Last Updated on September 29, 2025
The Royal Society for Public Health is calling for adult social care reform to improve working conditions and access to workforce training. A new report, Caring About Health, published by the Royal Society for Public Health, is calling for Government to introduce a national core training offer for all social care staff to bridge the public health skills gap, ensure career progression and improve staff retention.
The Royal Society for Public Health conducted focus group-based research to help inform the report. It held two focus groups with 20 attendees who had direct lived experience of working in the social care system or who have caring responsibilities.
The report argues that this would help staff to spot health concerns earlier through interventions like blood pressure checks or mental health conversations to prevent hospitalisations and reduce pressure on the NHS.
The report comes against a backdrop of poor working conditions and a lack of support and recognition in social care, according to the Royal Society for Public Health. It highlights the lack of training, high turnover and strain on mental health due to overwork and low pay as the key issues the workforce is facing.
Other recommendations in the report include investing in mental health support for staff, connecting them to formal health services and the phasing out of 15-minute care visits in favour of care plans that reflect individual needs.
The Royal Society for Public Health will soon be releasing a new educational pathway for the social care workforce to give it the public health skills it needs to promote better health outcomes for people drawing upon care and support services.
New analysis accompanying the report found that only 57% of adult social care services do a ‘good job’ of supporting people to live healthier lives. The analysis is based on a Freedom of Information request from the Royal Society for Public Health to the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Recent inspections found shortfalls in 462 cases.
‘Supporting people to live healthier lives’ is a key part of the CQC’s assessment framework for the effectiveness of care services. It includes measures such as how well social care service users are encouraged to make ‘healthier choices’ (diet, lifestyle, physical activity) and the extent to which health risks are identified to prevent deterioration (GP referrals, health checks).
Commenting on the new report, William Roberts, Chief Executive at the Royal Society for Public Health, said, 'We need to radically rethink how we see and do adult social care in this country. Caring for others is a hugely valuable service that not only benefits the care receiver but our society as a whole.
'Our ambition as a nation should be having an adult social care system that supports care staff to enable people to live the best quality of life for as long as possible. As our analysis shows, we are long way from achieving that. However, with proper investment in training, progression and support for staff, we can equip the workforce with the public health skills it needs to go further.
'We can’t afford to kick the can down the road any longer. That’s why it’s vital that we see social care as a core part of the Government’s plans for a preventative national health service.'
One care worker who participated in a focus group conducted by the Royal Society for Public Health to inform the report, said, 'We’re preventing hospital admissions, easing pressure on the NHS and holding communities together. But we can’t keep doing all of that if we’re underpaid, overworked, undervalued and rushed.'
Another said, 'The most urgent change is to allow longer care visits. So many of the people I support have complex needs that just can't be met in a rushed 15- or 30-minute slot. If care plans were more realistic about the time it actually takes to provide both physical and emotional support, I’d be able to do my job properly.'
The full report is available on the Royal Society for Public Health website.
In other news, the Department of Health and Social Care has published a Foundational Specification for adult social care case management system procurement.