Adult social care vacancies have fallen to their lowest level in a decade, according to a new report that highlights the importance of positive workplace conditions and career development opportunities in retaining staff.
The report, ‘State of Adult Social Care Sector and Workforce in England’ from Skills for Care, shows that vacancies stood at 96,000 in the year to March 2026, falling 10.5% from the previous year.
However, growth is slow, with the number of filled posts growing by 1.4% to 1.59 million compared to a peak growth of 4.9% between 2022/23 and 2023/24.
At the same time, there are fewer British workers in the sector and international recruitment has reduced significantly, presenting ongoing challenges for employers.
Skills for Care, a national charity that supports the adult social care workforce, said that investing in people will be vital to ensuring the sector can meet future demand and remain sustainable in the long term.
Its analysis found that turnover rates of care workers fall from 34.3% to 15.3% when employers combine competitive pay, guaranteed hours, training, qualifications and full-time employment opportunities.
The report also highlights the importance of retaining experienced registered managers to support workforce stability and improve frontline staff retention.
It shows that care worker turnover falls from 28.3% to 20.6% as registered manager experience increases, demonstrating the positive impact of strong, sustained leadership.
Professor Oonagh Smyth CBE, Chief Executive at Skills for Care, said: “It's positive to see that the adult social care workforce is becoming more stable. This year's report shows that employers who invest in their workforce through good employment practices, development opportunities and strong leadership are more likely to retain staff and deliver high-quality care.
“However, workforce growth is slowing, and we must continue to attract more people into adult social care to meet future demand. In particular, we need to do more to attract younger people and men into the sector, as set out in the Workforce Strategy for Adult Social Care in England.
“Continued investment in workforce development, leadership and career pathways will be essential if we are to build the sustainable workforce needed to deliver high-quality care in the years ahead.”
Commenting on the report, Nadra Ahmed CBE, executive co-chair of National Care Association, said: “Recruitment is only part of the answer. Keeping experienced, skilled and compassionate staff is equally important for continuity of care, the wellbeing of residents and people receiving support, and the long-term stability of care services in a sector on which the NHS relies.
“Providers need to be supported to offer attractive career pathways, meaningful training and opportunities for progression. To make these ambitions sustainable, funding arrangements must recognise the true cost of delivering care.”
The report also highlights the growing contribution of social care staff to healthcare delivery. It found that non-nursing staff undertake delegated healthcare activities in 59% of responding CQC-regulated services, while an estimated 46% of direct care workers carry out these tasks.
Nadra said the findings underline the need to recognise care providers as “essential partners” in workforce planning, neighbourhood health services and decisions about future investment.
“This means ensuring social care has a meaningful voice in policy decisions and that the responsibilities placed on providers are matched by the resources available to support them,” she added.