Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - commentary
Published 29 October 2026
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2026
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Introduction
This commentary contains England-level findings from the adult social care survey (ASCS). User experience information is important for:
- understanding the impact of services
- enabling service user choice
- informing service development
The eligible population for this survey covers - at the point that data is extracted - all service users aged 18 and over in receipt of long-term support services provided or commissioned by a council with adult social care responsibilities (CASSR). CASSRs will be referred to as ‘local authorities’ throughout this release.
The survey asked service users questions about their quality of life, what impact care and support services have on their quality of life, and their self-reported general health and wellbeing. There were 6 sections in the survey relating to:
- overall satisfaction with care and support
- quality of life
- knowledge and information
- your health
- layout of home and surrounding area
- help from others
This commentary:
- summarises the main findings from the survey
- highlights any significant changes in the responses compared with previous years
- provides demographic information about the service users who responded to the survey
The data presented is based on the returns received from 152 of the 153 local authorities. Details of which local authorities did not take part in the survey are provided in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - data quality statement’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
The local authorities who participated in the 2025 to 2026 survey reported an eligible population of 659,155 service users, of whom a sample of 247,560 were selected to take part. A total of 56,835 completed questionnaires were returned, representing a 23.0% response rate. See the ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - methodology’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page (linked above) for further details.
2025 to 2026 was the 16th survey of users of adult social care services. See the ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - data quality statement’ (linked above) for more information on how this survey compares with previous surveys.
Data presentation
Proportions in this release are rounded to one decimal place - the proportions given for each question may therefore not add up to 100%.
Proportions have been calculated by weighting the responses to each question using population figures for those eligible to take part. These weighted results are used to estimate the percentage of the overall population who hold these views.
As these questionnaire responses are estimates, the figures quoted in relation to the number of ‘service users’ or ‘people’ are rounded to the nearest 10. The known figures, such as the eligible population, are rounded to the nearest 5.
Most of the results in this survey were not significantly different from the results in previous surveys. If a result was significantly different, we flag this in this report. Further information on the presentation of figures is covered in the ‘Adult social care survey report, 2025 to 2026, England: methodology’ (linked above).
Impact of COVID-19 on ASCS scores
In 2020 to 2021, ASCS was voluntary due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and only 18 local authorities chose to take part in the survey.
The 2020 to 2021 average from the 18 local authorities has been included in the time-series figures for completeness and transparency, which should be kept in mind when reviewing data from 2020 to 2021 and when comparing across years.
About this release
In addition to this commentary, this Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 statistical release also consists of the following information and data:
- the ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - data quality statement’ and the ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - data quality tables’ (in ODS format), which contain information on the quality of the data and validation methods used in the survey
- the ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - question responses and demographic data tables’ (in ODS format)
- the ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ (in ODS format), which identifies the England-level question response data that is statistically different
- the ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - methodology’, which provides further details on the development of the survey, calculating margins of error and confidence intervals, the rationale behind the questions and how the methodology has changed over time
- the ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - data pack’, which is a zip folder aimed at analysts. It contains a CSV file of all record-level data alongside a ‘Guidance for use of the CSV data’ file (in ODS format) that comprises:
- guidance on using the CSV data
- metadata (variable names, descriptions and values) of data items contained in the CSV
- a list of relevant local authority codes and regions
Supplementary information
This release should be read alongside:
- the interactive ASCS 2025 to 2026 dashboard on NHS England’s adult social care data hub, which will be released later in the year. This will present the main points of this release together with local authority-level figures, allowing users to compare data at both England and local authority level
- How to collect ASCS data: 2025 to 2026, which sets out the guidelines local authorities followed when conducting the survey
Main points
Satisfaction with care services
In 2025 to 2026, 88.4% of people using care and support services reported being satisfied with the care they received. 64.8% of service users were very or extremely satisfied with the care and support they received, while 2.3% of service users were very or extremely dissatisfied. This was the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Quality of life
The proportion of people who said their quality of life was ‘so good, it could not be better’ or ‘very good’ was 32.4%, while 30.1% described it as ‘good’. These figures are the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Social contact
In 2025 to 2026, 46.0% of service users reported that they had as much social contact as they would like compared with 6.7% who reported having little social contact and feeling socially isolated. Both of these results are the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Safety
The proportion of service users who felt as safe as they wanted in 2025 to 2026 was 70.5% and 1.9% of service users reported that they didn’t feel safe at all. Both these results are the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Loneliness
In 2025 to 2026, 11.7% of service users reported that they often or always felt lonely, which is the same as in 2024 to 2025. 18.2% of service users reported never feeling lonely in 2025 to 2026.
