The second wave of the adult social care workforce survey has been published, commissioned by the Department of Health and Social Care and delivered by Ipsos in partnership with Skills for Care, the University of Kent and King’s College London. It tracks how the wellbeing and working lives of care staff have changed since the first wave in 2023. The survey covered 3,008 members of the workforce in England and was conducted between August and October 2025. This summary sets out what the findings tell you about the workforce you employ, what they confirm about the pressures your organisation faces, and Care England’s view on what should happen next.
Some things have improved, but against a low pandemic-era starting point
The headline finding is that several workforce wellbeing measures have improved since wave one. Life satisfaction is up 10 percentage points to 51%.
Financial security has risen 12 points to 44%. Feelings of worthwhileness are up significantly, and intention to leave has fallen from 34% to 25%. These are genuine improvements, and providers and staff should take credit for them.
However, wave one was conducted in the immediate aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, when the sector was under exceptional pressure and workforce attrition was at its sharpest.
Some recovery from that point was always likely as the most acute pressures of that period eased, so the improvement needs to be read against a very low starting position rather than treated as a sign that the underlying issues have been resolved.
Care England’s view is that the figures below are the ones that should shape how providers and government respond.
What the data says about the workforce
Despite the improvements, the survey confirms that care staff continue to face serious challenges. The figures below are drawn directly from the report and reflect the experiences of the workforce across England:
- 56% of the workforce report having no or insufficient financial security, despite the 12-point improvement since wave one.
- 40% report high levels of anxiety, a figure that has remained essentially unchanged.
- 41% have experienced physical violence from the people they care for or support at least once in the past year. This is more than three times the equivalent figure for NHS staff (14%).
- 39% have experienced harassment, bullying or abuse from those they support, and rates from colleagues, managers and family members are also higher than in the NHS.
- 47% do not feel their role is valued by others in society.
- 59% of workers in direct care roles carry out delegated clinical activities as part of their regular work. Of those, 85% receive no additional pay for doing so.
- 25% intend to leave their organisation as soon as they can find another job, compared with 16% in the NHS. The most common destinations are roles outside health and social care entirely.
Senior care workers and social workers report some of the lowest wellbeing scores of any job role. Disabled members of the workforce and those with unpaid caring responsibilities consistently report more negative experiences across almost every measure.
Care England’s take on the data
The improvements recorded since wave one are genuine, and it would be wrong to dismiss them. But they need to be understood against a benchmark set during one of the most difficult periods the sector has ever faced.
The pandemic placed the adult social care workforce under extraordinary pressure. Some recovery from that point does not mean the underlying challenges have been fixed, and Care England does not think the data should be read that way.
What the survey actually shows is a workforce that continues to deliver under significant strain, that is being asked to do more without always being resourced to do it, and that still lacks the financial security, recognition and support it deserves.
The data on delegated activities, financial insecurity and violence is not a set of outliers. It is a consistent picture of a workforce whose contribution is not yet matched by the investment it receives.
What providers should be most aware of
Three findings in particular warrant close attention from providers.
Delegated activities are significantly under-compensated.
Three in five workers in direct care roles are carrying out delegated clinical activities regularly, yet 85% receive no additional pay for doing so.
As care needs become more complex, the expectation placed on care staff is growing without a corresponding adjustment in pay, job description or training.
Providers should consider whether their current arrangements adequately reflect what is actually being asked of staff.
Violence and harassment remain endemic.
41% of the workforce experienced physical violence from those they support at least once in the past year, and rates of harassment and bullying from colleagues and managers are also higher than in the NHS.
The survey notes that aggression can be symptomatic of conditions such as dementia, but that does not reduce the impact on staff.
Reporting rates are reasonably high, which suggests awareness, but the persistence of these experiences across both waves points to a systemic issue that requires ongoing investment in training, supervision and staff support.
Financial insecurity is a retention risk.
Despite improvements, more than half the workforce still lacks adequate financial security, and income being too low remains the second most cited reason for wanting to leave.
The survey also shows that when staff do leave, most go to roles outside health and social care entirely. Retaining experienced people in the sector, not just within individual organisations, is a challenge the data makes visible but cannot resolve.
That resolution requires investment that the current funding and commissioning environment does not consistently support.
What this means going forward
The adult social care workforce is resilient, skilled and committed. This survey confirms that, while also making clear that resilience alone cannot substitute for proper investment.
The survey should prompt providers to review what staff are being asked to do, especially where delegated activities, violence and harassment, or financial insecurity are affecting retention.
Understanding where this exposure sits within your own organisation, through job descriptions, training records, supervision and engagement data, is a useful first step and one that does not depend on additional funding being available. However, many of the remedies do require proper funding.
Providers should use this evidence in cost of care submissions, fee uplift discussions and engagement with commissioners, making clear that workforce wellbeing, delegated responsibilities, training, supervision and retention all carry a real cost.
Without that investment recognised through commissioning, the ERA/Fair Pay Agreement process and future year’s fee uplifts, the pressures identified in this survey will not be resolved.
Government has a parallel responsibility. The Fair Pay Agreement must be fully and properly funded, not just legislated. Commissioning rates must reflect the genuine cost of delivering care, including the cost of a fairly paid, well-supported workforce.
And investment in training, technology and workforce development needs to be treated as a structural necessity rather than a discretionary add-on.
Care England will draw on the findings of this survey to inform its continued engagement with government, commissioners and other key stakeholders.
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