Social care must now urgently be put on an equal footing with the health service

Responding to the publication of the Skills for Care ‘State of Adult Social Care Sector and Workforce’ report, the 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.

“Longstanding issues around pay, working conditions and access to training have made it harder to recruit and retain staff, contributing to workforce shortages across the sector.

“A fragmented social care system is a problem in itself, and because of the knock-on impact it has on the NHS. Social care must now urgently be put on an equal footing with the health service, so people get the support they need to keep them out of hospital and in their homes.

“As the government makes plans to create a better funded, universal national care service, it must make sure that social care is a great place to work, so it can attract and retain the staff the sector needs.”