Service user profiles
This section provides some context about the people (service users) who receive long-term social care support.
Population profile
The ‘Population profile’ uses known population data from the local authorities that took part in the survey.
Age group and gender of service users
In total, 56.2% (370,415) of service users were female and 43.7% (287,900) were male. No response was received for 835 service users.
For age, 59.1% of the service users (389,505) were aged 65 and over, with the remaining 40.9% aged between 18 and 64 (269,645).
A higher proportion of male service users (51.6%) were aged 18 to 64 compared with females, where 32.6% were aged 18 to 64.
Primary support reasons (PSRs) of service users
The primary support reason (PSR) describes why the individual requires social care support. It is the primary disability or impairment that is impacting the individual’s quality of life and creating a need for support and assistive care.
Over half of all service users (55.1%) had a PSR of physical support, while 21.7% had learning disability support.
Figure 1 below shows 62.2% (230,435) of females received physical support, compared with 46.0% (132,340) of males. 29.6% (85,285) of males received learning disability support, compared with 15.5% (57,545) of females.
Figure 1: proportion (%) of service users by PSR and gender, England, 2025 to 2026
| Primary support reason | Female | Male | Other |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physical support | 62.2 | 46.0 | 45.6 |
| Learning disability support | 15.5 | 29.6 | 17.3 |
| Mental health support | 9.9 | 14.0 | 21.1 |
| Support with memory and cognition | 8.9 | 6.6 | 8.0 |
| Social support | 2.2 | 2.8 | 6.6 |
| Sensory support | 1.2 | 1.1 | 1.3 |
The data behind figure 1 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - all data’ CSV file on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Figure 2 below shows 73.4% (285,780) of service users aged 65 and over had physical support recorded as their PSR, whereas 46.6% (125,540) of service users aged 18 to 64 had learning disability support recorded as their PSR.
Figure 2: proportion (%) of service users by PSR and age group, England, 2025 to 2026
| Primary support reason | 18 to 64 | 65 and over |
|---|---|---|
| Learning disability support | 46.6 | 4.5 |
| Physical support | 28.7 | 73.4 |
| Mental health support | 18.3 | 7.1 |
| Social support | 3.5 | 1.7 |
| Support with memory and cognition | 1.7 | 12.2 |
| Sensory support | 1.2 | 1.1 |
The data behind figure 2 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - all data’ CSV file on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Support settings of service users
The support setting is the setting in which a service user receives services. The different support settings are community, residential and nursing care.
In total:
- 72.6% (478,405) of service users received services in the community
- 19.0% (125,535) received services in residential care
- 8.4% (55,210) received services in nursing care
Figure 3 below shows 84.3% (120,560) of service users receiving learning disability support received their services in the community. This compares with 36.9% (19,235) of service users who received support with memory and cognition in the community.
Figure 3: proportion (%) of service users by PSR and support setting, England, 2025 to 2026
| Primary support reason | Community | Nursing | Residential | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physical support | 72.8 | 9.6 | 17.6 | 100 |
| Learning disability support | 84.3 | 1.4 | 14.2 | 100 |
| Mental health support | 70.0 | 8.9 | 21.1 | 100 |
| Support with memory and cognition | 36.9 | 20.1 | 42.9 | 100 |
| Social support | 86.1 | 3.1 | 10.7 | 100 |
| Sensory support | 82.8 | 4.2 | 12.9 | 100 |
The data behind figure 3 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - all data’ CSV file on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Figure 4 below shows 87.1% (234,915) of service users aged 18 to 64 received their care in the community. This compares with 62.5% (243,490) of those aged 65 and over. In contrast, 10.3% (27,855) of service users aged 18 to 64 received their support in a residential setting, compared with 25.1% (97,685) of service users aged 65 and over.
