We all know that recruitment in the care sector is in crisis, but why?

For a long time, the prevailing situation for recruitment in the care sector has been one of crisis or being at a breaking point. While the challenges have persisted for a long time, they were significantly worsened by Covid-19, as was the resolve of the entire sector in coping with such a generational health emergency, and the situation seems to have just gotten steadily worse over time.  

The sector is caught between a rise in costs and a decline in funding, which hasn’t been helped by successive governments failing to address the root causes of the issues. While cash injections have been given to the sector over the years, these have rarely been effective because apart from failing to address the structural problems the care sector has in terms of a lack of support, whatever financial respite given is often immediately swallowed up by operating costs, leaving care staff wages to stagnate in trying to meet the National Living Wage. In fact, according Care England’s Sector Pulse Check earlier this year, 85% of providers said that local authority fee increases did not cover the cost of a higher National Living Wage.  

This policy of short-term cash injections has ultimately failed to solve the ongoing issue. 

And the issue, especially around wages, seems to be reaching a tipping point – just this month, it was revealed that 58% of care workers are currently paid below the upcoming National Living Wage. Along with the upcoming rise to the National Insurance threshold, the financial strain that providers will face will only worsen as they struggle to meet the needs of their staff. 

This wage stagnation – running just to stand still, as Care England CEO Prof. Martin Green put it - has led to a worsening of the recruitment crisis in the care sector, added to which are increasingly restrictive immigration policies that have created a huge bottle-neck of available care workers from overseas, who have been critical to the continued functioning of the care sector.  

Adding to the issue of funding gaps and low pay, Prof. Martin Green added: “Care providers are caught between rising wage costs and insufficient money to fund them. Many are already struggling to recruit and retain staff, and with further financial pressures, the situation is only going to worsen. This is not just a problem for the providers themselves – it is a direct threat to the quality of care that millions rely on”. 

More still, the Skills for Care Report highlights the growing concerns within the care sector workforce. In December 2024, there was only a 4p pay differential between care staff with five years or more of experience compared to those with just one year. Without adequate pay progression, alongside career progression, dissolution within the workforce will only worsen. 

Unsustainable turnover rates 

This has led to the current turnover rates, which sit at about 30% - double that of the national average. This means that more than a quarter of all care staff who start a position in a care home within that year, which is an unsustainable and costly rate of turnover and means that providers are sometimes struggling to maintain good levels of service.  

More to this point, as mentioned earlier, the squeeze of availability for overseas care workers has made the situation even worse. By July 2024, visa applications from overseas care workers had dropped by 82% compared to the previous year, leaving essential roles unfilled and shifting an even greater burden onto those staff already in position. This had led to increased burnout for staff which, coupled with low wages that have not kept up with inflation, has led to the kind of turnover figures that we now see.  

It has always been clear that care staff do not, from the wider public at least, get the respect they deserve, nor are their roles valued in the way they should be. The role of a care worker comes with enormous responsibilities – they are tasked with ensuring the safety and wellbeing of the most vulnerable members of the community, and such work, especially the clinical aspects, come with huge pressures. The working conditions only serve to compound the problems, as there are far too many instances of long hours, high workloads and a lack of wider support. 

And because of the litany of challenges that care home operators must consider, there is sometimes little room left for attention to be paid to clear, structured pathways for development and career progression, which often paints care work, unfairly in many instances, as a stepping-stone in career terms, rather than the rich, fulfilling career it can and should be. 

Hope for the future 

Despite the issues that persist for recruitment in the care sector, there are still plenty of ways that care organisations of all sizes can not only survive but thrive in the coming years. While the coming digital technologies in the last decade have made transformative differences in efficiency, safety, wellbeing for residents and work-life balance for carers (making care homes that use them a far more attractive proposition to work for) there is now a far greater drive for change within the industry, as we all come together to work towards greater, more fundamental change and support from central government. 

In recent years, there have been increased efforts to change the way recruitment processes are conducted, to ensure that those coming to work for care homes are the right fit in terms of experience and values. There are also many cost-effective short-term and long-term ideas that you can consider that will enhance your recruitment rates within care. 

Just click here to read more about our top ideas to improve your care home’s recruitment strategy.