Care Inspectorate Wales Annual Report highlights positive outcomes alongside ongoing sector challenges

Care Inspectorate Wales (CIW) has published its Chief Inspector's Annual Report 2025-2026, providing an overview of the quality of care, support and childcare services across Wales. The report indicates that most regulated services continue to deliver positive outcomes for the people who use them, while also highlighting a number of ongoing challenges facing the sector.

According to the report, 90% of ratings awarded to domiciliary support services, adult care homes and children's care homes were assessed as either good or excellent. The findings reflect continued positive practice across many services and settings throughout Wales.

Alongside these results, the report identifies a range of pressures affecting service delivery. These include challenges relating to workforce recruitment and retention, leadership and management capacity, governance arrangements and staffing levels. The report notes that while many services continue to perform well, maintaining quality and consistency remains an ongoing priority across the sector.

The annual report provides insight into the experiences of people using care services and highlights areas of both strength and improvement across Wales' regulated care sector.

Read the full report: Care Inspectorate Wales Annual Report 2025-2026