‘Most of the care in Wales is good’ – Care Inspectorate Wales
Most of the care in Wales is good care, with almost three quarters of care homes and home support services achieving ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ grades last year, according to the care inspectorate for Wales.
The Care Inspectorate for Wales (CIW), which published its annual report for 2023-24 today, revealed that 3,106 (74%) of the grades awarded to care homes and home services during 2023-2024 were grades of ‘excellent’ or ‘ good’, and that 1,078 (26%) are grades ‘needs improvement’ or ‘poor’.
Currently, the inspectorate uses unpublished grades for care homes and home support services (home care), before switching to using published grades on 1 April 2025. Services are awarded four grades for well-being, quality of care and the support, leadership and management and, for care homes, the environment.
These figures were reflected in childcare and play settings as well, with 77% of all grades awarded as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’.
In the report published today, Gillian Baranski, Chief Inspector of Care Inspectorate Wales, said:
“Too often when children’s or adult social care services are under the spotlight, they are presented as ‘broken’ services that need fixing.
“Although we all recognize the widespread pressure on the system, we consistently see care at its best – transforming lives for the better.
“Despite the demand, we have a very dedicated workforce. Furthermore, care and support can help maintain people’s relationships and connections with family and friends; supporting the economy; and enable unpaid parents and carers to go to work.”
The report identifies cross-cutting issues that need to be considered jointly:
- Inspections continue to show the vital role that leaders play in creating an environment where people can thrive. Usually, the best performing services are those that support and inspire their teams to do their very best for the people in their care. AGC’s call to action is that ‘ leaders at all levels in care services should be compassionate, and should motivate and inspire their teams. They should listen to staff and give them the resources and support they need to provide the best possible care for people .’
- A positive culture is closely linked to a commitment to continuous improvement, underpinned by reflection and learning. AWW will continue to support improvement by setting grades in its inspections, by identifying positive practice in its reports, and by developing new ways of sharing and publicizing this positive practice. A call to action from AWW is that ‘ those who provide services and Care Inspectorate Wales should share positive practice in order to develop and celebrate a culture of continuous improvement.’
- Much better outcomes for people and change at a system level can be achieved by working in partnership to achieve shared goals. A call to implement AWW is that ‘ organisations and groups working in the field of care should create opportunities to work in partnership with each other and take advantage of such opportunities.’
However, the report does not avoid the significant challenges faced by the social care sector and the childcare and play sector:
Placements for looked after children: There remains a lack of suitable places for looked after children, which means that local authorities are providing services that operate without registration and the safeguarding and protection measures provided by registration are not in action for the children who live in these services.
The report states:
“We are still worried about the number of children living in services that operate without registration. This problem is exacerbated by increasing demand for services and the increasing complexity of children’s needs.
“It is rare that one agency can solve complex problems on its own and a joint effort is needed across the health and social care system.”
Waiting lists for social care: Many local authorities have waiting lists for assessments and other services such as home support services and reablement services. This can have a negative impact on people’s wellbeing, including unpaid carers.
Care homes for adults : There are 59 (-5.5%) fewer care homes for adults in 2024 compared to March 2017, meaning that there are 706 (-2.7%) fewer places available for people. Although this reduction may reflect the aim of supporting people to continue living in their own homes, there are concerns that the number of nursing places available for people with more complex care needs is decreasing.
Recruitment and retention: Recruitment and retention of staff in regulated adult services remains a problem, leading to concerns about the stability of the workforce. Some providers continue to rely on agency staff to meet their requirements in terms of staffing ratios and AWW has seen increased use of overseas workers who play an increasingly important role in the provision of social care services.
Carer assessments: There is inconsistent practice in offering and carrying out assessments for carers alongside providing them with support.
The current economic climate remains difficult for providers and the impact of the pandemic is still being felt, which makes it all the more remarkable that so many services do so well in our inspections. The Chief Inspector said:
“We will continue to do everything we can to provide security and quality of services. We will work hard to support providers to improve further, but when we see poor care, we will take action.”
