Number of local authority adult social care jobs in England fell by 7% last year

The number of adult social services jobs in councils in England dropped by 7% in 2013, according to a report by Skills for Care and the Health and Social Care Information Centre.

As of September 2013, there were 140,700 adult social services jobs in English local authorities, down 10,000 on the previous year.

Around two-thirds of councils (101 out of 152) have made reductions. Most did not say why, but of the 24 councils that did, nine said they had outsourced services, 14 said it was due to restructures and redundancies and one council said it was a combination of both.

However, the number of qualified social worker jobs has remained static.There were 16,500 social worker jobs in English councils, a decrease of less than 1% from 2012, and the number of whole time equivalent social worker jobs increased by 2% from 14,500 in 2012 to 14,800 in 2013.

The report, which is based on an analysis of National Minimum Data Set for Social Care returns, also found that the majority of local authority social workers and care staff saw a decrease in real terms pay between 2012 and 2013.

Care worker pay decreased by 2% in real terms from £17,600 to £17,200 between 2012 and 2013. Social worker pay also decreased by 2% in real terms from £32,600 in 2012 to £31,900 in 2013.

The demographic profile of the local authority social services workforce remains relatively stable, with 82% of jobs filled by female workers and 18% by males. The average age of all workers was 47.

The majority of social care workers are white (87%), while 13% are from black and minority ethnic groups.

The Personal Social Services: Staff of Social Services Departments, England report uses National Minimum Date Set for Social Care (NMDS-SC) returns from all 152 local authorities in England.