I am delighted to share that the Adult Social Care Negotiating Body for England Regulations 2026 were laid before Parliament on 3 November. This is a huge milestone for the adult social care sector and reflects two years of close collaboration and development with a wide range of colleagues and partners.
We are marking this milestone because these are the regulations that set out exactly how the government can and will run the Fair Pay Agreement process. The regulations establish the Adult Social Care Negotiating Body (ASCNB) and set the framework within which employer and worker representatives will negotiate a fair pay agreement for the adult social care workforce in England. They cover the Negotiating Body’s membership and appointments, governance, negotiation process, terms of reference and dispute resolution arrangements. The regulations do not themselves set pay, terms or conditions.
The regulations must be debated and approved by both Houses of Parliament before they come into effect. This is a significant step forward towards establishing the body ahead of the first negotiation cycle, which is planned to begin in April 2027.
This really has been a major undertaking, and we could not have reached this point without the support of the adult social care sector. Thank you to those who took the time to respond to the consultation and share their views with us, and to our partners, including trade unions, social care employers and local government, for working with us to shape the proposals. We are deeply grateful.
The regulations still need to be debated in Parliament and secure approval, but laying the regulations means that we are now officially on track for the first negotiations to begin in April 2027 – leading to the first pay rise in workers’ pockets in April 2028.
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