Councils told to set fee rates for a sustainable care workforce – Care Home Management
Strengthening the Future of Adult Social Care: DHSC Calls on Councils to Set Sustainable Fee Rates
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has issued a clear message to local authorities: fee rates must be set at a level that supports a sustainable, skilled and stable adult social care workforce. This means ensuring providers can recruit and retain the people needed to deliver high‑quality care across our communities.
Alongside this, councils are being urged to prepare for major upcoming reforms, including employment rights changes from 2026 and the introduction of the Fair Pay Agreement from 2028, which will establish legally enforceable minimum standards for pay, conditions, training and progression across adult social care.
DHSC has set out three key priority outcomes for local authorities:
1️⃣ High‑quality adult social care delivered by a skilled workforce
2️⃣ Greater choice and control for people drawing on care
3️⃣ Better join‑up between health and social care at neighbourhood level
To achieve these outcomes, councils must work closely with providers to deliver a transformed and sustainable system. DHSC highlights several essential changes, including:
✔ Commissioning sustainable services with a focus on individual outcomes and high‑quality care
✔ Embedding a national workforce career structure through the Care Workforce Pathway
✔ Using care technology and targeted falls prevention to support independence and reduce health pressures
✔ Pooling funding with ICBs under the reformed Better Care Fund
✔ Developing multidisciplinary teams for people with more complex needs
For our region in Yorkshire and Humber—home to thousands of committed providers and care professionals—this direction from DHSC reinforces what we already know: investment in people is non‑negotiable. A well‑funded care workforce means better recruitment, stronger retention, improved continuity of care and a more resilient system for everyone.
The Yorkshire and Humber Care Association Alliance will continue to champion fair, sustainable fee setting and meaningful engagement between commissioners and providers as these reforms progress.
Together, we can build the future social care workforce our communities deserve.
Read the article in CMM here Councils told to set fee rates for a sustainable care workforce – Care Home Management
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