Charity calls for national care standards to end England’s social care postcode lottery
The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) has published a new report, supported by The Access Group, which explores the future direction of social care reform in England following extensive engagement with the sector.
Titled ‘Towards a National Care Service: raising national standards of care’ the report argues that the core challenge facing social care is not a lack of values or vision, but the inconsistent translation of those shared principles into people’s day-to-day experiences of care and support.
The report reveals that England already has strong foundations in the Care Act 2014 and a widely shared understanding of what good care should enable, people living the lives they choose, with dignity, connection and control.
This inconsistency, it states, is what has produced the postcode lottery in access, quality and outcomes, says SCIE. The report, therefore, frames national standards of care not as a prescriptive blueprint for services, but as a mechanism for clarifying expectations so that people can rely on a consistent baseline regardless of where they live.
SCIE’s proposed framework sets out how national standards could define what is essential and non-negotiable, while deliberately protecting flexibility in how outcomes are achieved locally.
The emphasis is on standards that specify what good care delivers for people, rather than mandating uniform processes or service models. In this way, national standards could help expose and reduce unjustified variation, strengthen accountability, and support learning and improvement across the system, without stifling innovation or personalisation.
Crucially, the report is clear that national standards alone cannot fix the deep-rooted challenges facing social care, including workforce shortages and financial pressures. Their impact depends on how they are designed and implemented, and whether they are supported by the right system conditions, from data and accountability to commissioning capability and co-production infrastructure.
Kathryn Marsden OBE, Chief Executive of SCIE, said: “It is indefensible that, in this country, two people with the same social care needs, living only a few miles apart, can experience completely different levels of support. That postcode lottery undermines people’s dignity, independence and safety, and it places intolerable pressure on families and unpaid carers who are left to fill the gaps.
“National standards of care offer a practical way to close that gap – not by imposing a one-size-fits-all model, but by making clear what people should be able to expect from the system wherever they live. Done well, they can translate long-standing values in social care into clearer, outcomes-focused expectations that are rooted in lived experience and backed by accountability.
“But we also need to be honest about the context. Social care operates in a complex, resource-constrained system, shaped by workforce shortages, financial pressures and shifting political priorities. Poorly designed standards risk becoming symbolic, compliance-driven or disconnected from reality. This is not about quick fixes. Ending the postcode lottery will require sustained commitment, careful implementation and a focus on learning and improvement – not just ambition on paper.
“As the Casey Commission builds momentum towards its final report in 2028, this is the moment to get the foundations right – starting with clarity about what good care should deliver, and how we reduce variation in people’s experiences without losing what makes care personal and local.”
SCIE is calling for national standards of care to be developed iteratively and collaboratively, with early action focused on testing what works in practice. Initial steps should prioritise co-production and piloting, working with people who draw on care and support, carers, providers, commissioners and system leaders to test how outcomes-focused standards operate on the ground.
Sojan Joseph, MP for Ashford, said: “The levels of inequality in our adult social care services have been far too high for far too long. We cannot build an NHS fit for the future unless we address these deep structural issues in our adult social care system.
“I am pleased the Government is taking steps to address the significant challenges in our adult social care sector, both through funding and fundamental reforms to the sector, such as funding for home modifications to give people more independence and allow them to be discharged from hospitals, embracing new technology, and making social care a desirable and respected profession – both through the pay increase given to carers last year and through a shift in culture.
“I look forward to working with the Government after Baroness Casey’s Commission concludes to ensure that her findings are implemented and our adult social care system is fixed for everyone, not just those fortunate enough to live in a postcode that provides better services.”
The report sets out a phased approach to developing national standards of care, with an initial focus on priority challenges in social care and areas of interface with health, where variation in access, experience and outcomes is most acute.
It proposes starting with a small number of high-impact touchpoints, while supporting a shift towards prevention and early intervention and strengthening data and system intelligence. These early standards would be developed, tested and refined over time, working alongside government and the Casey Commission as thinking progresses, aligned with its expected timelines.
SCIE and The Access Group will support this work by continuing to convene partners, contribute evidence and learning, and work alongside government and the Casey Commission as thinking develops, helping ensure that national standards evolve into a credible tool for reducing the postcode lottery ahead of the Commission’s final report, expected in 2028.
Mark Gale, Policy Manager at Sense, said: “Introducing clear standards would be a positive step forward for the social care system, helping to end unfair variation across postcodes and giving people more confidence about what they should expect from their care. It’s vital that these standards are co-produced with disabled people who access social care services – without this, standards risk becoming another tick-box exercise.
“In a social care system marred by chronic underfunding and under-resourcing, standards alone are not a silver bullet.
“We need to see national standards backed by real investment in the social care workforce, commissioning, and more integrated support across health, housing and social care. For too long, disabled people have been failed by a system that’s shaped around budgets, rather than need, with far too many people facing long delays, postcode lotteries and patchy support that strips away choice, control and independence.
“The Casey Commission provides a pivotal opportunity for government to build a better system, that puts lived experience at its heart, integrates services, and secures long-term, sustainable funding.”
In December 2025 SCIE joined other sector leaders at the National Children and Adult Services Conference (NCASC) 2025, to share insights and highlight examples of digital innovation.
