UK News: Royal Commission on Social Care Publishes Interim Report
The Royal Commission on Social Care, established by the government following manifesto commitments to address the long-standing crisis in adult social care provision, published its interim report in spring 2026, setting out preliminary conclusions and recommendations on the structural funding challenges, workforce crisis and quality standards issues that have characterised the social care system for many years. The interim report, produced to provide an early signal of the commission’s direction ahead of the full report expected later in the year, recommended significant changes to the way social care is funded, staffed and regulated.
The funding recommendations address what the commission described as the most fundamental problem facing adult social care: the mismatch between the statutory obligation to provide care for those assessed as needing it and the financial resources available to local authorities to discharge that obligation. The commission’s preliminary view was that the current mixed model — combining means-tested local authority provision with a private market for those who self-fund — is not delivering equitable or sustainable care and requires significant reform.
Workforce recommendations focused on the persistent recruitment and retention crisis in the social care workforce, which is characterised by high turnover, low pay and limited career development pathways. The commission argued that a fundamental revaluation of care work — through improved pay, professional registration and enhanced training — was necessary to attract and retain sufficient workers to meet existing and growing demand from an ageing population.
Quality and regulatory recommendations addressed the patchy performance across the care provider landscape, where a combination of CQC inspection failures and the financial fragility of many care providers had produced too many instances of poor or unsafe care. The commission called for a strengthened regulatory framework and improved market oversight to provide better assurance of care quality.
