However, while the headline numbers suggest the workforce is relatively stable, growth is occurring at its slowest rate in four years. Filled posts rose by 1.4% in the year to March 2026, compared with a peak of 4.9% between 2022/23 and 2023/24. There are also fewer British workers in the sector and international recruitment has fallen significantly.
The State of the adult social care sector and workforce in England report found retention improves sharply when employers combine competitive pay, guaranteed hours, training, qualifications and full-time opportunities. Care worker turnover falls from 34.3% to 15.3% under this approach.
Experienced leadership also matters: turnover drops from 28.3% to 20.6% as registered manager experience increases. Better workforce conditions were also linked to stronger CQC ratings.
Young people make up just 7% of the workforce, against 12% of the economically active population, and turnover among under-25s stands at 35.5%.
Just 37% of care workers hold a level 2 qualification or above, down from 48% in 2018/19.
For the first time, the report shows that non-nursing staff carry out delegated healthcare activities in 59% of responding CQC-regulated services.
Reaction
Sarah Woolnough, chief executive of The King's Fund, said: 'Vacancies may be falling but they remain above the national average for other sectors, and it is due significantly to international recruitment plugging the gaps. With the closure of overseas recruitment for social care workers, there remains a serious challenge to social care if recruitment of British nationals does not rise to compensate for it.'
Chief executive of The NHS Alliance, Sir Ciarán Devane, said: ‘These findings show just how essential a stable, skilled and supported adult social care workforce is – both for the social care sector itself, and to help solve some of the most severe pressures on the health service.'
UNISON head of social care Gavin Edwards said: ‘Too many care workers are earning less than the Real Living Wage. A Fair Pay Agreement can't come soon enough in this crisis-hit sector.
‘Ministers must also ditch cruel plans to triple the wait time before migrant workers can settle in the UK. The steep drop-off in care staff from abroad will get worse unless the government backtracks.'
Lucinda Allen, senior policy fellow at The Health Foundation, said: ‘Social care pay remains stubbornly low, with a quarter of care and support workers paid around the Minimum Wage. Government plans for new Fair Pay Agreements in social care are an important part of tackling this issue. The policy's success will rely on having the right incentives in place, including for providers to comply with new rules and staff to stay and progress in the sector.'
Dr Dora-Olivia Vicol, chief executive of the Work Rights Centre, said a key factor in the reduction of international recruitment was ‘the cliff-edge those on the Health and Care Worker visa are facing from July 2028'.
She added: ‘Despite voicing broad support for the care sector at large, the Government has not provided these workers, or the members of the public they care for, with any clarity beyond this point. This state of uncertainty puts the future of care at risk.'
William Eichler is editor of HM sister title, LocalGov.
