Responding to the annual Skills for Care ‘State of the Adult Social Care Sector and Workforce in England’ report, Royal College of Nursing Director for England, Patricia Marquis, said:
“A new workforce plan to recruit and retain staff needs heavy central government investment. Social care is buckling under the pressure of too many people needing support, longstanding underfunding, and consequently not enough nursing staff.
“The turnover rate for registered nurses exposed in this report is eyewatering – at three times higher than the NHS – and the sector must ask itself the very tough questions about why that is the case. It is unsustainable and unsafe for the people who rely on services.
“Today’s gaping hole in the domestic adult social care workforce means services are only just staying afloat because of staff recruited from overseas. Chronic short staffing is leading to over-stretched services, nurse burnout, sickness absence – and ultimately people leaving social care or the profession altogether. Their pay is often too low, and terms and conditions are poor – our members in social care, just like the NHS, deserve fair pay and the rates must at least match Agenda for Change.
“The RCN, as the voice of nursing, has the expertise to support the development of this work and we expect to see very broad consultation and engagement of the College and the professionals we represent.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
Skills for Care’s report will be available here. The report shows:
Between April 2022 to March 2023, the estimated number of registered nurse filled posts increased by 2%, or 500 posts, to 33,000. This is the first increase in filled posts for this role since reporting began in 2012/13. However, the number of filled posts is still 17,700 fewer than in 2012/13, a decrease of 35%.
The estimated vacancy rate for registered nurses is 11.3% or 3,600 vacant posts in 2022/23. This is down from a peak of 14.6% in 2021/22.
Registered nurses had a relatively high turnover rate (32.6%) in comparison to other regulated professions within adult social care, and in comparison to registered nurses and health visitors working in the NHS (10.9% as at March 2023).
In addition to registered nurses, in 2022/23 there were 750 registered nursing associate filled posts (up from 475 in 2021/22).
