WM ADASS has a well established Workforce Network that includes adult social care leads from each of our 14 councils along with representation from Skills for Care, Health Education England, West Midlands Employees and other key partners.
During 2025/26 the Network has been supporting councils in the region with:
Expanding youth pathways and entry routes into social care
The Network continued to champion early‑career routes into social care, supporting councils to make the most of foundation apprenticeships, modular apprenticeship units and the Youth Guarantee. This work aims to strengthen the regional pipeline and widen access for young people, NEET groups and career changers. We work with providers to navigate apprenticeship funding, learner support needs, achievement rates and workforce retention challenges. This insight is intended to help councils and providers reshape planning for 2026/27 and better align apprenticeships with broader workforce strategies.
See the March 2026 updated version of the WM ADASS Social Care Apprenticeships report, originally published in 2024.
International recruitment – ethical practice, collaboration & national Influence
The Workforce Network played an active leadership role in strengthening ethical, sustainable international recruitment. This included:
- Close collaboration with the WMADASS International Recruitment Programme, including presentations, data sharing and operational insight into sponsorship licence responsibilities, compliance, pastoral support and workforce risk.
- Engagement with the Cavendish Coalition, ensuring regional ASC perspectives inform national cross‑system work on ethical recruitment, anti‑exploitation standards and inclusion. Dialogue with the Home Office to strengthen understanding of visa rules, compliance issues, safeguarding considerations and the lived experience of international recruits.
- Representation of the Workforce Network on the ADASS Workforce Network international recruitment workstream, ensuring regional learning shapes national workforce policy.
- Participation in the ADASS EEDI Group, embedding anti‑racism, inclusion and psychologically safe workplace principles into all IR activity.
Market shaping and care market sustainability
The Workforce Network contributed to regional work on stabilising and shaping the adult social care market. Key contributions included:
- Collaboration with WMADASS commissioning and sustainability colleagues with market intelligence, workforce implications and provider‑readiness insights.
- Strengthening the link between workforce planning and market sustainability, recognising that workforce shortages and fragile provider capacity are interconnected challenges.
- Engaging in discussions on inflation, fee rates, international recruitment, provider viability, and commissioning capacity, helping shape practical tools and shared frameworks for councils.
- Supporting the development of market sustainability guidance, workshops and improvement resources to assist councils with Care Act responsibilities, CQC assurance, and risk management.
This work helped ensure that workforce strategy and market‑shaping activity remain aligned, reinforcing stability across the sector.
View our report Care market shaping and sustainability guidance
Improving workforce intelligence across the region
Data analysis this year provided clearer insights into apprenticeship uptake, youth engagement, international recruitment activity, workforce churn and provider capability. This intelligence is intended to support councils to plan more effectively and help shape regional priorities for 2026/27.
The video describes the workforce data available from the WM-ADASS Data Hub
About this network
The Network meets bi-monthly to support the West Midlands Improvement Programme providing information, improvement and best practice sharing for activists across the region. It is also concerned with:
- strategic workforce planning
- growing and developing the workforce to meet future demand
- enhancing the use of technology
- developing the wellbeing of the workforce
- building and enhancing social justice in the workforce.
The Network is sponsored by Hilary Hall, director, community wellbeing, Herefordshire Council, and chaired by Andrew Jepps, Staffordshire Council. The network is supported by Lynne Bowers WM ADASS Associate.