Adult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024 (2024)

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About these statistics

This is a monthly publication by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) of official statistics on adult social care in England. Official statistics are produced in accordance with the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007 and the Code of Practice for Statistics, and meet high standards of trustworthiness, quality and public value.

These statistics are assessed regularly and any improvements in quality are incorporated accordingly at the next available opportunity. The scope of the data included in this publication is also assessed to ensure the value of these statistics is maintained. Data collection may change in response to shifts in priorities, leading to corresponding adjustments in this bulletin’s reporting.

Introduction

This statistical bulletin provides an overview on a range of information on social care settings. We are transforming the content of the publication to capture a broader social care picture and to utilise new data as it becomes available. Details of new data and content can be found in the ‘Publication updates’ section, below.

This report provides information on:

• occupancy levels in care homes at national, regional and local authority level

• visiting in care homes at national, regional and local authority level

• staff absence rates due to COVID-19 in care homes and domiciliary care at national, regional and local authority level

• insights from the client-level data (CLD) collection on people receiving local authority arranged or provided long-term support at national, regional and local authority level, which are published as official statistics in development

• estimates of digital social care record (DSCR) uptake, which are published as official statistics in development

Data on occupancy and visiting in care homes and staff absence in care settings in this publication is taken fromCapacity Tracker. Capacity Tracker is a web-based digital insight tool originally developed by NHS England and the Better Care Fund to enable the system to better manage hospital discharges by identifying available capacity in care homes. It enables care homes to share their vacancies in real time, meaning hospital discharge teams and other health professionals can rapidly search availability throughout England. Since spring 2020, the tool has also been used byDHSCto gather COVID-19-related data to help monitor the sector’s response to the pandemic.

For more information on data sources, the data previously published as part of this report and other published sources of adult social care data, see thebackground quality and methodology for these statistics.

Publication updates

Updates to current report

Official statistics in development: client-level data

Statistics from client-level data (CLD) were published for the first time in this report in March 2024 as official statistics in development and will be updated on a quarterly basis. This report contains the latestCLDfigures.

Official statistics in development: digital social care records

Statistics on estimated uptake ofdigital social care records (DSCRs)were published for the first time byDHSCin April 2024 as official statistics in development and will be updated on a quarterly basis. This report contains the latestDSCRfigures.

Updates on future reports

The next publication will be released on 7 November 2024. Dates for future publications will be announced on theGOV.UK publication release calendar.

Official statistics in development: CLD and estimated uptake of digital social care records metrics will be updated in the January 2025 publication.

The November 2024 report will include statistics relating to the 2024 to 2025 flu and COVID-19 autumn vaccination campaigns in adult social care settings. This will include data on:

• flu vaccinations among care home residents and staff
• flu vaccinations among staff working in domiciliary care settings
• COVID-19 autumn vaccinations given during this campaign among care home and domiciliary care staff

In previous years we have published weekly data points for the above but will now be publishing monthly data points for this winter to align with the Capacity Tracker reporting window as used in visiting, absence and occupancy tables.

All COVID-19 vaccination information for care home residents will be published by NHS England from mid October. A link to these figures will be included in our November 2024 report.

Main points

This section discusses the main points of interest from the data tables, available on the Adult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024 page. For further detailed analysis on this data, see the ‘Further analysis’ section below.

Occupancy

As of the week ending 16 September 2024:

• 86.7% of beds in care homes were occupied

• 10.5% of beds in care homes were vacant and admittable

• 2.8% of beds in care homes were vacant and non-admittable

From February 2024 onwards, care home occupancy is calculated based on care homes that were active according to the most recent Care Quality Commission (CQC) registration data update in Capacity Tracker at the end of that month’s reporting window.

For more information, see thebackground quality and methodology for these statistics.

Figure 1: percentage of occupied, vacant and admittable, and vacant and non-admittable care home beds, England, 16 October 2023 to 16 September 2024

Source: Capacity Tracker

The main observations from figure 1 are:

• rates of occupied beds, vacant and admittable beds, and vacant and non-admittable beds have remained stable over the 12 months to September 2024
• since May 2024, the proportion of total beds occupied has remained just above the 12-month average of 86.0% and increased slightly between July 2024 and September 2024
• the proportion of total beds vacant and admittable has remained below the 12-month average of 11.0% since July 2024, with this proportion decreasing slightly between June 2024 and September 2024
• the proportion of total beds vacant and non-admittable has remained just below the 12-month average of 3.0% since May 2024, with this proportion decreasing slightly between August 2024 and September 2024

This data can be found in table 4 of the accompanying ‘Occupancy, visiting and workforce statistics, October 2024: data tables’ on the Adult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024 page, in addition to data by region and local authority.