Figure 4: proportion (%) of service users by support setting and age group, England, 2025 to 2026
| Age | Community | Nursing | Residential |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 to 64 | 87.1 | 2.6 | 10.3 |
| 65 and over | 62.5 | 12.4 | 25.1 |
The data behind figure 4 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 – all data’ CSV file on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Estimated demographic profile
The figures in the section below were estimated for the whole population using sample data. The standard error around the estimates was found to be low.
See the ‘Adult social care survey report, 2025 to 2026: England - methodology’ (linked previously) for a detailed discussion.
Age profile of service users over time
Figure 5 below shows that, in 2025 to 2026, 5.2% of service users were aged 18 to 24 - this is the lowest proportion of any age group. In contrast, those aged 85 and over made up the highest proportion at 24.4%.
Figure 5: proportion of service users by age group, England, 2020 to 2026
| Age group | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 to 24 | 5.2 | 5.0 | 5.1 | 5.3 | 5.2 | 5.2 |
| 25 to 34 | 8.4 | 8.6 | 8.4 | 8.4 | 8.4 | 8.3 |
| 35 to 44 | 7.0 | 7.4 | 7.5 | 7.6 | 7.6 | 7.8 |
| 45 to 54 | 9.9 | 9.2 | 8.8 | 8.5 | 8.3 | 8.1 |
| 55 to 64 | 11.7 | 12.0 | 11.8 | 12.1 | 11.7 | 11.7 |
| 65 to 74 | 13.6 | 13.5 | 13.2 | 12.9 | 13.5 | 13.6 |
| 75 to 84 | 19.3 | 19.8 | 20.1 | 20.4 | 20.7 | 21.0 |
| 85 and over | 24.8 | 24.6 | 25.1 | 24.8 | 24.5 | 24.4 |
This data for 2025 to 2026 can be found in table 4 of the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - question responses and demographic data tables’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Ethnicity profile of service users
Where ethnicity was known, 80.9% (532,070) of service users reported their ethnicity as White. According to the Office of National Statistics’ (ONS) Ethnic group by age and sex, England and Wales: Census 2021 data, 83.3% of the usual resident population in England aged over 18 reported their ethnicity as White. In this year’s survey, 5.0% participants gave either ‘Unknown’ or ‘Not given’ ethnicity information.
Table 1 below shows the occurrence of people in each ethnic group that were adult social care service users. The table shows a lower rate (10.2 per 1,000) of the population in the Asian or Asian British ethnicity group were service users. 19.9 per 1,000 of the Black, African, Caribbean or Black British ethnic group population were service users - this was the highest proportion across all the ethnic groups.
Table 1: rate of service users in each ethnic group, per 1,000 population, England, 2025 to 2026
| Ethnic group | Occurrence of service users per 1,000 population |
|---|---|
| White | 14.3 |
| Mixed or multiple ethnic groups | 11.0 |
| Asian or Asian British | 10.2 |
| Black, African, Caribbean or Black British | 19.9 |
| Other | 9.3 |
This table is derived from the data in table 4 of the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - question responses and demographic data tables’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page in combination with ONS census 2021 data.
Survey findings
The following information reports on some of the main findings based on the responses to the questions within the 2025 to 2026 ASCS. The responses have been weighted to represent the eligible population of 659,155 service users.
Overall satisfaction with care and support services
Figure 6 below shows that, in 2025 to 2026, 64.8% (425,460) of service users were very or extremely satisfied with the care and support they received compared with 2.3% (14,850) of service users who were very or extremely dissatisfied with their care and support.
Figure 6: proportion (%) of service users by levels of satisfaction, England, 2020 to 2026
| Satisfaction level | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Extremely or very satisfied | 67.7 | 63.9 | 64.4 | 65.4 | 65.1 | 64.8 |
| Quite satisfied | 22.8 | 24.0 | 23.7 | 23.3 | 23.7 | 23.6 |
| Neither satisfied or dissatisfied | 5.5 | 6.8 | 6.7 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.7 |
| Quite dissatisfied | 1.9 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 2.6 | 2.6 | 2.6 |
| Extremely or very dissatisfied | 2.1 | 2.6 | 2.4 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 2.3 |
The data behind figure 6 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Quality of life
The survey asks questions about aspects of quality of life that social care services are expected to impact upon. This section of the commentary highlights some key findings from the quality of life questions.
