Workforce · Pay
National Living Wage, hourly rate (for workers aged 25 and over until March 2021, 23 and over until March 2024, 21 and over since) · April 2019 to April 2026
Note: The age the National Living Wage applies from fell over this period: 25 and over until March 2021, 23 and over until March 2024, then 21 and over.
Source: GOV.UK, National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates (opens in a new tab) Published 27 September 2026
| Date | National Living Wage, hourly rate (for workers aged 25 and over until March 2021, 23 and over until March 2024, 21 and over since) (£ per hour) |
|---|---|
| April 2019 | 8.21 |
| April 2020 | 8.72 |
| April 2021 | 8.91 |
| April 2022 | 9.50 |
| April 2023 | 10.42 |
| April 2024 | 11.44 |
| April 2025 | 12.21 |
| April 2026 | 12.71 |
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Regulation and quality · Ratings
Share of rated care homes rated good or outstanding, by region · October 2026
Note: CQC's current overall rating, which for some homes is several years old.
Source: CQC register of care services, Baton calculation (opens in a new tab) Published 21 October 2026
Commissioning and markets · Care home places
Share of care home beds in England, by who runs the home · October 2026
Note: Councils include the companies they own, as far as we have identified them (known data issue DI-003). A home registered twice is counted once.
Source: CQC register of care services, Baton calculation (opens in a new tab) Published 21 October 2026
Fees and funding · Home care fees
Average hourly rate councils paid external providers for home care, by region · 2024 to 2025
Note: Home care bought from external providers. London councils pay the most for a care home place but the least for an hour of home care.
Source: DHSC, Adult social care finance report, England: 2024 to 2025 (opens in a new tab) Published 21 October 2026
Workforce
Active care staffing agencies in England, by region of registered office · October 2026
Note: Active companies with an employment agency business code that also carry a health or social care code and care words in their name. Counted where the company is registered, which may be an accountant's address, not where its staff work.
Source: Companies House, free company data product, Baton calculation (opens in a new tab) Published 21 October 2026
Commissioning and markets · Care home places
Care home beds per 1,000 people aged 85 and over, by region · October 2026 (beds); mid-2025 (population)
Note: Every registered care home bed, including homes for younger adults, set against people aged 85 and over (ONS, mid-2025). A home registered twice is counted once.
Source: CQC register of care services and ONS mid-year population estimates, Baton calculation (opens in a new tab) Published 21 October 2026
Regulation and quality · Inspections
Share of care homes registered for more than five years that have not been inspected or assessed in the last five years, by region · October 2026
Note: Counted back five years from 13 October 2026. Homes registered in the last five years are left out, including homes that changed provider, because they cannot yet have gone five years without one. A home registered twice is counted once.
Source: CQC register of care services, Baton calculation (opens in a new tab) Published 21 October 2026
