety of care settings and take immense pride in my relationships with families.
My first support worker role was in an elderly care home where I principally supported patients with poor mental health. When the care home closed, my manager personally recommended me for an opening at a private medical practice where she had started working. I have been a support worker at the practice, Sloane Medical Centre, for the last five years.
I began my time at Sloane working with people of all ages and management soon recognised my talent for supporting families of vulnerable patients. As such, for the last three years, I have been in a role which exclusively deals with children and young people who are suffering with mental health problems.
I have received praise from management and families alike for my excellent bedside manner. I excel in building trust with family members of all ages as well as forming a relationship with young mental health patients. Following my assignment to child patients only, 50% of eligible children’s parents opted to use the hospital’s outpatient services after discharge. This was a significant increase from beforehand.
In the last two years, I have participated in a multidisciplinary focus group helping the centre’s paediatric specialists to develop a more child-friendly workflow for everyday operations such as taking blood samples. I, therefore, have a clear understanding of how my role plays into the bigger picture of patient care from a humanistic and practical perspective.
I hope you will agree that my previous experience is a great match with the vacancy at Little Angels. I would love to tell you more about my profile in an interview.
Sincerely,
Giles Bateman
Cover letter header
Your support worker cover letter header should be functional and professional. You do not work in marketing or communications, so keep it simple. Include your full name, email, and mobile phone. The hiring manager might want to get in touch with you there and then.
You do not have to include your full home address (town and country will be fine) as there may be data protection issues. It is also not necessary to include the inside address of the employer (unless you want to be incredibly formal). You are not sending the cover letter by post, after all. Make the most of the space – leave it for your support worker career story.
Some other healthcare cover letter examples may be worth a read:
Cover letter greeting
The greeting for a support worker cover letter is a simple matter. Keep it professional with a “Dear Surname” and you won’t go far wrong. It shouldn’t be too tricky to find the name of the hiring manager in order to personalise it.
You should be able to find the name of the contact person in the job description, but if not then you can maybe phone the employer to find out. Writing “To whom it may concern” is a rather impersonal option for such a people-oriented role, so try to avoid this overly formal option if at all possible.
Cover letter introduction
The introduction of the support worker cover letter should get into the stories about what you do best – looking after your patients and clients. Try to offer some context to whatever you share, if possible, and ensure that it is relevant to the role in question.
There will have been many proud moments in your career, but which of them will impress this particular hiring manager? You need to put yourself in their shoes.Don’t fall into the trap of offering too many examples without the human level of detail. You can’t tell every story, so dive a little deeper into your personal contribution where possible.
There are bound to be many heart-warming stories. A support worker cover letter without them would not be worthy of an interview, that’s for sure. Tug at those heart strings.
Dear Ms Merryweather,
I recently read your advertisement for the role of support worker. I am an experienced support worker in mental health and with children in a variety of care settings and take immense pride in my relationships with families.
Cover letter middle part (body)
The middle paragraphs of support worker cover letters should seek to cover the main points in the job description, no matter how unimaginative it might be. The hiring manager will likely ask their questions alongside what has been shared in the job description, so play by their rules.
Don’t fret, however, you can still embellish your accomplishments with personal details, so talk about the difference that you made in various situations rather than just what you did.
You need to make sure that your support worker cover letter sets you apart from your competition. Most of them will write formal descriptions of their achievements. Don’t be afraid of injecting the cover letter with passion – what do you love about the role and what keeps you going on those long shifts without a break? This is the sort of information that will help a hiring manager to warm to you.
My first support worker role was in an elderly care home where I principally supported patients with poor mental health. When the care home closed, my manager personally recommended me for an opening at a private medical practice where she had started working. I have been a support worker at the practice, Sloane Medical Centre, for the last five years.
I began my time at Sloane working with people of all ages and management soon recognised my talent for supporting families of vulnerable patients. As such, for the last three years, I have been in a role which exclusively deals with children and young people who are suffering with mental health problems.
I have received praise from management and families alike for my excellent bedside manner. I excel in building trust with family members of all ages as well as forming a relationship with young mental health patients. Following my assignment to child patients only, 50% of eligible children’s parents opted to use the hospital’s outpatient services after discharge. This was a significant increase from beforehand.
In the last two years, I have participated in a multidisciplinary focus group helping the centre’s paediatric specialists to develop a more child-friendly workflow for everyday operations such as taking blood samples. I, therefore, have a clear understanding of how my role plays into the bigger picture of patient care from a humanistic and practical perspective.
How to close a support worker cover letter (conclusion and sign-off)
The conclusion of the support worker cover letter should finish with one last heroic story. Then let the hiring manager know that it is their turn. You will be in demand over the next weeks, so share a call-to-action to compel them to invite you to an interview.
Saying that you are keen to find out more at a potential interview is a good way of demonstrating your passion and also hinting that they need to make a decision. If they like you, there is no reason why they shouldn’t invite you to an interview in the near future. You will have started a few stories that they would like to hear more about, so don’t be shy.
I hope you will agree that my previous experience is a great match with the vacancy at Little Angels. I would love to tell you more about my profile in an interview.
Sincerely,
Giles Bateman
Support worker cover letter with no experience
Are you new to the support worker role? Whether this is your first job or you’re a career changer, you can still write a compelling cover letter. Here are some tips:
- Show some empathy. You’re applying for a caring profession. Let the hiring manager know you’re the right person for the job by showcasing your empathy. Talk about why you want to work with vulnerable people and what the career path means to you.
- Talk about voluntary work. While you may not have experience in this specific role, you can reflect on any voluntary work you have completed.
- Emphasise your skill-set. What skills are you bringing to the table? Are you a pro when it comes to health and safety? Do you have a natural knack for charming people? Whatever your USP (or your unique selling point) is, let the hiring manager know in your cover letter.
Avoiding basic mistakes in a support worker application letter
- Attention to detail is sometimes a matter of life or death as a support worker, so make sure that you use an online grammar checker such as Grammarly.
- Pack the cover letter with examples of your accomplishments, but don’t forget the personality. Otherwise, it will just be a copy of your CV – you are far too lovely not to include a healthy dose of what makes you so amazing at work.
- Put the patients at the heart of the cover letter – you do what you do because of them. Don’t make it all about yourself.
Key takeaways
- Write a support worker cover letter that will convey your passion for the role.
- Look at the job description and make sure you have covered the main points.
- Tell the hiring manager why you want the role. Your career motivation will help you to get through those tough days and nights. They need to understand your “why.”
- Use our field-tested cover letter templates to perfect your application!