Figure 7 below shows that 32.4% (212,540) of service users rated their quality of life as ‘so good, it could not be better’ or ‘very good’. 3.7% (24,100) of service users rated their quality of life as ‘very bad’ or ‘so bad, it could not be any worse’. The proportion of service users that rated their quality of life as ‘bad’ was 6.5% (42,700). All quality of life ratings were the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Figure 7: proportion (%) of service users by how they rate their quality of life, England, 2020 to 2026
| Quality of life rating | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| So good, it could not be better or very good | 32.7 | 30.6 | 31.5 | 32.1 | 31.8 | 32.4 |
| Good | 32.2 | 30.2 | 29.9 | 30.3 | 30.2 | 30.1 |
| Alright | 25.9 | 28.6 | 28.1 | 27.6 | 27.6 | 27.4 |
| Bad | 5.5 | 6.6 | 6.8 | 6.3 | 6.6 | 6.5 |
| Very bad or so bad, it could not be worse | 3.7 | 4.0 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 |
The data behind figure 7 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Figure 8 below shows that, in 2025 to 2026, 90.9% (596,820) of service users felt that care and support services helped them to have a better quality of life - this was in line with 2024 to 2025. The proportion that felt care and support services did not help them to have a better quality of life was 9.1% (59,960), which remains unchanged from 2024 to 2025.
Figure 8: proportion (%) of service users by whether care and support services helped them have a better quality of life, England, 2020 to 2026
| Year | Yes | No | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 to 2021 | 92.4 | 7.6 | 100 |
| 2021 to 2022 | 90.4 | 9.6 | 100 |
| 2022 to 2023 | 90.5 | 9.5 | 100 |
| 2023 to 2024 | 91.3 | 8.7 | 100 |
| 2024 to 2025 | 91.1 | 8.9 | 100 |
| 2025 to 2026 | 90.9 | 9.1 | 100 |
The data behind figure 8 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Choice
Service users in the community who received the standard version of the questionnaire were asked whether they feel they have as much choice as they want over the care and support services they receive.
This year, 67.8% (242,500) of service users felt they have enough choice over their care and support services, in comparison with 26.6% (95,340) who felt they do not have enough choice.
Control
In total, 35.0% (230,050) of service users felt they have as much control over their daily life as they want, while 5.0% (32,780) felt they have no control.
Feeling clean and presentable
This year, 56.0% (367,950) of service users reported they feel clean and able to present themselves as they like. 1.2% (8,040) reported they don’t feel at all clean or presentable.
Food and drink
In 2025 to 2026, 63.1% (414,490) of service users reported they can get all the food and drink they like when they want. 1.3% (8,210) reported they don’t always get adequate or timely food and drink, and they think there is a risk to their health.
Feeling safe
The questionnaire defines feeling safe as how safe a service user feels both inside and outside the home. This includes fear of abuse, falling or other physical harm.
Figure 9 below shows that, in 2025 to 2026, 70.5% (462,920) of service users reported that they feel as safe as they want - this was the same as in 2024 to 2025. In contrast, 1.9% (12,520) reported that they don’t feel at all safe - this was the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Figure 9: proportion (%) of service users by how safe they felt, England, 2020 to 2026
| Response | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I feel as safe as I want | 73.6 | 69.2 | 69.7 | 71.1 | 70.1 | 70.5 |
| Generally I feel adequately safe, but not as safe as I would like | 21.4 | 24.8 | 24.2 | 23.3 | 24.1 | 23.8 |
| I feel less than adequately safe | 3.4 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 3.7 | 3.9 | 3.8 |
| I don’t feel at all safe | 1.6 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 1.9 | 1.9 |
The data behind figure 9 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Figure 10 below shows that, when asked whether support services they receive make them feel safe, the proportion of service users who felt care and support services helped them feel safe remained the same as 2024 to 2025 at 87.5% (574,360). The proportion who did not think care and support services helped them feel safe was 12.5% (82,410).
