Wakefield Council committed to improving adult social care following CQC assessment
Wednesday, September 03, 2025
Wakefield Council has reaffirmed its commitment to delivering high-quality, inclusive adult social care services following the publication of the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) Local Authority Assessment.
The report, which rates Wakefield as “Requires Improvement”, recognises the strong foundations in place and highlights a number of strengths across the district’s adult social care services. These include strong leadership, a dedicated and skilled workforce, and effective partnership working with health, housing and the voluntary sector.
“This report is another step in our improvement journey. We’re proud of the strengths that have been recognised, but we know we’re not there yet. We came within the smallest of margins of a ‘Good’ rating, it’s within our sights. But our ambition is to go further, to deliver the very best for the people we support across Wakefield.
“With new, permanent leadership in place and a clear vision for change, we’re confident we can build on what’s working and tackle the areas that need improvement.”
Cllr Michelle Collins
Cabinet Member for Adults and Health
The report highlights several areas of good practice. Wakefield scored 75% in both governance and learning and improvement, and in partnerships and communities, showing strong leadership and collaboration. Satisfaction with care and support was higher than the national average, and more people in Wakefield remained at home after reablement compared to other areas.
James Bullion, CQC’s chief inspector of adult social care and integrated care, said: “At Wakefield Council, we found a local authority that was working hard to help people access adult social care support, though we identified some areas for improvement. Wakefield came very close to achieving a good rating, which was partly due to its strong focus on working with local communities and partners and its commitment to consistently innovate and improve services.”
Work is already underway to improve access to services for under-served communities, streamline financial assessments and increase the uptake of direct payments. The Council is also working to expand the availability of short-term placements and strengthen out-of-hours support.
Read the full CQC report at Wakefield Council: local authority assessment - Care Quality Commission
For more information about adult social care in Wakefield, visit: Adult social care in Wakefield - Wakefield Council