Skills for Care has published the latest version of their annual State of the Adult Social Care Sector and Workforce in England report, which provides a comprehensive analysis of the adult social care workforce in England and the characteristics of the 1.59 million people working in it.
Some of the key findings are:
- There were improvements in the workforce for the second year - with more filled posts, fewer vacancies, the lowest turnover since 2014/15 and a record number of men working in the sector.
- These improvements were mainly driven by international rather than domestic recruitment - and there is evidence that the supply of international recruits is declining.
- Domestic recruitment and retention challenges persist, with 70,000 fewer British people in the workforce compared with two years previously.
- Pay for care workers was, on average, 58p an hour more than the National Living Wage - and more than 80% of jobs in the economy pay more.
- The number of apprenticeship starts has fallen by 75% since 2016/17.
Responding to the Skills for Care annual State of the Adult Social Care Sector and Workforce in England report, Dr Rhidian Hughes, Chief Executive of the Voluntary Organisations Disability Group (VODG) says:
‘While there have been improvements in the recruitment and retention of the social care workforce, this is by no means sustainable given the reliance on and unresolved issue of international recruitment, the impact of visa changes on care workers coming from abroad, and the lack of investment in a long-term social care workforce strategy.
‘Despite the best efforts of providers and the broad approaches they have taken to address shortages, a sustainable solution will not be possible until local authorities are able to fully cover the true costs of social care support.
‘Social care workers make a hugely significant contribution to the lives of disabled people who draw on care services every day. The Skills for Care workforce strategy offers an essential step forward in recognising the importance and value of the workforce and the need to invest and reform the sector to ensure the right support is available to those who need it.’
ENDS