Government ‘to cut £250m from social care workforce funding’ in England

Low wages are driving care workers out of the industry into better-paid jobs in retail and hospitality. Photograph: David Levene/The Guardian

Ministers are poised to cut £250m from investment in the social care workforce in England, it has been reported, in a move that providers say could set back care “for years to come”.

With more than 165,000 care worker jobs vacant, and low pay driving staff to quit for better wages in retail and hospitality, care providers and councils have been clamouring for investment in recruitment and retention. Inadequate staffing levels are frequently noted as a cause of neglect and poor care by the Care Quality Commission.