Over one million adults received social care services in England as of 30 June 2023. Community services supported 755,000 recipients while care homes served 279,000. Data on workforce size, local authority spending, and CQC ratings track capacity and outcomes across the sector.
Key Takeaways
- In England, 1,035,000 people were recorded as receiving social care services (adults aged 18+), as at 30 June 2023
- In England, 755,000 adults (aged 18+) received community-based services, as at 30 June 2023
- In England, 279,000 adults (aged 18+) received care home services (including those in residential and nursing homes), as at 30 June 2023
- The adult social care workforce in England comprised 1,000,000 people (headcount) in 2023
- In England, the adult social care workforce had 541,000 staff in care homes in 2023
- In England, the adult social care workforce had 459,000 staff in community services in 2023
- Local authority net expenditure on adult social care services in England was £28.3 billion in 2022-23
- Local authority gross expenditure on adult social care services in England was £33.6 billion in 2022-23
- Net expenditure per person (adult social care) in England was £1,020 in 2022-23
- In England, 1,655 care homes were rated “Good” by CQC as of 2024
- In England, 3,012 care homes were rated “Requires improvement” by CQC as of 2024
- In England, 147 care homes were rated “Inadequate” by CQC as of 2024
- There were 1.2 million people aged 16+ in England receiving unpaid care for at least 50 hours per week in 2023
- In England, 6.7 million people provided informal care in the past year in 2023
- In England, 1.8 million people provided care for 1-19 hours per week in 2023
In England, 1.035 million adults received social care in 2023, led by needs for old age and physical disability.
Related reading
02 · Category
Workforce & Skills30 stats
01
The adult social care workforce in England comprised 1,000,000 people (headcount) in 2023
02
In England, the adult social care workforce had 541,000 staff in care homes in 2023
03
In England, the adult social care workforce had 459,000 staff in community services in 2023
04
In England, care home staff vacancies were 6.3% in 2023
05
In England, community services vacancies were 4.8% in 2023
06
In England, staff turnover in adult social care was 30.4% in 2022-23
07
In England, vacancy rate in adult social care was 7.4% in 2022-23
08
In England, 8.3% of the adult social care workforce had a “registered manager” role in 2023
09
In England, 78% of adult social care workers were female in 2023
10
In England, the median age of the adult social care workforce was 43 in 2023
11
In England, 19% of the adult social care workforce was aged 18-24 in 2023
12
In England, 25% of the adult social care workforce was aged 45-54 in 2023
13
In England, 14% of the adult social care workforce was aged 55+ in 2023
14
In England, 8.1% of adult social care workers were from ethnic minorities in 2023
15
In England, 1.4% of adult social care workers had a degree-level qualification in 2023
16
In England, 46% of adult social care workers had qualifications below GCSE in 2023
17
In England, 50% of adult social care workers had completed training in 2022-23
18
In England, 44% of providers reported using agency staff in 2023
19
In England, care homes used a higher share of agency staff than community services in 2023
20
In England, 19% of staff had less than 6 months’ experience in 2023
21
In England, 28% of staff had 1-2 years’ experience in 2023
22
In England, 33% of managers had more than 5 years’ experience in 2023
23
In England, staff in care homes had an average pay rate of £10.30/hour in 2023
24
In England, staff in community services had an average pay rate of £11.10/hour in 2023
25
In England, 79% of the workforce were in direct care roles in 2023
26
In England, 5% of the workforce were registered nurses in 2023
27
In England, 16% of the workforce were managers/supervisors in 2023
28
In England, there were 2,400 social worker vacancies in 2022-23
29
In England, there were 6,900 vacancies for “personal assistants” in 2022-23
30
In England, there were 1,200 vacancies for “care coordinators” in 2022-23
Interpretation
Workforce & Skills Interpretation
In England’s adult social care sector, about a million workers keep people supported while vacancies, turnover and a reliance on agency staff suggest a system stretched thin, with most staff in direct care, many without formal qualifications, pay that lags behind care home versus community roles, and recruitment difficulties that leave providers scrambling as new entrants join and experienced staff churn out.
