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To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of placing a qualified social worker in schools to support (a) early identification and (b) safeguarding of children experiencing unmet need.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of placing a qualified social worker in schools to support (a) early identification and (b) safeguarding of children experiencing unmet need.
The department commissioned the What Works for Children’s Social Care, now Foundations, to deliver a randomised controlled trial of the impact and cost effectiveness of placing social workers in schools during the 2020/21 and 2021/22 academic years. It took place in 291 schools across 21 local authorities.
The trial tested whether the social workers worked more effectively with education colleagues and with children and families, including to spot the signs of abuse, neglect, and risk of harm more quickly and respond more effectively.
The evaluation of the trial accounted for variations in implementation across participating schools, including impacts from the pandemic, and was quality assured by peer review. It looked at a range of key children's social care metrics, including rates of child protection enquiries, child in need assessments, referrals, children entering care, and days spent in care. No statistically significant impact was found for any. The evaluation also included a detailed economic assessment, which concluded that the model was significantly more costly than standard social work practice. Based on these outcomes, the evaluation made a clear recommendation that social workers in schools is not continued or scaled up further.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of funding made available for Continuing Professional Development for social workers employed by the NHS.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of funding made available for Continuing Professional Development for social workers employed by the NHS.
NHS England allocates funding to commissioners to fund the services they commission within an integrated care board area and in line with their, and NHS England’s, delivery plan. Responsibility for the continuing professional development (CPD) of employees sits with the employers and providers of the services.
More widely, the Department continues to support social workers with their CPD, both in the National Health Service and the wider social care sector, through the Assessed and Support Year in Employment. This includes up to £2.3 million of funding annually to support newly qualified social workers through structured supervision and professional development during their first year of practice. This funding is available to adult social work employers across statutory, private, voluntary, NHS, and independent sectors.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of response times from Social Work England for complains about social workers.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of response times from Social Work England for complains about social workers.
The department is the sponsor department for Social Work England, and as such we monitor their performance on an ongoing basis. Social Work England is also regulated by the Professional Standards Authority.
The government has a statutory obligation to appoint an independent person to review the operation of Part 2 of the Children and Social Work Act 2017, which includes powers related to Social Work England. The review, chaired by Dame Annie Hudson, will collect evidence of Social Work England’s overall effectiveness and efficiency of its core regulatory functions. Further details will be announced in due course, and on completion, the report will be laid before Parliament.
My Hon Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Minister for Children and Families) (Josh MacAlister) has made the following statement:
On 5 November 2025, I informed the House that the Secretary of State for Education had commissioned Dame Annie Hudson to undertake the statutory independent review of the operation of Part...
My Hon Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Minister for Children and Families) (Josh MacAlister) has made the following statement:
On 5 November 2025, I informed the House that the Secretary of State for Education had commissioned Dame Annie Hudson to undertake the statutory independent review of the operation of Part...
On 5 November 2025, I informed the House that the Secretary of State for Education had commissioned Dame Annie Hudson to undertake the statutory independent review of the operation of Part 2 of the Children and Social Work Act 2017. I am now updating the House to confirm that the...
On 5 November 2025, I informed the House that the Secretary of State for Education had commissioned Dame Annie Hudson to undertake the statutory independent review of the operation of Part 2 of the Children and Social Work Act 2017. I am now updating the House to confirm that the...
I.Independent review of social work professional regulation in England. Incl. annexes. 136p. II. Independent review of social work professional regulation in England. Government response. 32p.
I.Independent review of social work professional regulation in England. Incl. annexes. 136p. II. Independent review of social work professional regulation in England. Government response. 32p.
My rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department (Shabana Mahmood) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:
Today, marks one year since the publication of Baroness Casey’s National Audit on Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse and one year since this Government accepted all 12 recommendations.
...
My rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department (Shabana Mahmood) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:
Today, marks one year since the publication of Baroness Casey’s National Audit on Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse and one year since this Government accepted all 12 recommendations.
...
Today, marks one year since the publication of Baroness Casey’s National Audit on Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse and one year since this Government accepted all 12 recommendations.
This was a landmark report, exposing more than a decade of inaction in the face of these appalling crimes and it...
Today, marks one year since the publication of Baroness Casey’s National Audit on Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse and one year since this Government accepted all 12 recommendations.
This was a landmark report, exposing more than a decade of inaction in the face of these appalling crimes and it...
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of trauma-informed training for social workers involved in (a) child protection and (b) care arrangements.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of trauma-informed training for social workers involved in (a) child protection and (b) care arrangements.
All social workers in England must meet Social Work England’s professional standards, which set the minimum requirements for safe and effective practice, including promoting the rights, strengths and wellbeing of people, families and communities. Social workers complete initial education and training courses which are approved by the regulator against the education and training standards. In addition, in recognising the impact of trauma, the recently published child and family social worker early career standards and the forthcoming lead child practitioner standards, alongside the National Framework, will be used to underpin a new career-spanning development offer for social workers from autumn 2027 to support a confident and skilled workforce.
My Hon Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Minister for Children and Families) (Josh MacAlister) has made the following statement:
Transforming children’s social care is central to this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity for all children. It is fundamental to ensuring that every child grows up safe, supported...
My Hon Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Minister for Children and Families) (Josh MacAlister) has made the following statement:
Transforming children’s social care is central to this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity for all children. It is fundamental to ensuring that every child grows up safe, supported...
Transforming children’s social care is central to this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity for all children. It is fundamental to ensuring that every child grows up safe, supported and able to thrive, and is key to putting our public services, and our public finances, on a sustainable...
