As a care worker, you help to take care of vulnerable members of your community. But is your care worker CV offering the same level of care for your career prospects?
This writing guide will help you to transform your current CV example. Using the same patience and adaptability you show to your clients and patients you’ll feel confident to turn it into a highly relevant document that helps you secure your next care worker job. Your role pins on your ability to take initiative, so we know that with a little nudge you will excel!
At Resume.io we provide job resources for professionals job seeking across a range of careers. Our CV guides and CV examples cover dozens of professions. This CV guide, along with the corresponding CV example will cover the following topics:
- What does a care worker professional do?
- How to write a care worker CV (tips and tricks)
- The best format for a care worker CV
- Advice on each section of your CV (summary, work history, education, skills)
- Professional CV layout and design hints.
What does a care worker do?
As a care worker, you can work in a variety of settings. Whether in a care home or traveling to the home of your patients your time at work could mean being on the go and making calls to various locations. Your main responsibilities will be directly tied to the needs of the people that you work with. These could be elderly patients, adults with learning/physical disabilities, and more.
As a caregiver, you will be responsible for providing physical care to individuals. Tasks may include assisting with shaving and showering or other personal care activities, and monitoring the patient’s physical state. You may also be required to help them to book appointments. Your level of involvement will depend on your individual workplace.
However, this role often encompasses more than just physical care. You will also provide emotional and social support by chatting, active listening, and encouraging your clients to participate in social activities or hobbies. This position can be physically and emotionally demanding, so it is crucial to approach it with compassion and a personable attitude.
Care workers job market and outlook
It could be a promising, although challenging, time to be a care worker. With an aging population, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) published plans for social care reform in December 2021. A £500 million investment over the span of three years will help to support the DHSC’s plans for ongoing social care reform and the increasing demand for care workers. These funds will also contribute to training and developing the profiles of professionals already working in the sector.
According to the DHSC’s adult social care reform, over 1.5 million individuals work to provide care to families and communities across the country. That’s 4.6% of the 32.4 million people employed across England.
How to write a care worker CV
The very first step in writing your care worker CV is understanding what sections to include. Your CV should contain the following elements:
- The CV header
- The CV summary (aka profile or personal statement)
- The employment history section
- The CV skills section
- The education section
The rest of this guide will focus on how to write each of these sections. Here are some further tips before you start writing. When you are planning out a compelling CV for your ideal care worker role, consider the following:
- Your CV should be tweaked for each specific job role. Make sure the examples and language you use in each section of your care worker CV is optimised for the employer and role.
- The Applicant Tracking System (ATS) software will “read” your CV before any human does. This algorithm filters only the most pertinent applications to be sent to the hiring manager, so include the keywords it will be looking for by reading the job description carefully.
- Research the company and the department you’re hoping to work in to understand more about the working culture and any big picture goals the organisation is currently working towards.
Choosing the best CV format for a care worker
Most candidates will find that the best CV format for the care worker role is the reverse chronological format. This CV format focuses on your previous employment and the experience that you gained there that makes you right for the role.
The functional CV format is an option for some professions that require a very specific set of skills. You should consider the best CV format before you start writing on the basis of what best communicates why you’re right for this role. However, nine times out of ten the hiring manager will expect you to use the reverse chronological format.
When choosing the best format and examples for you as a care worker, you can explore other CV examples such as our:
CV summary example
Your CV summary is like the hiring manager’s initial consultation with your professional profile. This is the section of your CV that they will read in order to decide whether or not your application is worth considering any further.
Make sure it’s to the point with only your most relevant and impressive points. A top CV summary for a care worker is three or four sentences long.
Try asking yourself some of the following questions as you tweak your CV summary for each individual care worker role that you are applying to:
- Does my CV summary respond to the most important points this role is looking for?
- Does it mirror the language that the job description uses?
- Does my CV summary mention an impressive stat, accomplishment, or trait that is pertinent to the job?
If you answered no to any of the above questions, it’s time to go back and try to rewrite your summary. As you fill out more applications, you will get this down to more of an exact science. But don’t worry if it takes you a few goes your first time trying. Show yourself the same compassion that you show to your service users.
Dedicated, empathetic Care Worker passionate about supporting individuals in living full, comfortable lives. Strong experience in the full scope of care functions, supporting individuals with a wide range of needs to maintain their quality of life. Proven history of partnering with diverse, vulnerable individuals to provide personal care with dignity.
