Ealing Council rated ‘Requires Improvement’ in first CQC national adult social care report

Ealing Council has been rated “Requires Improvement” in the Care Quality Commission’s first nationwide report comparing local authorities’ delivery of adult social care.

The Labour-run council received an overall score of 56% in an assessment published in January 2025, which has been included in the CQC’s first national overview of council performance released this week.

Among neighbouring councils, Hillingdon achieved the highest score at 73% and was rated Good, followed by Hounslow on 70%, which was also rated Good. Brent scored 62%, Harrow 59% and Hammersmith & Fulham 53%, with all three also rated Requires Improvement.

The national report brings together findings from 143 council assessments published between December 2023 and June 2026. It is the first nationwide overview of how councils are delivering adult social care and aims to identify where improvements are needed.

Across England, 60% of councils were rated Good, 35% Requires Improvement, 3% Outstanding and 2% Inadequate.

The CQC said the strongest-performing councils were characterised by effective leadership, timely care assessments, strong prevention strategies and support for unpaid carers. Delays in assessments, weaknesses in safeguarding and inconsistent support for carers were among the issues more commonly found in lower-rated authorities.

Chris Badger, chief inspector of adult social care at the Care Quality Commission, said: “We found overall that local authorities are rising to meet some very real and very complex challenges, and there is much to celebrate in the commitment and skill we’ve seen from staff and leaders across the country.

“However, we found too much variation in the delivery of the key foundations of adult social care provision, highlighting a gap in national standards about what people, providers and partners can expect.”

Speaking to EALING.NEWS, Councillor Gary Malcolm, leader of the Ealing Liberal Democrats, said: “Ealing Liberal Democrats welcome the CQC report as it shines a spotlight on a really important area of Ealing Council service provision – adult social care – which in Ealing requires improvement.

“Based on its last inspection, Ealing trails neighbouring London boroughs, coming 20 out of 32 councils in the league table. We are focused on providing constructive challenge to ensure the Labour administration fixes the issues identified in the last report.

“Our three tests will be (1) the council appointing permanently to key director roles to provide the leadership the service needs, (2) a tighter grip on the finances and bringing down the overspends, and (3) the council being able to evidence independently that the service user experience is getting better and there are higher levels of customer satisfaction.”

Councillor Julian Gallant, leader of Ealing Conservatives, told EALING.NEWS: “I want to thank Ealing’s social care staff for their incredible commitment. Ealing Council’s overall score by the Care Quality Commission gives cause for concern, not just because we are trailing neighbouring boroughs like Hillingdon. There must be ever tighter financial control, streamlining of leadership and a thorough examination of all partner organisations.”

Councillor Clare Welsby, group leader of Ealing Green Party, gave EALING.NEWS her reaction to the report’s findings. She said: “That Ealing adult social care was rated Requires Improvement is a real concern – though perhaps not unsurprising following recent findings by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman of failings by Ealing Council.

“The report highlights that there is no statistically significant relationship between the average Index of Multiple Deprivation scores for local authorities and their overall performance – it is not about the level of need, it is about how Ealing Council is responding to need and how it enables its staff to provide the service Ealing residents should have.

“Chris Badger, chief inspector of adult social care, states in the foreword to the report: ‘It is clear that the single most important factor when it comes to determining the quality of experience, from first contact to receiving help or a service, is leadership, including the political leadership of the local authority.'”

Responding to the report, Ealing Council’s cabinet member for healthy equal lives, Councillor Paul Driscoll, told EALING.NEWS: “This report is a national overview of the Care Quality Commission’s assessments of adult social care services across England and highlights a range of themes affecting councils nationwide. It is not a new assessment of Ealing Council.

“Ealing Council’s CQC assessment was published more than 18 months ago. While we were disappointed by the ‘requires improvement’ rating, inspectors identified a range of strengths including our effective partnership arrangements, safeguarding of vulnerable people, our person-centred approach considering their individual and cultural needs, our support for carers and our ambition to reduce inequality. It recognised social care staff who are proud to care for the people of Ealing, they are committed, knowledgeable and that there is a positive culture of learning and innovation; something that happens every day from our brilliant adult social care teams.

“While the rating was disappointing, we are continuously driving improvements, building on our strengths and have every confidence that our plans and our approach, working with our communities, will continue to build quality adult social care services that make a real difference to the lives of our residents.”