Skills for Care has published its 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 1.5 million people working in it.

Ewan King, Chair of the Care Provider Alliance says:

“As usual, Skills for Care’s annual ‘State of the adult social care sector and workforce in England’ gives us deep insights, and contains a wealth of valuable information about the state of the social care workforce and the wider sector.

“It is good to see, once again, Skills for Care draws out analysis on the enormous economic contribution social care makes to the economy, something that often seems to be overlooked by policy makers – £77.8 billion.

“Investment in social care not only supports more people to live the best lives that they can, but it is also good for the economy and wider society too!

“It is also welcome to see that the number of posts has grown, vacancy rates have returned to pre-Covid levels and the proportion of men in the workforce reached a new record for the third successive year – now at 22%.

“However, with pay and conditions not being as favourable as other sectors, the sector is failing to attract, and indeed retain, domestic recruitment; the sector still has more vacancy rates and a higher turnover compared to other industries.

“As the report reveals, international recruitment – which has now been curtailed – still very much underpins much of the growth.

“If the sector is to be attractive to domestic carers, it is vital pay and conditions are improved, and to do this, we need appropriate funding. 

“As many reports show, the need for care is going to increase, and there is much that will need to improve if we to build a sustainable social care workforce to care for those who need it, and indeed deserve it, in our society in the future.”

– Ends –

Notes to Editors

About the Care Provider Alliance (CPA)

The Care Provider Alliance is a coalition of 10 associations. We advocate for the sector and ensure a coordinated response to the major issues that affect it. 

We represent private, voluntary and community sector care providers in England. Some members also represent services in Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland. The Care Provider Alliance speaks for the whole of the adult social care sector, including care homes; home care services; housing with care; integrated retirement communities; shared lives schemes; services for people with learning disabilities and autism; mental health and community-based support. Members support children, adults of working age and older people. Local authorities, health bodies or private individuals purchase care from providers. 

We reach over 95% of all care and support provider organisations, in a sector with 1.6 million employees helping people to live good-quality, independent lives. The scale of our sector’s work is vast, affecting the lives of over 10 million adults at any given time, including people using formal and informal care, care workers, and unpaid carers. 

The Care Provider Alliance is an informal body. Members take it in turns to lead the CPA and the Chair changes each year.

For more information on the Care Provider Alliance visit the website https://www.careprovideralliance.org.uk/

Contact:info@careprovideralliance.org.uk