NHS leaders have written to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak calling for a social care workforce plan to boost recruitment and retention in the sector.

The letter from the NHS Confederation said a workforce plan for social care would raise the status of careers in all social care settings, and transform staff experience, career development and productivity.

It read: ‘Our motivation in seeking your urgent intervention is because our members know that social care provision is essential to the communities we serve, and because we also know that the risks faced by our colleagues in relation to their workforce are profound.'