Adult social care workforce development body Skills for Care's latest State of the Adult Social Care Sector and Workforce in England report shows that the workforce grew to 1.71 million filled posts and vacancies fell to 131,000 on any given day.

These positive statistics are mainly due to the record level of international recruitment in 2023/24. The year saw 105,000 international recruits starting direct care providing roles in the independent sector and the number of people in the workforce with a British nationality shrinking by 30,000.

However, the supply of international workers is declining, according to Skills for Care's latest tracking data. It shows an estimated 8,000 new international recruits started between April and June 2024, compared with an average of 26,000 per quarter in the year to March, a decrease of over two thirds.

Skills for Care chief executive, Professor Oonagh Smyth, said: ‘We need to stem the tide of British care workers who are leaving their jobs and we can only do that by improving the quality of care roles so the sector can be more competitive in local job markets.'

She added: ‘This includes investing properly in the workforce as part of the journey towards a National Care Service. Improving pay is an important step, but focusing on things like training and the infrastructure to enable proper workforce planning are vital too.'

In response, Professor Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, said: ‘Without immediate intervention, we will continue to see a workforce stretched beyond its limits, which will directly impact the quality of care provided to some of the most vulnerable people in our society.'

For sector feedback on the report click here.