Trade union Unison claims gaps in social care provision are being plugged by social work assistants and other support workers as budgets cuts bite.
A survey of support staff carried out by the union revealed that two thirds of staff are regularly given work with vulnerable children or adults that they don’t feel qualified or experienced enough to do.
The survey found:
- 70% of the support staff surveyed said the number of cases they handled had increased
- 79% said the complexity of the cases had risen in the last year.
- 75% of support staff normally work over and above their contracted week.
- More than four in ten earn below £21,000 - the government’s definition of low pay in the public sector.
Helga Pile, Unison’s national officer for social care, said:’Social work assistants and support workers are seriously struggling to cope with the pressures being piled on them, as demand continues to grow, while resources are drastically cut.
’Staff are very concerned about vulnerable children and adults who rely on the services. There aren’t enough social workers, so they are under growing pressure to step into the breach and carry out work they may be unqualified to do. They end up suffering from excessive bureaucracy, stress and burn-out - just like social workers.
’Support workers and social work assistants have a vital role to play, but are often used as cheap labour for social workers. ‘We need proper safeguards in the system to protect assistants and support workers, social workers - and the people who rely on these vital services.’
Unison's survey follows recently published Ofsted figures which found nearly a quarter of councils surveyed were failing to protect children adequately.