Visiting in care homes

In the week ending 16 September 2024, 99.6% of care homes in England were able to accommodate residents receiving visitors. This has slightly decreased from 99.7% in the last month. This figure has been stable since September 2022.

Figure 2: percentage of care homes accommodating or limiting visits for residents, England, 4 January 2022 to 16 September 2024

Source: Capacity Tracker

Note: the dotted lines in this chart represent the implementation of the changes in care home visiting guidance or changes to the visiting question in Capacity Tracker:

• A: from 31 January 2022, no limits on the number of named visitors, with testing and guidance to support safe visiting in place

• B: from 4 April 2022, no restrictions on visitation in care homes. Every care home resident should have one visitor who can visit in all circumstances (including during periods of isolation and outbreak)

• C: from 4 July 2022, the visiting questions in Capacity Tracker changed so care homes were asked whether residents had been allowed visits in or out of the care home in the last month, instead of in the last 7 days

• D: from 31 July 2022, providers are mandated to submit data on visiting on a monthly basis. From August 2022 onwards, the data points in this graph are monthly instead of weekly

• E: from 5 June 2024, the visiting questions in Capacity Tracker changed so care homes could no longer respond ‘only in exceptional circumstances’ to the question of whether residents had been allowed visits in and/or out of the care home in the last month

The main observation from figure 2 is that the proportion of care homes accommodating visiting for residents has broadly increased since mid January 2022, with the exception of slight decreases in early April 2022 and early July 2022. This number has stabilised since September 2022.

This data can be found in table 1 of the accompanying ‘Occupancy, visiting and workforce statistics, October 2024: data tables’ on theAdult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024 page, in addition to data by region and local authority.

Staff absences due to COVID-19

In the week ending 16 September 2024, 0.1% of care home staff and 0.1% of domiciliary care staff were absent due to COVID-19-related reasons.

This proportion slightly decreased for domiciliary care staff and stayed the same for care home staff in the last month.

Figure 3: percentage of staff absent due to COVID-19-related reasons, England, 4 January 2022 to 16 September 2024

Source: Capacity Tracker

Notes:

• the proportion of staff absent due to COVID-19-related reasons is not comparable across care settings

• the dotted line in these charts represents the move to monthly reporting after the start of the mandatory data provision implemented on 31 July 2022. From August 2022 onwards, the data points in these graphs are monthly instead of weekly

The main observations from figure 3 are:

• since the peak of 2.9% in January 2022, there have been 2 further spikes in care home staff absence rates, in late March 2022 and mid July 2022. For domiciliary care absence, following a peak of 4.8% in January 2022, there have been a further 3 spikes, in late March 2022, mid July 2022 and mid October 2022
• from November 2022 to April 2023, absence rates due to COVID-19-related reasons remained broadly stable in both care homes and domiciliary care settings, and decreased between April and June 2023
• between June 2023 and March 2024, absence rates remained the same among care home staff, and decreased slightly in April 2024
• between June and October 2023, absence rates broadly increased among domiciliary care staff and decreased in November 2023. From November 2023 to February 2024, absence rates among domiciliary care staff remained the same, before decreasing slightly in March 2024, May 2024 and September 2024

This data can be found in tables 2 and 3 of the accompanying ‘Occupancy, visiting and workforce statistics, October 2024: data tables’ on theAdult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024 page, in addition to data by region and local authority.

Official statistics in development: digital social care records

As of July 2024, 72% (to the nearest whole number) of CQC-registered adult social care providers in England are estimated to have aDSCR.

The estimated uptake ofDSCRsrelates to the proportion of CQC-registered adult social care providers that responded as having aDSCR, against the total number of responses each month.

Data on the estimated uptake ofDSCRsis available up until the end of July 2024. As of July 2024, 72% of CQC-registered adult social care providers in England are estimated to have aDSCR, compared to 41% in December 2021.

Data on the estimated uptake ofDSCRscan be found in table 1 of the accompanying ‘Estimated uptake of digital social care records - official statistics in development, October 2024: data tables’ on theAdult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024page.

Information on the uptake ofDSCRsis self-reported. Adult social care providers, registered withCQC,are required to provide an updated position on theirDSCRusage annually.This means that data reported each month represents a snapshot in time from a sample of roughly a twelfth of theCQC-registered adult social care provider market. Due to the nature of this rotating sample, it is possible to see fluctuations in usage from one month to the next. To account for this potential for variation, the statistics presented in this report are a rolling average on the reported use ofDSCRsacross the preceding 3 months.

For more information, see thebackground quality and methodology for these statistics.