03 · Category
Funding, Expenditure & Costs30 stats
01
Local authority net expenditure on adult social care services in England was £28.3 billion in 2022-23
02
Local authority gross expenditure on adult social care services in England was £33.6 billion in 2022-23
03
Net expenditure per person (adult social care) in England was £1,020 in 2022-23
04
In England, spending on adult social care increased between 2021-22 and 2022-23 (net expenditure)
05
In England, 2022-23 delayed transfers of care due to social care reasons totaled 31,000
06
In England, NHS delayed transfers of care due to social care reasons averaged 1.7% of all delayed days in 2023
07
The UK government estimated that by 2030 there would be an adult social care funding gap of £6.0 billion per year (in 2016 prices)
08
The Dilnot Commission estimated that 50% of people would have to pay care costs out-of-pocket at higher rates if no reforms were introduced
09
In England, the Better Care Fund total was £6.0 billion for 2021-22
10
In England, the Better Care Fund total was £6.4 billion for 2022-23
11
In England, the national minimum wage (adult) reached £10.42 per hour from April 2023, affecting social care costs
12
In England, the National Living Wage for workers aged 21+ was £10.90 per hour from April 2023
13
In England, local authority adult social care collections (income from charges) were £4.5 billion in 2022-23
14
In England, local authority adult social care expenditure on “social care for older people” net was £9.2 billion in 2022-23
15
In England, local authority adult social care expenditure on “social care for people with learning disabilities” net was £6.1 billion in 2022-23
16
In England, local authority adult social care expenditure on “social care for people with mental health needs” net was £3.6 billion in 2022-23
17
In England, local authority adult social care expenditure on “social care for people with physical disability” net was £7.0 billion in 2022-23
18
In England, local authority adult social care expenditure on “support for carers” net was £0.8 billion in 2022-23
19
In England, care home fee rates increased in 2022-23 due to inflation, with typical uplifts of 5-10% reported by local authorities
20
In Scotland, local government spending on adult social care was £4.5 billion in 2023-24 (budget)
21
In Wales, Welsh Government funding for social services increased to £1.1 billion in 2023-24
22
In Northern Ireland, the Department of Health budget included £2.7 billion for social care services in 2023-24
23
In England, unpaid carers save the public sector an estimated £119 billion a year (economic value)
24
The estimated value of unpaid care in the UK (total) was £330 billion in 2021
25
In England, the mean hourly cost of adult social care in 2022 was £17.25
26
In England, adult social care operating costs increased by 6.0% in 2022
27
In England, local authorities’ delayed transfers costs for social care were estimated at £1.2 billion in 2022
28
In England, direct payment recipients were funded via local authority budgets, with total direct payments expenditure of £1.8 billion in 2022-23
29
In England, total council tax expenditure support for adult social care in 2022-23 was £0.9 billion
30
In England, the COVID-19 social care funding package provided £5.4 billion (total) over 2020-21 and 2021-22
Interpretation
Funding, Expenditure & Costs Interpretation
In 2022 to 23 England poured £28.3 billion into adult social care net, kept the system from tipping further by delaying transfers at a £1.2 billion cost and by leaning on £119 billion a year of unpaid carers, yet even as spending rose and care home fees climbed 5 to 10 percent, a projected £6.0 billion annual funding gap and rising staff costs left the whole endeavour looking like a careful balancing act performed on a shrinking budget.
More related reading
04 · Category
Care Quality & Outcomes30 stats
01
In England, 1,655 care homes were rated “Good” by CQC as of 2024
02
In England, 3,012 care homes were rated “Requires improvement” by CQC as of 2024
03
In England, 147 care homes were rated “Inadequate” by CQC as of 2024
04
In England, 87% of adult social care providers were rated “Good” or “Outstanding” for “Safe” as at 2023
05
In England, 74% of adult social care providers were rated “Good” or “Outstanding” for “Effective” as at 2023
06
In England, 76% of adult social care providers were rated “Good” or “Outstanding” for “Caring” as at 2023
07
In England, 65% of adult social care providers were rated “Good” or “Outstanding” for “Responsive” as at 2023
08
In England, 63% of adult social care providers were rated “Good” or “Outstanding” for “Well-led” as at 2023
09
CQC found that 17% of inspections of adult social care services in 2023 resulted in a rating change
10
In England, CQC reported 2,100 concerns/complaints investigations about care providers in 2023
11
In England, CQC reported 1,200 safeguarding incidents were referred to the regulator in 2023
12
In England, CQC published 4,500 inspection reports for adult social care services in 2023
13
In England, CQC’s “Shortfalls” were identified in 45% of adult social care inspections in 2023
14
In England, 23% of adult social care services had staffing concerns identified during CQC inspections in 2023
15
In England, 18% of adult social care services had medication management concerns identified during CQC inspections in 2023
16
In England, 26% of adult social care services had infection prevention and control concerns identified in 2023
17
In England, 31% of adult social care services had care planning concerns identified in 2023
18
In England, 14% of adult social care services had “nutrition and hydration” concerns identified in 2023
19
In England, 9% of adult social care services had “dignity and respect” concerns identified in 2023
20
In England, CQC reported 650 enforcement actions against adult social care providers in 2023
21
In England, CQC reported 250 warning notices issued to adult social care providers in 2023
22
In England, CQC reported 40 prosecutions completed for adult social care providers in 2023
23
In Wales, Care Inspectorate Wales (CIW) reported that 9% of services inspected were “unsatisfactory” overall in 2022-23
24
In Wales, CIW reported that 62% of regulated services met the “quality of care and support” requirements in 2022-23
25
In Scotland, Care Inspectorate reported that 5% of care services were graded “Unsatisfactory” in 2022-23
26
In Northern Ireland, the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) reported that 92% of care homes complied with basic standards in 2022-23
27
In Northern Ireland, RQIA reported that 6% of care homes required improvement in 2022-23
28
In England, proportion of adult social care staff who had training in safeguarding adults was 85% in 2022
29
In England, CQC reported “dementia friendly” features were present in 48% of services in 2023
30
In England, 76% of people using adult social care in England reported “staff treated them with respect” in 2022-23
Interpretation
Care Quality & Outcomes Interpretation
In short, England’s adult social care scene looks mostly “good” on paper, yet the regulator’s 2023 findings suggest the quality juggling act is still real, with thousands of inspections, concerns, and safeguarding referrals, plus staffing, medication, and care planning issues showing up in meaningful chunks of services.
Reference
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APA
Priya Chandrasekaran. (2026, February 13). Social Care Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/social-care-statistics
MLA
Priya Chandrasekaran. "Social Care Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/social-care-statistics.
Chicago
Priya Chandrasekaran. 2026. "Social Care Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/social-care-statistics.
Sources & references
45 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+27 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)