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CARE HOME


ENVIRONMENT www.thecarehomeenvironment.com


Editor Matt Seex


mattseex@stepcomms.com


Business Manager Mike Gammon mikegammon@stepcomms.com


Journal Administration Katy Cockle


katycockle@stepcomms.com Design


Steven Dillon


Publisher Geoff King


geoffking@stepcomms.com


Publishing Director Trevor Moon


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THE CARE HOME ENVIRONMENT is published monthly by Step Communications Ltd, Step House, North Farm Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN2 3DR, UK. Tel: +44 (0)1892 779999


Social care sector “on a knife-edge”


Matt Seex, Editor mattseex@stepcomms.com


Welcome to the November issue of The Care Home Environment. Responding to Skills for Care’s State of


the Adult Social Care Sector and Workforce in England report (see News), which shows a sector with three times the vacancy rate of the overall UK job market – compounded by a fifty per cent drop in international recruits over the past year – Care England has urged the government to take action to support the social care workforce. According to the leading voice for


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independent adult social care providers, the government must: n Reintroduce health and social care visa routes.


ISSN NO. 2398-3280 ©2025 Step Communications


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n Fund local authorities adequately to meet National Living Wage increases within 2026/27 fee uplifts, ensuring that providers can sustain service delivery and workforce pay parity, attracting workers to a career in care.


n Provide dedicated funding to deliver the Employment Rights Bill, so new entitlements and protections can be implemented without placing additional financial strain on already stretched providers – Care England estimates that the £500m currently announced to fund the Fair Pay Agreement will only raise care worker wages by up to 15p per hour.


n Co-produce policy and embed social care at the heart of policymaking, recognising


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that every decision, within and beyond the Department of Health and Social Care, directly affects the workforce, the NHS, and the millions who rely on care.


Professor Martin Green OBE, chief executive of Care England, said: “This report tells the story of a sector that is holding the line, but only just. The international recruits who helped plug the gaps are no longer arriving in the same numbers, and we’re losing too many home-grown staff. With fewer people coming in, more leaving, and the domestic workforce shrinking, pressure is mounting. The storm clouds are already gathering, and unless action is taken now, providers will once again be forced to rely on costly agency cover; and the impending wave of pressure will bring with it greater instability and, ultimately, less consistency for the people we support. “Social care is part of so many people’s


lives; it’s the quiet force that helps families stay together, supports loved ones through difficult times, and gives people the dignity and independence they deserve. Yet too often, it’s only when the system begins to struggle that it’s noticed. “We can’t keep waiting for crisis to drive


change. Social care deserves to be nurtured, planned for, and valued as the foundation of a compassionate and successful society. It’s time for government to give this sector the attention, respect, and long-term commitment it has always deserved.” I hope you enjoy the issue.


THE


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