Figure 10: proportion (%) of service users by how much support services helped make them feel safe, England, 2020 to 2026
| Year | Yes | No | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 to 2021 | 88.0 | 12.0 | 100 |
| 2021 to 2022 | 85.6 | 14.4 | 100 |
| 2022 to 2023 | 87.1 | 12.9 | 100 |
| 2023 to 2024 | 87.8 | 12.2 | 100 |
| 2024 to 2025 | 87.8 | 12.2 | 100 |
| 2025 to 2026 | 87.5 | 12.5 | 100 |
The data behind figure 10 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Social contact
Figure 11 below shows that the proportion of service users who felt they have as much social contact as they wanted with people they liked was 46.0% (301,830), whereas 6.7% (44,140) of service users reported they had little social contact and felt socially isolated. Both results are the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Figure 11: proportion (%) of service users by how much contact they’ve had with people they like, England, 2020 to 2026
| Response | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I have as much social contact as I want with people I like | 34.4 | 40.6 | 44.4 | 45.6 | 45.4 | 46.0 |
| I have adequate social contact with people | 29.9 | 31.8 | 31.4 | 31.3 | 31.6 | 31.2 |
| I have some social contact with people but not enough | 22.5 | 19.4 | 17.5 | 16.4 | 16.2 | 16.1 |
| I have little social contact with people and feel socially isolated | 13.2 | 8.3 | 6.7 | 6.8 | 6.8 | 6.7 |
The data behind figure 11 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Loneliness
Figure 12 below shows that, in total, 11.7% (76,780) of service users felt they are often or always lonely, while 18.2% (119,720) felt they are never lonely. These results are the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Figure 12: proportion (%) of service users by how often they felt lonely, England, 2025 to 2026
| Response | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|
| Often or always | 11.7 |
| Some of the time | 28.5 |
| Occasionally | 23.7 |
| Hardly ever | 17.9 |
| Never | 18.2 |
The data behind figure 12 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
How service users spend their time
Figure 13 below shows that, in total, 38.9% (255,480) of service users reported being able to spend their time as they want, doing things they enjoy - this was the same as in 2024 to 2025 - while 7.4% (48,710) of service users reported they don’t do anything they value or enjoy with their time.
Figure 13: proportion (%) of service users by how they spend their time, England, 2020 to 2026
| Response | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I’m able to spend my time as I want, doing things I value or enjoy | 38.2 | 37.4 | 37.7 | 38.9 | 38.2 | 38.9 |
| I’m able to do enough of the things I value or enjoy with my time | 28.7 | 29.7 | 30.5 | 30.2 | 30.6 | 30.2 |
| I do some of the things I value or enjoy with my time but not enough | 25.4 | 24.8 | 24.1 | 23.2 | 23.8 | 23.5 |
| I don’t do anything I value or enjoy with my time | 7.7 | 8.2 | 7.7 | 7.7 | 7.4 | 7.4 |
The data behind figure 13 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Knowledge and information
In 2025 to 2026, 41.0% (269,100) of service users reported that they had never tried to find information or advice about support and services in the past year.
Among service users who had tried to find information or advice, 29.8% (112,950) found it very easy to find and 12.3% (48,430) found it very difficult to find.
Service user health
General health
In total, 14.4% (94,880) of service users rated their health as very good. In contrast, 4.9% (32,290) of service users rated their health as very bad.
Pain or discomfort
In 2025 to 2026, 36.5% (239,560) reported they had no pain or discomfort on the day they completed the survey, while 12.9% (84,550) reported they had extreme pain or discomfort.
Anxious or depressed
Almost half (49.5%, 324,810) of service users reported that they were not anxious or depressed on the day they completed the survey, whereas 8.7% (57,370) reported that they were extremely anxious or depressed.
Activities of daily living
The survey also contained questions on activities of daily living - for example, asking service users if they can easily manage activities such as getting around indoors by themselves, managing to feed themselves and managing to get dressed.
The needs of service users can be complex, and if they are unable to easily manage a particular activity of daily living then they are also likely to be unable to easily manage others.
Figure 14 below shows that over half (52.5%, 344,870) of service users felt they usually manage to get around indoors (excluding steps) by themselves, whereas 23.2% (152,060) of service users said they can’t do this by themselves. This is the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Figure 14: proportion (%) of service users by how much they manage to get around indoors (except steps), England, 2020 to 2026
| Response | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I can do this easily by myself | 54.6 | 53.0 | 52.3 | 52.2 | 52.0 | 52.5 |
| I have difficulty doing this myself | 23.8 | 25.0 | 25.5 | 24.8 | 24.5 | 24.3 |
| I can’t do this by myself | 21.7 | 22.0 | 22.2 | 23.0 | 23.4 | 23.2 |
The data behind figure 14 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Layout of home and surrounding area
Over half (54.5%, 357,730) of service users felt their home met their needs very well, while 3.6% (23,820) of service users felt their home was totally inappropriate for their needs.