Further analysis

Occupancy in care homes

There was some regional variation in care home occupancy rates. As of the week ending 16 September 2024, the percentage of total care home beds that were:

• occupied varied from 84.2% in the East Midlands to 89.0% in London

• vacant and admittable varied from 8.2% in the North West to 13.2% in the East Midlands

• vacant and non-admittable varied from 2.0% in the North East to 4.0% in Yorkshire and the Humber

Data on occupancy and response rates can be found in tables 4 and 8, respectively, of the accompanying ‘Occupancy, visiting and workforce statistics, October 2024: data tables’ on theAdult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024page.

As noted above, from February 2024 onwards, care home occupancy is based on care homes that were active as of the most recentCQCregistration data update in Capacity Tracker at the end of that month’s reporting window.

For more information, see thebackground quality and methodology for these statistics.

Accommodating COVID-safe visitation in care homes

In the week ending 16 September 2024, there was some regional variation in the proportion of care homes able to accommodate visits in or out of the care home for residents in all circumstances, ranging from 99.3% in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber to 100.0% in the North East and the South East.

Since 31 July 2022, this question is part of the subset of data that providers are mandated to submit on a monthly basis. For more information, see thebackground quality and methodology for these statistics.

From 5 June 2024, the visiting questions in Capacity Tracker changed so care homes could no longer respond ‘only in exceptional circumstances’ to the question of whether residents had been allowed visits in and/or out of the care home in the last month.

Data on accommodating COVID-safe visitation and response rates in care homes can be found in tables 1 and 5, respectively, of the accompanying ‘Occupancy, visiting and workforce statistics, October 2024: data tables’ on theAdult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024page, in addition to data by region and local authority.

Adult social care workforce

In care homes

In the week ending 16 September 2024 there was no regional variation, with a COVID-19-related staff absence rate of 0.1% across all regions. Since the week ending 14 August 2024, absence rates decreased from 0.2% to 0.1% in the East Midlands and the South West and remained the same in all other regions.

Data on absences and response rates in care homes can be found in tables 2 and 6, respectively, of the accompanying ‘Occupancy, visiting and workforce statistics, October 2024: data tables’ on theAdult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024page.

In domiciliary care

Absence rates in domiciliary care settings are not directly comparable with those in residential care homes.

In the week ending 16 September 2024, there was little regional variation, with regions reporting absence rates between 0.1% and 0.2%. Since the week ending 14 August 2024, absence rates decreased from 0.3% to 0.2% in the South East and from 0.2% to 0.1% in the North East. Absence rates remained the same in all other regions.

Data on absences and response rates in domiciliary care settings can be found in tables 3 and 7, respectively, of the accompanying ‘Occupancy, visiting and workforce statistics, October 2024: data tables’ on theAdult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2024page.

For more information, see thebackground quality and methodology for these statistics.

Official statistics in development: number of people receiving local authority arranged or provided long-term adult social care support

On 30 June 2024, there were 662,320 people receiving long-term local authority arranged or provided adult social care. This represents 1,450 people per 100,000 adults in England:

• 481,150 people were receiving support in the community, 1,053 per 100,000 adults
• 135,245 people were receiving support in the residential care homes, 296 per 100,000 adults
• 53,340 people were receiving support in nursing homes, 117 per 100,000 adults
• 230 people were receiving support in prison

Figure 4: number of people receiving local authority arranged or provided long-term adult social care support at the end of the month, England, by support setting from 31 July 2023 to 30 June 2024

Notes:

• values given are rounded to the nearest 5
• people may be receiving long-term support in multiple settings
• statistics do not include the Isles of Scilly

The total number of people receiving long-term support in England showed an increase from 641,690 on 31 July 2023 to 662,320 on 30 June 2024.

This trend is driven by the increase in support delivered in community settings (including support in the form of direct payments from the local authority that people can then use to buy their own care and support), where the number of people receiving long-term support increased from 459,330 on 31 July 2023 to 481,150 on 30 June 2024. The reported increase could be partly due to improved reporting by some local authorities. It may also be the result of seasonal patterns in long-term support provision.

Ethnicity

Figure 5: number of people per 100,000 receiving local authority arranged or provided long-term adult social care support, England, by ethnicity, 30 June 2024

White people of English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish or British background were the largest ethnic group in receipt of long-term support. As of 30 June 2024, 511,920 people identifying as this ethnicity were receiving long-term support, 1,520 per 100,000 people.

There were 6,665 black people who categorised themselves as any background except Caribbean or African in receipt of long-term support on 30 June 2024. This represented 4,258 per 100,000 people and was the highest rate of any ethnic group followed by black people of Caribbean background of whom 2,678 people per 100,000 were receiving long-term support.

There were 35,550 people recorded with undeclared or unknown ethnicity and 2,345 people who refused to declare their ethnicity, of those receiving long-term support on 30 June 2024.

