Coventry council to recruit social workers from Chicago

Interviews will be held in the United States to boost the number of social workers employed in Coventry. Retaining permanent social workers in the UK was a major problem, Coventry City Council said.

Its social services department hopes to recruit 10 to 15 people following interviews in Chicago this month.

They would be expected to start by April, joining six others recently recruited from the USand due to begin work in February, the council said.

Councillor John Blundell, cabinet member (children, learning and young people), said: “Recruitment and retention of permanent social workers in the UK is a major problem.

“Providing adequate care for the children in our care is a top priority and we also need to reduce our spending on temporary and agency workers.”