Adult social care
Walsall Council Driving Ongoing Improvements in Adult Social Care
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Walsall Council has reaffirmed its commitment to delivering high-quality adult social care services following the publication of an assessment report by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the independent regulator of health and social care in England.
The overall rating for Walsall Council is ‘Requires Improvement’.
“ We are committed to providing our residents with the best possible adult social care services.
“We welcome this report from the CQC. Whilst we don’t recognise everything in the report and the resulting score of this assessment is disappointing, it highlights many areas of positive practice and performance across the service and provides us with valuable reassurance that our current areas of focus for improvement are the right ones.
“We take the results of this report very seriously, and I’d like to reassure our residents that we have a clear vision for change. An improvement action plan is already in place, and I’m confident the service will deliver improvements quickly and efficiently for those areas which need focus, as well as strengthening areas of good practice
“Our dedicated workforce remains our greatest asset, and we value their commitment, professionalism and compassion. We are committed to supporting, developing and investing in our workforce, and we will continue to build on our strengths, tackle challenges and drive continuous improvement in the outcomes we deliver for people who draw on our services.
“These are challenging times, and like other local authorities Walsall is under pressure due to rising demand for adult social care services. This is an important step in our journey of continuous improvement, and I am proud of the improvements we have already made since the assessment took place. I would like to thank all the staff, providers, partners and residents who took part in this CQC assessment and who are working with us to help us improve and fulfil our ambition to deliver the best possible services we possibly can for the borough. “
This CQC assessment took place in August 2025, and the assessment team measured how Walsall Council supports residents using nine quality statements spread across four themes (how the local authority works with people, provides support, ensures safety in the system, and leadership) to assess how well the authority is meeting its responsibilities.
The team spoke to people who draw on the council’s adult social care services, family carers, providers, staff and other care professionals and checked council policies and processes before giving their final rating.
You can read the full CQC report at Walsall Council: local authority assessment - Care Quality Commission and the CQC’s Walsall Council: local authority assessment press release.
Links should be live between 9am and 10am on Friday 23 January 2026.
http://cqc.org.uk/care-services/local-authority-assessment-reports/walsall-0126 https://cqc-newsroom.prgloo.com/news/embargoed-cqc-rates-walsall-councils-adult-social-care-provision-as-requires-improvement
For more information about adult social care in Walsall, visit: https://go.walsall.gov.uk/health-and-social-care
Ends
Notes to Editors
Walsall Council is the first Black Country local authority to announce the outcome of its CQC assessment.
The overall rating for Walsall Council is ‘Requires Improvement’ with a score of 53.
CQC scoring matrix:
25 to 38% = Inadequate (evidence shows significant shortfalls).
39 to 62% = Requires Improvement (evidence shows some shortfalls).
63 to 87% = Good (evidence shows a good standard).
88% and above = Outstanding (evidence shows an exceptional standard).
A summary of how Walsall Council performed in the nine quality statements spread across four themes:
| Theme | Area | Score | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| How the local authority works with people |
| 2 | 57% |
| 2 | 57% | |
| 2 | 57% | |
Providing support
|
| 2 | 50% |
| 3 | 63% | |
| How the local authority ensures safety in the system |
| 2 | 57% |
| 2 | 57% | |
| Leadership |
| 2 | 57% |
| 2 | 57% |
(CQC has given each of these nine areas a score out of four with one being the evidence shows significant shortfalls, and four showing an exceptional standard.)
