Social workers

• Hearing the voices of children in care

  Dr Claire Baker explores what children and young people living in care actually feel about their lives and care experience.

  

• Social workers face ‘chronically poor’ working conditions

  Almost half of carers responding to a poll report they want to leave their jobs due to ‘chronically poor’ working conditions.

  

• Frontline staff warn of ‘perfect storm’ in children's services

  Social workers, education and law enforcement workers in England are facing a ‘perfect storm’ of complex growing need, according to Barnardo's.

  

• Funding call to end 'postcode lottery' for children's services

  MPs today called for more funds to help end a so-called postcode lottery for children’s services.

  

• Calls to protect social workers from 'escalating violence'

  Social workers should receive the same legal protection from violence as emergency workers, according to sector bodies.

  

• Children's services blow for new chiefs

  Surrey CC’s children’s services are still inadequate, according to Ofsted – three years after they received the same grade.

  

• A child referred to social services every 49 seconds, figures reveal

  Referrals to council children's services reached 646,120 last year, according to new figures from the Local Government Association (LGA).

  

• Council leaders demand end to pay cap

  Nearly 100 council leaders have written to the chancellor demanding extra funding for workers and an end to the public sector pay cap.

  

• Five councils chosen to pilot social worker accreditation system

  Five local authorities have been chosen to pilot the roll-out of the new National Assessment and Accreditation System (NAAS) for child and family social workers.

  

• Project launched to retrain 100 social workers

  Three regions will take part in a new programme to help retrain 100 social workers who have left the profession.