Care England Daily Press Round-Up 3.3.26
Visa crackdown leaves UK care sector facing 78,000 vacancies
The number of skilled workers arriving in the UK has fallen to its lowest level since 2021, with sharp declines in health, care and science roles.
In 2025, just 45,797 Skilled Worker visas were issued to main applicants, according to new data from the Work Rights Centre – the lowest annual total since the UK left the EU.
Low pay costing social care sector billions in hidden costs, new research warns
New research from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has revealed the true financial toll of low pay in adult social care, warning that persistently poor wages are generating billions of pounds in hidden costs through chronic staff shortages and high workforce turnover.
Local government at it's "financially weakest", warns LGA ahead of Spring Statement
The Local Government Association (LGA) is urging the Chancellor to use the Spring Statement to further stabilise council finances, warning that growing cost and demand pressures continue to push councils to the financial brink.