Baroness Kay Andrews appointed President of The Care Workers’ Charity.
Peer and social policy expert to champion the care workforce as CWC marks Professional Care Workers’ Week.
The Care Workers’ Charity (CWC) has announced the appointment of Baroness Kay Andrews OBE as its new President. Baroness Andrews takes up the role during Professional Care Workers’ Week (PCWW), CWC’s annual celebration of the care workforce, which brings together sector leaders, employers and people drawing on care for a programme of round tables and events.
Baroness Andrews brings a wealth of experience in public life and social policy to the role. She served as a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Communities and Local Government from 2005 to 2009, and chaired the House of Lords Select Committee on Adult Social Care in 2022. She was Chair of English Heritage from 2009 to 2013 and Deputy Chair of the National Heritage Lottery Fund from 2016 to 2023. Earlier in her career, she founded and directed Education Extra, the national charity for out of school learning and activities, and advised Neil Kinnock as Leader of the Opposition on education, science and social policy.
A voice for care workers at the highest level
As President, Baroness Andrews will act as an ambassador for CWC, using her experience of policy and public life to raise the profile of care workers and the people drawing on care whom they support. The appointment comes at a time when the social care workforce continues to face significant pressure, and as CWC works to secure lasting recognition and support for the sector.
Karolina Gerlich, Chief Executive of The Care Workers’ Charity, said: “Care workers do some of the most important work in this country, often without the recognition or support they deserve. Baroness Andrews has spent her career standing up for people who are too often overlooked, and her experience of both policy and public life will be invaluable to us. I am delighted to welcome her as our President, particularly as we mark Professional Care Workers’ Week.”
Martin Jones, Chair of Trustees at The Care Workers’ Charity, said: “On behalf of the board, I am delighted to welcome Baroness Andrews as our President. Her record of public service and her commitment to social justice make her exactly the right person to champion care workers at this level, and we are looking forward to working with her.”
Baroness Kay Andrews said: “Care workers give so much to the people they support, and to our society as a whole, and it is time that was properly recognised. I have long admired the work of The Care Workers’ Charity in standing up for this workforce, and I am honoured to take on the role of President. I look forward to supporting the charity’s work in the years ahead.”
CWC’s Professional Care Workers’ Week runs throughout September, with a programme of online round tables and a sponsorship programme bringing together voices from across the sector.