Milton Keynes care company offers brand new car as raffle prize to encourage staff to get vaccinated against Covid

A specialist care group in Milton Keynes is offering a brand new £22,000 car as a raffle prize to fully vaccinated staff.

PJ Care bosses says the move is more cost effective than recruiting new team members for their two care homes in MK.

Their staff will face losing their jobs if they haven’t been fully vaccinated by November 11, in line with proposed government legislation.

The rules will apply to all Care Quality Commission-regulated care homes in England and there will be limited exemptions.

This will mean that anyone working in or seeking to work in a care home will need proof that they have had both Covid vaccinations.

Currently, 85% of PJ Care’s 600 staff have been fully vaccinated. Company chairman Neil Russell hopes the chance to win a Renault Clio E-Tech worth £22,000 will help to encourage those who are open to changing their minds.

“We know that there are some of our staff who, for whatever reason, just do not feel able to receive the vaccine," he said.

"But there are those staff who are still undecided or haven’t yet made their appointments for whom the prize of a new car could be deciding factor.

Neil added: “We absolutely believe in the vaccine and have informed and encouraged our staff throughout, and it will pain us to lose any of our valued and highly-skilled team. With the average salary of a carer here being just over £20,000, plus our investment in their training, overtime they may earn and the costs of recruiting their replacement, if this initiative gets just one person to have the vaccine and stay in their job, we will have saved money.”

Staff who’ve yet to be vaccinated need to have their first jab by September 16, in time for their second dose before the government deadline. With time running out, they have to act fast, said Neil.

“Recruiting staff in this sector is already difficult, he said. "And adding in a requirement for vaccination will only make the situation worse. In this context, a new car is a small price to pay – indeed, it is actually an investment rather than a cost.”

PJ Care was recently ranked as one of the UK’s top 10 health and social care employers in the ‘Best Companies’ awards and is an accredited Living Wage Employer. It is also a finalist in the Growing Business ‘Diversity and Inclusion Champion of the Year’ award as well as ‘Employer of the Year.’

The company provides neurological care for adults with progressive conditions such as dementia, Huntington’s disease and Parkinson’s disease, and those with acquired brain injuries.