Showing Love to International Care Workers This Valentine’s Day

Krystle Wong
4 days ago
3 min read

Tresacare and Citizens UK join forces for a Valentine's Day campaign

On February 11th, Tresacare proudly joined forces with Citizens UK for a national Valentine’s campaign: Care for Carers – Love Notes to International Care Workers.

But this was more than a symbolic gesture. It was a visible, joyful, and powerful act of solidarity.

Campaigners gathered outside the Department of Health and Social Care, holding large helium heart balloons and bold signs calling for justice. From there, they walked together to Westminster, carrying messages of appreciation and urgent calls for reform.

While Valentine’s Day is often associated with romantic love, this campaign was about something deeper – dignity, fairness, and collective care.

It was about showing love to the international care workers who show up every day to care for our communities.

Humans Not Commodities

Through the Humans Not Commodities campaign led by Citizens UK, we are standing alongside thousands of care workers calling for urgent reform.

International care workers are vital to our communities and our economy. They care for older people, people with disabilities, and those nearing the end of life. Yet many have faced exploitation, abuse, and systemic failures at the hands of rogue providers.

The numbers tell a stark story:

130,000 vacancies currently exist in the UK care sector
40,000 international care workers have lost their jobs after their employer’s sponsorship licence was revoked
Many have been unable to access benefits
Some have been without work for up to two years
Families are relying on food banks while desperate to return to work

At the same time, the Government is proposing changes that would increase the settlement pathway for care workers already in the UK from 5 years to 15 years.

Care workers would be required to wait three times longer than doctors and nurses to secure settlement.

We believe this is unjust. Care workers are healthcare workers. Their pathway should be standardised – not extended.

We walked from the Department of Health and Social Care to Westminster

What We Are Calling For

Tresacare and Citizens UK are urging the Government to act urgently and responsibly. We are calling for:

1. Reform of the Sponsorship System

A portable visa or transferable sponsorship model within social care
Clear, accessible guidance for workers facing licence expiry or revocation
National enforcement against misuse or reselling of certificates of sponsorship
Expedited re-employment pathways for displaced workers

2. Ethical Recruitment and Worker Rights Education

Regulation of recruitment costs and in-country sponsorship misuse
Fast-track driving licence support for displaced workers seeking employment

3. Stronger Employer Accountability

Meaningful penalties for rogue providers
Incentives for ethical employers
Encouraging accreditation as Real Living Wage employers

4. Better Safeguarding and Crisis Support

A nationally coordinated safeguarding pathway led by the Home Office, DHSC, and Local Authorities
Continued funding for regional hubs supporting displaced workers into new sponsorship
Investment in mental health and wellbeing support services, including specialist care worker support such as Tresacare provides

Why This Matters

Care workers do essential, skilled, emotionally demanding work. They are not disposable labour. They are not commodities to be traded through sponsorship loopholes. They are people with families, futures, and hopes.

A system that allows 40,000 skilled workers to sit unemployed while 130,000 care vacancies go unfilled is not just inefficient – it is broken.

We welcome collaboration with Government, providers, regulators, and advocacy organisations to design a better system – one built on care workers’ lived experiences and practical expertise.