We use data collected by the ASC-WDS to create workforce models that, in turn, allow for estimates of the whole adult social care workforce to be produced.
To do this, we make estimates of workforce characteristics (e.g. demographics, pay rates, employment statuses) for each geographical area, service type, employer type and job role combination that we report by.
These estimates are then ‘weighted’ according to coverage/completeness of the sector in each of the above areas. For example, an area with 50% coverage would use more weighted data in the final analysis than an area with 90% coverage. Using this methodology allows for the analysis to be representative of all adult social care workers even if the NMDS-SC has uneven levels of data coverage.
Skills for Care is confident in the quality of these estimates and the methodologies used have been peer reviewed by universities and an independent statistician.