News
Care sector hardest hit by sponsor licence cuts
Providers get new infection control and hoist use guidance
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said its new guidance aimed at improving understanding of infection prevention and outbreak management across adult social care settings in England, is designed to provide a ‘clear and consistent’ explanation of the legal and public health arrangements surrounding infectious diseases for providers, commissioners, policymakers and other stakeholders.
The Home Office revoked 4,403 skilled worker sponsor licences in the year to June 2026, the highest number recorded in any 12-month period since the post-Brexit immigration system was introduced, with care providers accounting for the largest share of enforcement action, according to analysis of government data by the Work Rights Centre. The charity’s analysis of recently
published Home Office migration transparency data found licence revocations reached a record level between July 2025 and June 2026. Meanwhile data it obtained under Freedom of Information (FOI) rules showed that between Q1 2022 and Q3 2025, the care sector accounted for the largest share of identified sponsor licence revocations, with 872 licences withdrawn, representing around 29 per cent of the sectoral total analysed. Accommodation and food services accounted for 497 revocations (17 per cent), followed by information and communications (12 per cent), retail (10 per cent) and construction (9 per cent). The figures follow a wider government
crackdown on the sponsorship system and broader reforms to work migration routes. The Government’s 2025 immigration reforms included the closure of overseas applications for care worker and senior care worker visas, while increasing compliance requirements for sponsors. It comes amid the news that fifteen care
home and nursing home providers had been named by the Government for failing to pay the national minimum wage, with 738 workers collectively owed more than £101,000 in
unpaid wages, according to data published by the Department of Business and Trade.
Important reminder According to care specialist legal firm Aston Brooke director Kashif Majeed, the latest ‘naming round’ by officials is “an important reminder that salary compliance cannot be treated as an administrative box-ticking exercise”. “Getting pay wrong can have serious
consequences, not only for workers, but potentially for the organisation’s wider employment and immigration compliance obligations, “he said adding that “regularly reviewing payroll, contracts and working arrangements is essential to identify and address issues before they become enforcement action.” However, Work Rights Centre chief
executive Dr Dora-Olivia Vicol said the increase in revocations reflected a tougher approach to enforcement but argued the consequences for non-compliant employers remained limited. “On the surface, the increase in licence
revocations marks a welcome rise in due diligence, in an immigration system that for too long has handed employers vast powers, with minimal accountability,” she said.
Right to remain reforms The centre has also partnered with Care England and others to call for a rethink on changes to permanent residency applications, claiming it would impose unfair penalties on care workers who supported the sector in the aftermath of the Covid pandemic, and likened the potential injustice to removals of the Windrush generation in recent years.
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www.thecarehomeenvironment October 2026
It added the adult social care sector operates across a ‘broad and complex landscape’ of regulated and non- regulated services, creating ongoing challenges for providers managing infection risks among vulnerable people who access care and support. Meanwhile, The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has issued a National Patient Safety Alert requiring action from care homes, nursing homes, community services and healthcare providers following evidence that patients continue to suffer fatal and serious harm when falling from hoists during transfers and repositioning, after a review of recent incidents and wider surveillance data found an average of two deaths a year linked to falls from hoists and slings since 2015.
Photo by César Badilla Miranda on Unsplash
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