123 respiratory infection incidents in care homes in just one week. How confident are you that your staff are prepared?

The latest figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) reveal that 123 acute respiratory infection incidents were reported in care homes across England in a single week, providing a timely reminder of just how important effective infection prevention and control remains.

But here’s a question every care provider should be asking: does completing infection-control training mean your staff know what to do when it really matters?

Training records can tell you who has completed a course, but they cannot always tell you whether staff have retained that knowledge, understand the correct procedures or know how to respond under pressure.

In our latest Turning Insight into Action article, we explore how providers can bridge this gap by moving beyond training completion and towards demonstrable staff competence.

We also look at how Care England’s SMART Care Intel can help providers quickly assess staff knowledge, identify areas requiring attention and deliver targeted support, giving managers a clearer picture of workforce readiness and helping them focus resources where they will have the greatest impact.

Read the full article: Turning infection-control training into tested competence 

See SMART Care Intel in action: Join our live webinar

Want to see how this could work in your own organisation?

Care England is hosting a live SMART Care Intel HR & Competence demonstration on Thursday 22 October 2026, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm.

Discover how the platform can help your organisation:

• Test staff knowledge in minutes, with access to more than 6,700 care-sector questions and over 500 competency assessments and topics.
• Identify knowledge gaps across your workforce, helping managers understand where additional training, supervision or support is needed.
• Move beyond training completion, with clearer evidence of staff understanding and areas for improvement.
• Target resources more effectively, avoiding unnecessary blanket retraining and concentrating support where it is needed most.
• Strengthen governance and regulatory assurance, with evidence of competency assessments, identified gaps and subsequent improvements.

Whether you manage a single service or oversee multiple locations, the webinar is an opportunity to explore how competency assessments can support safer care, more effective workforce development and greater confidence in your organisation’s training arrangements.

Register for the free SMART Care Intel webinar: Thursday 22 October, 3:00–4:00 pm

Don’t miss the opportunity to discover how SMART Care Intel can help turn workforce insight into practical action.