Fair Pay Negotiating Body for adult social care

What is the Adult Fair Pay Negotiating Body consultation? 

On 30 September, the UK Government launched a consultation on the fair pay agreement process in the adult social care sector (for England only). The consultation will remain open until 16 January 2026. 

It covers: 

• Who and what should come within the scope of negotiations  

• How the negotiations process should work, including: 

• Who should be involved 

• How disputes should be resolved 

• How the agreement process should be implemented 

The government has also set out a timetable for a four-stage process to implement the first fair pay agreement. This would see it approved and applied to every relevant worker’s contract by April 2028. 

We’re here to break down everything you need to know about this new consultation. 

The background 

What is a fair pay agreement? 

A fair pay agreement sets out the minimum standards for pay, as well as terms and conditions within its specified sector (in this instance, the adult social care sector). This creates a binding obligation for all organisations in that sector. It can also cover wider issues such as training and development. 

Once agreed upon, the pay and terms and conditions provisions in the fair pay agreement will then be added to the worker’s contract. However, if their existing contract is more generous, then that particular term won’t be changed.   

Who negotiates the agreement? 

The Government will set up an Adult Social Care Negotiating Body (the ASC Negotiating Body) which will be responsible for negotiating fair pay agreements. 

Implementation  

The Government has set out a four-stage plan for implementation: 

1. By Autumn 2025: Pass the Employment Rights Bill (expected in early November) and continue to engage and consult with all interested parties 
2. By Autumn 2026: Complete consultation and introduce regulations establishing the ASC Negotiating Body 
3. By Autumn 2027: Establish the negotiating process, set out its parameters, and conduct and conclude negotiations 
4. By April 2028: The first agreement will be established and applied to every relevant worker’s contract 

Does this apply across the UK? 

No. The Employment Rights Bill (ERB) does not apply to Northern Ireland.  

Also, even though the ERB applies to England, Scotland, and Wales, both Scotland and Wales will have separate negotiating bodies. This means the Scottish and Welsh governments will carry out their own consultations on establishing a negotiating body, and the process for negotiating fair pay agreements in their regions.  

What about the cost of all this? 

The Government accepts that a fair pay agreement will increase labour costs for care providers, which will likely be passed on to councils, the NHS, and people paying for their own care.  

They have earmarked £500 million out of the £4 billion increase in funding for adult social care (set out in the 2025 Spending Review) for improving pay and conditions in the sector. The government says this will be paid to councils to reflect the increased cost of care.  

However, they do expect that better pay and conditions may lead to savings for care businesses through higher retention and better recruitment. In their consultation document, they have optimistically suggested that providers who have “high levels of profit” should “consider how they can cover the increased costs themselves”.  

The paper goes on to say that the Government believes that “funding for adult social care should be targeted towards those providers who are socially responsible, who do not pass on costs to councils if they can cover these themselves.” 

They plan to publish an impact assessment on the proposed options set out in the consultation document. 

What is covered in the consultation? 

The consultation covers six key areas: 

1. The ASC Negotiating Body 
2. The negotiation process 
3. Coverage and remit 
4. Dispute resolution 
5. Implementation 
6. Compliance and enforcement 

We’ll take a look at each of these areas in more detail below. 

You can access the consultation in full here.  

1. The ASC Negotiating Body 

The government is seeking views and advice on how the ASC should be set up, and what its structure should be. Preferably, they want it established as a non-departmental public body – this is so it can operate independently from the government.  

The proposals for how it should be established are as follows: 

• It should have an equal number of seats for workers and employer representatives “to ensure the voice of both groups can be heard equally” 

• Members will be reimbursed for expenses associated with attending meetings if needed, but will not receive fees as they will be representing their organisations 

• The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has proposed that UNISON, GMB, Unite, and the Royal College of Nursing will establish an “adult social care fair pay agreement trade union group” (with TUC acting as convener) to sit together on the ASC Negotiating Body to represent workers 

• The Care Provider Alliance (CPA) will act as convener for employer representation – this will include the Local Government Association, NHS Employers, and other employer organisations. 

• Each bargaining side should decide how their allotted seats are allocated (then submitted for approval by the Secretary of State) 

• The interests of local governments must be considered throughout negotiations – the Secretary of State must listen to local government’s representatives’ assessments of any fair pay agreement and the effect it may have on their operations 

2. Negotiation process 

The consultation proposes a six-stage negotiation process, which you can see below: 

Under the proposals, fair pay agreements would be negotiated on an annual basis, with a proposed six-month timeframe for negotiation and another six months for implementation. 

3. Coverage and remit 

This part of the consultation covers two key areas: coverage and remit.  

Coverage  

Coverage looks at the roles which should be covered by the agreement. In the ERB, this is intentionally broad and described as people who are “Employed wholly or mainly in, or in connection with, the provision of social care to individuals aged 18 or over in England.” It’s proposed this will also cover agency and casual workers.  

Future guidance will be published to help employers understand if their workers are covered.  However, it won’t cover people who are self-employed or “working under informal care arrangements”.  

Remit  

Remit looks at which matters the agreement should cover, e.g. training and development, as well as pay and terms and conditions.  

4. Dispute resolution 

This deals with what happens if the ASC Negotiating Body fails to reach an agreement. In the consultation paper, the government proposes that the Chair of the ASC Negotiating Body should declare a dispute if parties aren’t able to reach an agreement.  

An independent third party would then be involved to help find a way forward. The government proposes that this should be the Acas.  

There currently isn’t a set process for dispute resolution, as this will be left to the ASC Negotiating body and Acas to figure out when the time comes.  

5. Implementation 

This section of the consultation seeks views on what guidance and support should be made available to help organisations implement fair pay agreements.  

6. Compliance and enforcement 

The Fair Work Agency will be responsible for monitoring compliance with a fair pay agreement. They’ll be able to issue a Notice of Underpayment, along with a penalty of 200% of the amount due. 

Looking ahead 

We’ll be keeping you informed about developments on this and all the other Employment Rights Bill changes, every step of the way.