Employment history sample
Consistent care worker experience could help to put you ahead of the crowd. However, even if you have limited experience to talk about, the employment history section of your care worker CV can still make a great impression. The trick lies in cherry-picking the bullet points that you write below the subheading corresponding to each of your previous roles.
Each subheading should include your official job title, the dates of employment, employer name and location. Underneath this you can include several bullet points that describe your responsibilities, achievements, and pertinent details of the role. Remember to always draw it back to the job that you’re applying to.
For instance, it may be impressive that you have worked with a wide variety of mental health diagnoses. However, if this job focuses on assisting elderly clients with physical limitations, then you’re better off finding an example that speaks better to your ability to do just that.
Quantify your achievements
If there is the ability to communicate the results that you created with your work through a numerical value, then do it! Hiring managers love being able to measure the impact you’ve had.
For instance, did you help to increase patient satisfaction by a certain percentage? Or reduce the number of hours your team spent on the client onboarding process? Perhaps you saved your team a monetary amount in their budget? These are all things that a hiring manager would like to know about, if they’re relevant to the job at hand.
Remember that your roles and experience should appear in reverse chronological order, with your most recent position at the top of the section. Take a look at how it’s done in the care worker CV sample content below.
Care Worker at Ayr Home Support, Ayr, Scotland
January 2019 - Present
- Provide in-home support for ageing individuals, performing a wide range of personal care, including dressing and hygiene, and medication administration.
- Manage household operations, preparing meals, ensuring clear and safe spaces, and scheduling appointments.
- Co-ordinate recreational activities and offer company and engagement, ensuring social needs are met.
- Run errands to maintain streamlined household operations, ensuring clients' needs are met.
Care Assistant at University Hospital Ayr, Ayr, Scotland
February 2016 - January 2019
- Supported patient care activities, performing personal hygiene and dressing services.
- Conducted mobility support and assistance, facilitating patients' well-being.
- Administered medications, ensuring alignment with care plans and medical recommendations.
- Maintained safe, clean, and clear living spaces, managing cleaning, washing, and other needs.
CV skills example
A powerful skills list makes it abundantly clear what your main assets are on your care worker CV. Plus, this can be an excellent opportunity to include keywords that you haven’t mentioned yet for the sake of the ATS. Make a bullet list of your most pertinent skills with the most important one at the top and add it to your CV example.
Technical skills such as specific training or tasks you can complete are great to include. However, soft skills are just as important. Think about the way that you communicate and problem solve and make sure you are telling the hiring manager something about this in your skills section, too.
Be ready to provide proof
Start thinking already about examples that provide evidence of your skills. While there may not be space to include the story behind the skill on every care worker CV example you create, it’s great prep for when you are, hopefully, called to an interview.
If you’re not sure how to back up your skills with relevant examples, think about the STAR approach.
S - Situation
T - Task
A - Action
R - Results
The CV example content below has some ideas on skills that you can include on your care worker CV.
- Patient & Client Care
- Personal Care
- Hygiene & Health Management
- Medication Administration
- Household Maintenance
- Social & Recreational Support
- Dignified, Empathetic Care
- Client & Family Communication
- First Aid
- Care Plan Implementation
Care worker CV education example
As a care worker, your education or training is particularly important. List your most recent qualification at the top and work your way back. Each subheading should include the name of the qualification, the institution you earned it at, the dates of attendance, and location. If you have a higher education degree, there is no need to list your secondary school education.
If you have multiple training certificates that are important but aren’t the same as full university courses or college qualifications, consider adding them under a separate “training and certifications” heading.
BA (Hons) in Nursing, University of the West of Scotland, Ayr, Scotland
September 2011 - May 2015
CV layout and design
While functionality is important, aesthetics are equally crucial when it comes to your care worker CV. Just like you help your patients to present themselves properly as part of their selfcare, your CV should look the part. You can achieve this goal by ensuring your CV uses a clear layout and design.
One option to achieve this is designing your own CV. Just make sure you use a simple and coherent colour scheme. Your headings and subheadings should follow a coherent visual hierarchy, too. Finally, leave sufficient space between each section to make the document more legible.
If visual design is not your strong point, consider using one of our field-tested CV templates. Our professionally-designed templates mean that all you need to do is get typing. Then it’s as simple as downloading your final CV and sharing it with your prospective employer.
Key takeaways
- Prospects may be looking promising for care workers, but you’ll still need to prove you’re the best person for the job with a top care worker CV.
- Quantify your achievements to help the hiring manager to see that you’re a top candidate.
- Your visual communication is an important part of making a great impression. So leave time to create — or use a template with — a great layout for your CV’s design.
