UK’s Growing Dependence on Foreign Care Workers Revealed in Alarming New Figures

Britain’s growing reliance on foreign workers in the social care sector has been revealed through concerning new figures. The number of overseas care workers has surged from 215,000 in 2019-20 to 465,000 this year, highlighting how dependent care services have become on workers from abroad.

Nearly one in four of these posts is now held by non-EU nationals, according to data from Skills for Care. At the same time, the proportion of British workers in the care sector has dropped from 84.6% (1.18 million) to just 70.8% (1.13 million) this year, further demonstrating the shift towards overseas recruitment.

The Skills for Care report also revealed that 40,000 migrants entered the care sector last year, many of whom arrived on visas such as student or family visas. The government has previously pledged to reduce the UK’s reliance on overseas workers, but Skills for Care’s report argues that there must be greater focus on attracting and retaining domestic workers to address the growing shortfall, reported the Express.

Lucinda Allen, policy fellow at the Health Foundation, explained that while recruitment challenges have eased since 2021, the care sector continues to depend heavily on foreign workers. She noted that, since Brexit, the number of British workers in social care has steadily declined, raising concerns about future recruitment, especially with the government’s ongoing efforts to limit immigration.

Oonagh Smyth, chief executive of Skills for Care, also acknowledged that while the decrease in vacancy rates is promising, the sector cannot afford to become complacent. She warned that the care sector still faces vacancy rates three times higher than the wider economy and stressed the importance of investing in stable recruitment and retention efforts.

“We need to make roles more attractive to the domestic workforce, offering development opportunities and creating positive cultures within organizations,” she said. She added that everyone, from the government to care providers, must work together to build a workforce capable of delivering the high-quality care needed across the country.

In an effort to reduce reliance on overseas workers, the Home Office has ordered care providers to prioritise hiring foreign workers already living in the UK before recruiting from abroad. Between July 2022 and December 2024, over 470 sponsor licences were revoked in the care sector, and the government has imposed tighter restrictions on health and care worker visas.

The number of health and care visas granted has also sharply fallen, dropping 84% between April and September 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.

The latest immigration rules, which came into effect in July, further restrict access to care worker visas under the skilled worker programme. These changes are expected to make it harder for the sector to meet the growing demand for care workers.

Skills for Care estimates that an additional 470,000 workers will be needed by 2040 to care for an aging population, and it is clear that increasing recruitment from the UK workforce will be crucial to meeting that need.

While the vacancy rate has improved slightly, with 111,000 vacant care positions in March 2024 (down from 126,000 the previous year), the sector still faces a significant shortage. The government’s focus on reducing immigration could have long-term consequences for the care sector, which continues to rely on overseas workers to fill vital roles.