The Care Workers’ Charity Responds To Pac Report On Adult Social Care Reform

The Care Workers’ Charity (CWC) responds to the Public Accounts Committee’s (PAC) report on the progress of adult social care reform, highlighting critical issues in workforce management and funding within the sector.

The PAC report highlights the pressing need for strong leadership from the Department responsible for adult social care. It also reveals a troubling truth, one sadly familiar to those in the social care field, that our current path isn’t meeting the nation’s future care needs, particularly regarding the workforce. The experiences shared with us by care workers daily echo the report’s findings, underlining the pressing need for action.

Karolina Gerlich, CEO of The Care Workers’ Charity says,“We agree with the report’s findings that while recent initiatives, such as the Care Workforce Pathway, on which we are advising, are welcome. However, progress remains slow and may become meaningless if funding issues such as care differentials are not addressed. The report rightly identifies the absence of a comprehensive workforce plan as exacerbating recruitment and retention challenges. We have long been advocating for increased pay levels and a structured pay progression that reflects rising responsibilities throughout a care worker’s career—a vital component of retention.

We also agree with the report’s findings that there is a lack of a cohesive, long-term strategy akin to that of the NHS, and that this disparity reinforces the perception of unequal partnership between health and social care sectors. As the UK charity representing care workers, the CWC occupies a unique position to advocate for policy changes that prioritise the workforce. Through our Workforce Advocacy programme, we urge four key policy changes: enhanced pay, professionalisation through registration, full funding from central government, and enhanced recognition of the sector’s value, with parity of esteem and pay for care workers with their counterparts in the NHS. Only through concerted efforts to address these issues can we build a sustainable, resilient adult social care sector fit for the future.”