Gender

Of those receiving long-term support on 30 June 2024:

• 373,610 people identified themselves female, 1,586 per 100,000 adults in England
• 287,870 people identified themselves male, 1,300 per 100,000 adults in England
• 305 people identified themselves as another gender
• 540 people did not have a recorded gender

Age group

Figure 6: number of people receiving local authority arranged or provided long-term adult social care support in the community at the end of the month, England, by age group, from 31 July 2023 to 30 June 2024

CLDallows for the most detailed insight to date into the age distribution of people interacting with the local authority adult social care system.

Of those receiving long-term support on 30 June 2024, 393,820 were aged 65 or above, 3,652 people per 100,000 people aged 65 and above in England. 268,470 were aged 18 to 64, 769 per 100,000 adults under 65 in England. Of the more granular age groups, the 3 largest age groups were:

• people aged 85 to 94, with 139,670 people
• people aged 75 to 84, with 139,485 people
• people aged 45 to 64, with 135,090 people

The age bands used in this publication vary in size, based on advice from local authorities and users about which groups would be most useful. The numbers are not population-standardised.

Of people aged 85 and above, 11,707 per 100,000 people were receiving long-term support on 30 June 2024. This compares with 3,610 per 100,000 people aged 75 to 84 and 1,554 per 100,000 people aged 65 to 74.

Among all age groups, support is most commonly provided in community settings. For all age groups except people aged 95 and above, there was an increase in the number of people receiving long-term support in the community from 31 July 2023 to 30 June 2024.

Region and local authority

On 30 June 2024, the 3 English regions with the largest number of people receiving long-term support were:

• North West: 101,395 people
• London: 98,605 people
• South East: 95,425 people

The region with the largest proportion of people receiving long-term support on 30 June 2024 was the North East with 1,935 per 100,000 people. Conversely, the smallest proportion was the 1,273 per 100,000 people in the South East.

All regions had a small reported increase in the number of people receiving long-term support from 31 July 2023 to 30 June 2024 except the East Midlands which had a small reported decrease.

At local authority level, figures and any apparent trends should be interpreted with caution, since we are aware that some local authorities do not have complete coverage and have known data quality issues that they have improved over time and are working to resolve for future submissions.

Terminology

Care home

Facilities providing residential care. The data in this bulletin refers toCare Quality Commission (CQC) registered care homes.

Older adult care homes

Care homes serving any older people (aged 65 and over) as identified from the latestCQCdata on care homes in the ‘older people service’ user band. A small number of residents within care homes serving older people may be aged under 65.

Younger adult care homes

Care homes not serving any older people (aged 65 and over) as identified from the latestCQCdata on care homes in the ‘older people service’ user band.

Domiciliary care

Services providing personal care for people living in their own homes. The data in this bulletin refers to domiciliary staff employed by independentCQC-registered providers.

Staff

Unless specified, staff can refer to staff directly employed by a provider and/or through an agency.

Active Capacity Tracker locations

Care homes which have a CQC active status, excluding those with a current dormancy start date.

Vacant and admittable beds

Beds which are vacant and available to accept an admission on the day of data submission, as self-reported by care providers in Capacity Tracker.

Vacant and non-admittable beds

Beds which are vacant but not available for admission on the day of data submission, as self-reported by care providers in Capacity Tracker. This includes the number of beds which are vacant and reserved.

About this data

These statistics are being published as a part of a wider landscape of statistics on adult social care. The Government Statistical Service compiles aUK adult social care databaseof official statistics on adult social care across the 4 nations of the UK. This is updated on a monthly basis.

The UK Statistics Authority conducted areview of adult social care statistics in England, which called for:

• better leadership and collaboration across different organisations publishing official statistics. This publication has been produced in collaboration with other statistics providers of COVID-19 adult social care data andDHSCwill endeavour to work with various stakeholders as more data is published through this publication

• addressing of gaps in available data, particularly in privately funded care. This bulletin aims to plug some of that gap by including data on residents privately funding their care in addition to those funded by local authorities

• improving existing official statistics. Statistics derived from Capacity Tracker are badged as official statistics and more data will be added iteratively based on user needs

Data sources

Data on occupancy and visiting in care homes and staff absence is taken from self-reported data submitted by care providers in England through a data collection and insight tool calledCapacity Tracker. From 31 July 2022, this data is part of the subset of data that providers are mandated to submit on a monthly basis.

More detailed information about data sources can be found in thebackground quality and methodology for these statistics. This document also includes detailed information on:

• data coverage

• data quality

• relevance

• accuracy and reliability

• timeliness and punctuality

• comparability and coherence

• accessibility and clarity

• cost and burden

Revisions

Any revisions to past publications will be in line withDHSC’s revision policyand highlighted in future publications accordingly.