Transforming children’s social care is central to this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity for all children. It is fundamental to ensuring that every child grows up safe, supported and able to thrive, and is key to putting our public services, and our public finances, on a sustainable...
Delivering the children’s social care reset: an implementation plan for local partners 2026-2029. Incl. annexes. 45p.
Delivering the children’s social care reset: an implementation plan for local partners 2026-2029. Incl. annexes. 45p.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of creating a new community social work professional that combines essential clinical skills with relationship- and strengths-based practical knowledge.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of creating a new community social work professional that combines essential clinical skills with relationship- and strengths-based practical knowledge.
Adult social care is part of our vision for a Neighbourhood Health Service that shifts care from hospitals to communities, with more personalised, proactive, and joined-up health and care services that help people stay independent for as long as possible. Social work professionals already work in and with the National Health Service and will be an important part of neighbourhood teams to help people stay independent for longer and play an enhanced role in rehabilitation and recovery. We recognise that in order to achieve this, cultural changes will be needed within the NHS and wider health and care system, and we are keen to strengthen partnership between the NHS and local government.
We support the supply of social workers with the right skills, knowledge, and values to support adults, children, and families. Strength-based and relationship-based approaches are fundamental to social work practice and are a key part of training and re-registration requirements.
In the NHS, social workers are classed as 'clinicians', having the same protected title, professional qualification, registration, and continuing professional development requirements as other professionals, meaning they develop similar clinical skills as other clinicians.
We engage and work closely with the social work sector including through the Chief Social Worker (CSW) for Adults. The CSW provides independent expert advice to ministers on social work reform and works with key leaders in the sector to drive forward the improvement and reform programme for social care, contributing to social work and social care policy implementation.
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the stakeholder engagement underpinning the consultation entitled Growing up in the online world: a national consultation, published on 2 March 2026; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure...
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the stakeholder engagement underpinning the consultation entitled Growing up in the online world: a national consultation, published on 2 March 2026; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure...
Alongside the consultation, the Government launched a National Conversation to support broad and accessible engagement across the UK, including through schools, community settings and civil society organisations, ensuring a wide range of perspectives inform policymaking.
The Department is engaging clinicians, police officers and social workers through existing networks, representative bodies and cross‑government channels, including organisations such as the British Association of Social Workers, and encouraging contributions to the consultation.
These views will be considered alongside insights from an expert panel of academics, to help the department understand the information from the consultation in the context of the evolving evidence base.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of Social Work England's proposals for adjudicator consensual disposal as a means of expediting fitness to practise cases.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of Social Work England's proposals for adjudicator consensual disposal as a means of expediting fitness to practise cases.
The department is the sponsor department for Social Work England (SWE), the independent regulator, and monitors their performance on an ongoing basis. Funding is provided to SWE annually and is based on the need to deliver against its business plan. SWE report into their board on case progression and are ahead of their current trajectory to reduce the backlog of fitness to practise cases awaiting a hearing. They also continue to increase the rate for hearings. SWE’s board papers are publicly available on their website.
SWE consulted in October 2025 on the potential of introducing adjudicator consensual disposal. The proposed guidance would introduce a new process that allows adjudicators and social workers, in suitable cases, to reach an agreed outcome without the need for a disputed final hearing. This approach would enable cases to be resolved more quickly when both parties agree on the facts and appropriate sanctions. As the independent regulator of the social work profession, SWE will respond to their consultation in due course.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding for Social Work England to clear the fitness to practise backlog; and what her Department's target is for reducing the average time from referral to hearing outcome.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding for Social Work England to clear the fitness to practise backlog; and what her Department's target is for reducing the average time from referral to hearing outcome.
The department is the sponsor department for Social Work England (SWE), the independent regulator, and monitors their performance on an ongoing basis. Funding is provided to SWE annually and is based on the need to deliver against its business plan. SWE report into their board on case progression and are ahead of their current trajectory to reduce the backlog of fitness to practise cases awaiting a hearing. They also continue to increase the rate for hearings. SWE’s board papers are publicly available on their website.
SWE consulted in October 2025 on the potential of introducing adjudicator consensual disposal. The proposed guidance would introduce a new process that allows adjudicators and social workers, in suitable cases, to reach an agreed outcome without the need for a disputed final hearing. This approach would enable cases to be resolved more quickly when both parties agree on the facts and appropriate sanctions. As the independent regulator of the social work profession, SWE will respond to their consultation in due course.
That this House marks World Social Work Day 2026 as an opportunity to celebrate the incredibly important role the social work profession holds within our society; recognises the support social workers provide to vulnerable individuals, families, and communities to improve their circumstances every single day; appreciates those who work in adult social care, child social care, social care with people with disabilities, and more, in equal measure; acknowledges the deep commitment shown by social workers in supporting these vulnerable people, despite growing pressures such as increasingly limited resources and higher workloads; notes this crucial work at a time when their pay struggles to keep pace with the high cost of living; applauds the continuing commitment to the highest quality of care in spite of all of these challenges; commits to highlighting the current issues surrounding the recruitment and retention of social work staff; thanks the Social Workers Union and British Association of Social Workers for their continued support of the new Right To Food UK Commission; supports the Social Workers Union and British Association of Social Workers joint campaign to improve working conditions for social workers; and encourages UK Parliamentarians to join the Cross-Party Group for Social Work, to better understand the importance of social work in our society and to champion the role of our social workers.
That this House marks World Social Work Day 2026 as an opportunity to celebrate the incredibly important role the social work profession holds within our society; recognises the support social workers provide to vulnerable individuals, families, and communities to improve their circumstances every single day; appreciates those who work in...