BASW Conference: United voice essential to build powerful college

Social work must speak with a united voice if it is to meet the enormous challenges ahead, BASW’s 40th anniversary Annual General Meeting heard.

A motion supporting BASW Council’s pledge to ensure social workers throughout the UK and the Isle of Man have access to a College of Social Work was passed overwhelmingly by delegates.

BASW veteran Tom White, who has been a member since the association started in 1970, said the College had the potential to speak for all social workers by achieving the full participation which had so far eluded the association.

“It’s a second chance of making a success of bringing social workers in all four nations together and we can’t afford to miss it,” Mr White said. “We will have a much greater influence on social policy through the College.”

Former BASW general secretary David Jones said it was vital the new College was financially independent because he had worked for a number of publicly-funded “quangos”, such as the former training council CCETSW, which the government had closed down at will.

“What’s important is not the organisation, but social work,” Mr Jones said.  “BASW should be willing to give up its identity [for the sake of the College] as long as we’re not giving up our birthright in such a way that the government can wipe it out.”

Former BASW chair Terry Bamford dropped a further college related motion after BASW was able to resume its role in the College Development Group. The Association had been barred from attending while undertaking its referendum on establishing a College of Social Work that is independent and led by social workers. He welcomed BASW working alongside the CDG again as the potential for two rival colleges would have “fragmented the profession and repeated the mistakes of the past”. He said a “financially viable”, independent, social worker led college could only be achieved through social work speaking with “one voice”.