Why the UK Needs Overseas Workers To Protect Our Most Vulnerable

By Bethan Evans, CEO of My Choice Healthcare (www.mychoicehealthcare.co.uk)

The government recently announced plans to close the care worker visa for overseas recruitment in a bid to cut net migration levels, and it has caused some debate across the industry.

Set to come into force later this year, the plans mean care workers will no longer be recruited from overseas as part of a crackdown on visas for ‘lower-skilled’ workers. Instead, care home providers must hire British nationals or those overseas workers who are already in Britain.

This builds on measures introduced in April of this year that require care employers to prioritise hiring workers who are already in the country before recruiting from overseas.

While the government insists the initiative will grow domestic skills, end reliance on overseas labour and boost economic growth, it is a worrying prospect for the care sector which is already buckling under huge pressures of staff shortages, rising costs and chronic underfunding.

Across the industry, our teams and residents rely on the hard work of overseas workers, and the government’s proposal appears to downplay just how crucial their contribution is. Without the support of overseas workers, our most vulnerable in society could be at serious risk of lacking the care they need and deserve, if we cannot recruit adequate numbers of staff locally.

Exacerbating staff shortages
Figures predict the plans will cut up to 50,000 lower skilled workers coming to the UK over the next year, with the government estimating there will be 7,000 fewer care workers as a result.

These figures are worrying when we consider the staff shortages we are already facing in the sector. Skills for Care estimates there were 131,000 vacancies across adult social care in 2023-24, and that an additional 540,000 workers will be needed by 2040 to support the nation’s ageing population.

To address this growing vacancy rate, international recruitment levels rose to 105,000 in 2023/24, up from 80,000 in 2022/23. Without the support of overseas staff, in some areas, we simply will not be able to deliver the care our most vulnerable people need.

Social care roles are low paid, demand long hours, are physically and emotionally taxing, and are typically viewed as low skilled and low status. It is primarily for these reasons that the sector fails to recruit enough workers, and until these factors are addressed, we will continue to struggle to recruit enough staff domestically.

The government has promised to bring in a new fair pay agreement for care workers to make these roles more attractive to UK nationals, creating an official body to set pay and conditions for staff. While this is a positive start, more needs to be done to make care workers feel valued, or we run the risk of reaching crisis point.

Protecting the NHS
According to Age UK, overseas recruits are keeping many care services afloat and, without them, homes could be forced to shut their doors permanently – and other sectors will also be adversely affected.

Without sufficient staff, care homes cannot provide the high-quality care residents deserve, and this can potentially lead to closure, leaving the NHS to pick up the pieces.

It is well documented that the NHS is under relentless pressure, with official figures showing that, at the end of April 2025, there were 7.39 million people waiting for treatment and 6.23 million people waiting for care. In Wales alone, 800,400 patients were waiting to start treatment, according to figures from February of this year. Given the struggles the NHS is facing, social care has never been more important, and it is crucial that we do everything in our power to keep vulnerable people out of hospital.

The overseas workers who contribute so much to our care teams play a vital role in keeping the NHS going and, without them, health services will struggle. Failing to provide an adequate alternative to overseas recruitment isn’t enough to get the NHS back to its best.

Quality of care
If services are forced to close or staff are spread too thin, residents can face disruption which can affect the quality of care they receive.

Residents need consistent support to help them thrive, as any sudden changes or disruption can be confusing or unsettling. Staff who are stressed, overworked, or burnt out by the demands of the job are more likely to need time off sick or to leave the profession altogether, creating inconsistencies in care. Workers facing these conditions are also more likely to be unmotivated or prone to making mistakes.

These issues are all exacerbated by staff shortages, and cutting off overseas workers from taking care roles will only make the problem worse. Time and patience are needed to develop the relationships and trust required to deliver adequate care but, if teams are stretched too thin, this becomes challenging.

Staffing issues may also result in care homes considering hiring employees who lack the required qualifications and experience, causing further problems with quality of care. Those in need should not be paying the price, and the government should seriously consider how care homes can support residents without having the staff needed to do so.

Final thoughts
The government’s plans to ban the recruitment of care workers from overseas needs a rethink, as it is care home staff and residents who will suffer. Without the skills of overseas workers, we will struggle to tackle the staff shortages that are plaguing the social care and other sectors, placing even more pressure on teams and the NHS.

All residents deserve high quality care, but this becomes increasingly difficult for teams to deliver when they are placed under additional pressures due to lack of staffing. The government needs to consider a viable alternative or face the consequences of a care sector in further crisis.