GSCC calls for compulsory post-qualifying awards
Saturday, February 14th, 2009
The General Social Care Council has called for a system where all social workers receive a specialist post-qualifying award early in their career to ensure that the learning from their degree is consolidated in practice. Recommendations include:
• the development of national standards for post-qualifying training in safeguarding for adults and children;
• simplification of the funding arrangements to Higher Educational Institutions, and the linking of funding to quality standards;
• the development of a workforce model to ensure the right number of social workers are being trained in the right regions; and
• further research into the declining number of men entering social work, and the poor progression rates amongst some black and minority ethnic students
• a new forensic social work award
Rosie Varley, Chair of the GSCC, said: “Tragedies such as the death of Baby P and other recent cases remind us how immensely challenging the role of a social worker is. We need to attract the best people into the profession, with a diverse workforce that reflects the society we live in.
As well as attracting the best people, our social workers need to have the very best training right throughout their careers. That is why we are reviewing whether we have the right powers to robustly inspect social work degree courses. We also believe there needs to be the creation of national standards for on the job safeguarding training and stronger requirements for employers to commit to good quality on-going training for social workers.”
There is a useful article which includes an interview with Mike Wardle Chief Executive GSCC in Community Care
Supporting Best Practice through the Post Qualifying Awards – A series of PQ Information Seminars for managers across London .
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