Vacancies in adult social care have fallen to their lowest level in a decade, but workforce growth has slowed as international recruitment declines.
The number of filled posts rose by 1.4% in the year to March 2026, down from a peak of 4.9% between 2022/23 and 2023/24, according to the latest annual report from Skills for Care.
England’s adult social care workforce has grown for four consecutive years, but that growth is slowing as demand for care is expected to rise. The number of people aged 65 and over is expected to reach 14.1 million by 2040.
Young people are underrepresented in social care, making up just 7% of the workforce, compared with 12% of the working population. Under-25s were also the most likely to leave their jobs, with a turnover rate of 35.5%.
Professor Oonagh Smyth, chief executive of Skills for Care, said it is ‘positive to see that the adult social care workforce is becoming more stable.
‘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.’
The report, published on Wednesday, found care workers were less likely to leave their jobs when employers offered better pay, guaranteed hours and opportunities for training and qualifications.
Turnover fell from 34.3% to 15.3% among employers that combined these measures with chances for full-time work.
Rachael Dodgson, chief executive of Dimensions, said its good ‘to see that better employment conditions across the adult social care sector have led to higher levels of retention. This matters enormously to people we support with learning disabilities and autistic people who rely on consistent, skilled support.’
However, Dodgson expressed concern over the fact ‘England will need an additional 410,000 adult social care roles by 2040 – an entire city’s population!’
‘But nationally, both domestic and international recruitment are falling,’ she added. ‘The country faces serious questions about where this city-sized workforce will come from.’
The findings comes as the government pursues plans for a National Care Service.
Speaking at the launch of the report this morning, Minister of State for Mental Health and Social Care Alison McGovern, said: ‘We want a workforce that’s empowered and capable of delivering a National Care Service. We will work intensively with them and with people who depend on care as we develop the workforce plan.
‘We can’t afford to wait for Baroness Casey to finish her important work before we get stuck in. From speaking to carers, I know how many of them feel invisible, and they need change now.’
Image: Ron Lach/UnSplash
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