In total, 29.8% (195,860) of services users felt able to get to all the places in their local area that they want, while 27.9% (183,400) reported that they never leave their home.
Help from others
Practical help
Figure 15 below shows that the proportion of service users who received practical help on a regular basis from someone living in another household increased to 48% (315,350) in 2025 to 2026 compared with 46.7% (300,070) in 2024 to 2025. In total, 38.6% (253,350) received practical help on a regular basis from someone living in the same household as them. The proportion of service users that did not receive any practical help on a regular basis was 22.5% (147,670), which is the same as in 2024 to 2025.
Figure 15: proportion (%) of service users by the practical help they receive from those within and outside their household, England, 2020 to 2026
| Response | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes, from someone living in my household | 41.3 | 39.6 | 39.1 | 39.4 | 39.6 | 38.6 |
| Yes, from someone living in another household | 42.4 | 45.0 | 46.1 | 47.5 | 46.7 | 48.0 |
| No | 24.2 | 23.9 | 23.5 | 21.8 | 22.6 | 22.5 |
The data behind figure 15 can be found in the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Buying additional care
In 2025 to 2026, 63.9% (419,700) of service users reported that they do not buy or top up any additional care or support, whereas 28.3% (185,980) of service users used their own money to buy more care and support, and 10.1% (66,550) had family who pay for more care and support.
Help completing the questionnaire
In the letter to invite service users to take part in the survey, it was made clear that it is the views of the service user that matter. If the service user felt that they were unable to complete the questionnaire on their own, they could ask a friend or relative to help them. Independent support was also made available.
The proportion of services users who did not have help from anyone to complete the questionnaire, as shown in figure 16 below, increased to 25.1% (165,140) compared to 24.2% (155,340) in 2024 to 2025. In contrast, 24.4% (160,060) had help from a care worker. The proportion that had help from someone living outside their household was 30.5% (200,540) and the proportion that had help from within their household decreased to 20.0% (131,040).
Figure 16: proportion (%) of service users by whether they had help to complete the questionnaire, England, 2020 to 2026
| Response | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No, I did not have help | 27 | 23.6 | 23.2 | 24.1 | 24.2 | 25.1 |
| I had help from a care worker | 29 | 28.8 | 28.1 | 25.8 | 25.0 | 24.4 |
| I had help from someone living in my household | 22.2 | 20.9 | 20.3 | 20.7 | 20.9 | 20.0 |
| I had help from someone living outside my household | 21.7 | 26.6 | 28.3 | 29.4 | 29.9 | 30.5 |
The data behind figure 16 can be found in table 43 of the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
Figure 17 below shows that, in total, 23.5% (154,200) of service users didn’t have any help in completing the survey, which is an increase from 22.5% (144,830) in 2024 to 2025. The proportion of service users who had someone else read the questions to them was 47.0% (308,620). Service users who had someone translate the questions to them was 19.4% (127,300) the same as in 2024 to 2025. However, 8.1% (53,390) of service users had someone answer the survey for them, without asking them the questions.
Figure 17: proportion (%) of service users by the type of help they had to complete the survey, England, 2025 to 2026
| Response | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I didn’t have any help | 25.8 | 22.6 | 21.6 | 22.6 | 22.5 | 23.5 |
| Someone else read the questions to me | 45.6 | 47.4 | 49.1 | 47.6 | 47.7 | 47.0 |
| Someone else translated the questions for me | 19.4 | 20.0 | 20.8 | 20.5 | 19.8 | 19.4 |
| Someone else wrote down the answers for me | 34.6 | 35.4 | 37.4 | 36.8 | 37.0 | 36.2 |
| I talked through the questions with someone else | 26.8 | 29.0 | 29.5 | 28.9 | 28.8 | 28.7 |
| Someone answered for me, without asking me the questions | 8.0 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 8.3 | 8.2 | 8.1 |
The data behind figure 17 can be found in table 44 of the accompanying ‘Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 - time-series data’ on the Adult social care survey report, England: 2025 to 2026 page.
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