Karolina Gerlich, CEO of The Care Workers’ Charity, says: “It is encouraging to see that vacancy and turnover rates in adult social care have decreased, with the lowest turnover rates since 2014/15. However, the report shows this is primarily due to international recruitment, which is declining and is likely to continue to do so with changes to immigration legislation, such as restrictions on care workers bringing family with them to the UK.
We are also pleased to see that the rise in the National Living Wage has led to an increase in median pay for care workers. However, pay remains a significant concern. Care worker pay is still behind that of NHS healthcare assistants and remains among the lowest in the economy. There is also an issue with pay progression with the report showing that care workers with five or more years of experience earn, on average, only 10 pence more per hour than those with less than one year of experience. This demonstrates that we are failing to adequately reward experienced professionals in their roles.
We need to attract more people into the sector, but equally, if not more importantly, we must retain the skilled workforce we already have. The factors the report highlights as influencing retention—such as better pay, comprehensive training, secure hours, and above-statutory sick pay—are well-known. It is no surprise that organisations with lower turnover rates achieve this by investing in their staff, celebrating achievements, fostering shared values, and empowering employees with autonomy in their roles.
The Care Workers’ Charity is proud to have contributed to the development of the Workforce Strategy alongside colleagues in the sector. This report serves as an essential foundation, and ongoing collaboration is crucial to building a sector that values, supports, and retains skilled professionals who provide vital care every day. The social care sector has the knowledge and solutions needed to address challenges, and we are committed to working together and with the government to drive the changes necessary for the workforce and the people who draw on care. “