Happy Social Work Week
I’m pleased to have this opportunity to thank all our social workers and social work students. Thank you for your drive to support people to improve their lives, for investing in our profession, and for sticking with it, through the tough times.
I know how hard it is right now. We don’t have enough social workers, whether because of location or retirement or increasing workloads. We know the increasing complexity of need you’re managing is challenging. We understand that more demands are being placed on social work teams because of the national policy landscape. Compounding factors have a knock-on effect.
Challenges
My conversations with your membership bodies and trade unions confirm that you, our social workers, are feeling the effects of these challenges.
I have worked in social work since the 1980s. That was a tough time. We lived through the deindustrialisation of Scotland and saw the devastating impact of poverty and unemployment on communities. We watched the rise of problematic drug use and experienced the impact on families across Scotland.
Fast forward 30-plus years and the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly for children and young people, is significant.
So, today, we have more demand and increasing complexity, alongside an ageing population, while navigating the effects of the pandemic aftermath. This, coupled with the cost of living crisis, is having the greatest consequences on the most vulnerable and poorest people in our communities. I know you’ll be doing everything you can to provide the right support, despite these testing times. But we also need a different approach.
Importance of social work
The Scottish Government has recognised that, in these difficult times, social work is more important than ever. They have agreed to establish the National Social Work Agency (NSWA) to advance social work practice in Scotland. Legislation is going through the Scottish Parliament now.
The Scottish Government also recognises that national and local working together has more potential to drive innovative change. So, a critical aspect of the National Social Work Agency will be its ability to work as part of the Scottish Social Work Partnership.
The proposed partnership will have a breadth of expertise. It will include national government (NSWA), local government (COSLA) and Social Work Scotland (SWS), with other partners, such as Scottish Association of Social Work (SASW), the third sector, UNISON Scotland, social work regulators, inspection and improvement bodies.
This collaborative approach will enable us to consider the social work workforce situation. And linked to that, the outcomes of the people we work with.
Focus
In the short term (until 2026), the partnership will focus on:
- student social workers: financial support and ways to study to qualify as a social worker
- newly qualified social workers (NQSW): first year of practice and remaining in the workforce
- experienced social workers: advance practice opportunities, including mental health officer (MHO) training or Scottish Child Interview Model (SCIM) training
- social work leaders: guidance and standards to support the Chief Social Work Officer (CSWO) role
- support to practitioners: trauma training, including reflective supervision
- planning the workforce: including training and support to implement policy, for example, Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Act 2024.
Exciting future
As a profession and as a workforce, what can we change to improve the outcomes of children, young people and adults? How can we all shift and adjust to do social work differently?
I believe this is an exciting time for our profession as we establish both the National Social Work Agency and the Scottish Social Work Partnership.
I want social work to be one of the best professions to work in. I want our social workers to provide the best support to vulnerable people and communities to enable them to achieve their potential.