‘Have Your Say’ workforce survey 2026: Summary of responses from social workers

Demographics

Personal characteristics of social work respondents were similar to those in the 2024 and 2025 Have Your Say surveys:

• the most common age group was 40 to 44 years old(15 per cent)
• 78 per cent were female, and 22 per cent male
• 93 per centwere straight/heterosexual, seven per cent identified as homosexual, lesbian, or bisexual
• 76 per centwere White and 16 per cent were Black
• 23 per cent said they had a long-term condition which lasted 12 months or more. Of those who had a long-term condition, 72 per cent said it affected their day-to-day functioning
• 31 per cent said they were a carer outside of work
• 19 per cent said they were neurodivergent
• 56 per cent said they could speak at least some Welsh.

In 2026, we also found that:

• 87 per cent of respondents held qualifications at Level 3 or above (A-level equivalent or higher)
• 50 per cent of respondents self-identified as working class.

Job characteristics

• 56 per cent had worked in social care for 10 years or more
• 18 per cent who spoke at least some Welsh reported using Welsh all or most of the time in work
• 54 per cent used Artificial Intelligence (AI) regularly or occasionally for work.

Employment characteristics

• 77 per cent of social work respondents worked in the public sector, 19 per cent worked in the private sector, and five per centworked in the voluntary sector or multiple sectors 
• 84 per cent were working full-time
• 52 per cent said they were members of a trade union.

Motivation, recognition and commitment

• 65 per centstarted working in social care because they wanted a job that would make a difference to people’s lives. 42 per cent felt they’d enjoy it, 41 per cent felt it would suit their skills and 24 per cent had personal experience of caring for someone
• 34 per cent found out about working in social care through friends and family working in the sector, 23 per cent through a job advertised online, and 21 per centthrough personal experience of caring for someone
• 71 per cent felt valued by their managers, 80 per cent felt valued by colleagues, and 75 per cent felt valued by those they support and care for 
• 25 per cent were considering leaving the sector
• 42 per cent expected to stay in the sector until retirement, and 12 per cent expected to stay in the sector for less than one year.

Pay and conditions

• 95 per cent were paid the Real Living Wage or above
• 37 per cent were satisfied with their pay 
• 57 per cent were satisfied with their terms and conditions
• 85 per cent were employed on fixed hours contracts, six per cent were on flexible or casual contracts, and four per cent were on zero hours contracts.

Work intensity and choice

• Eight per cent felt enough staff were in place to deliver services all of the time
• 42 per cent agreed they had enough time to do their job well
• 43 per cent agreed they had choice over which tasks they do, and 68 per cent agreed they had a choice in how they perform their work tasks.

Consultation, influence and representation

• 84 per cent of social work respondents reported formal processes for staff voice were in place
• 46 per cent agreed that staff were always consulted about changes at work
• 32 per cent believed their views were taken into account most or all of the time
• 81 per cent were aware or very aware of their employment rights
• 61 per cent agreed their employment rights were respected.

Training and progression

• 64 per cent of respondents had performance appraisals at work
• 77 per cent agreed they had the right training to do their jobs well 
• 56 per cent agreed that they needed more training to progress in their career
• 31 per cent believed there were barriers to accessing training
• 45 per cent wanted a leadership role in the future, and 57 per cent believed it was possible to become a leader
• 21 per cent had sought a promotion opportunity in the past year, and 52 per cent of these respondents had been shortlisted and offered a position 
• 86 per cent felt their employer acted fairly with regards to promotion decisions.

Fair treatment

• Overall, 30 per cent of social work respondents had experienced poor treatment at work. 27 per cent experienced bullying, 19 per cent experienced discrimination and 10 per cent experienced violence at work in the last 12 months
• 69 per cent of those who experienced bullying reported it and 39 per cent were satisfied with the outcome 
• 56 per cent of those who experienced discrimination reported it and 40 per cent were satisfied with the outcome
• 89 per cent of those who experienced violence reported it and 66 per cent were satisfied with the outcome
• colleagues were less likely to be reported as the source of bullying (five per cent) than by managers (nine per cent) or people receiving support (11 per cent)
• levels of discrimination by colleagues (four per cent) were lower than discrimination by managers (eight per cent) but similar to levels of discrimination by those receiving support (five per cent).

Health and well-being

Well-being measures indicated lower well-being for those in social work than the working population of Wales. Using measures by the Office of National Statistics (ONS), on a scale of 0 (not at all) to 10 (completely), we found that:

• satisfaction with life was 6.5, compared to 7.6 for workers across all sectors in Wales (UK average 7.5)
• feeling worthwhile was 7.0, compared to 7.8 for workers across all sectors in Wales (UK average 7.8)
• happiness yesterday was 6.6, compared to 7.5 for workers across all sectors in Wales (UK average 7.4)
• anxiety was 4.3, compared to 3.2 for workers across all sectors in Wales (UK average 3.2).

We also asked other questions about well-being. We found that:

• 60 per cent said their morale was good most or all of the time
• 62 per cent of social work respondents reported having worked while ill
• 46 per cent said they had good financial well-being (doing alright or living comfortably)
• 23 per cent were finding it difficult to manage financially, and 56 per cent felt it was more difficult to manage financially than last year. 

Stress

• 64 per cent agreed they struggled to switch off when they leave work
• 47 per cent said paperwork and bureaucracy were causing stress at work. This was followed by workload (44 per cent), worrying about things outside of work (27 per cent), work-related costs (19 per cent), working with vulnerable children and adults (16 per cent), and lack of support from managers and colleagues (16 per cent).

Support

• 67 per cent of social work respondents said they felt helped and supported by their manager most or all of the time
• 77 per cent said they felt helped and supported by their colleagues most or all of the time
• 48 per cent said they had enough support to deal with stress
• 39 per cent would seek information about health and well-being from managers
• 69 per cent would seek mental health support from a GP.