Campaigners fear social work system needs urgent improvement

Social work systems need ‘urgent improvement’ if front line staff are to implement news laws protecting the welfare of children, campaigners warn.

The Victoria Climbié Foundation UK (VCF) fears current social work infrastructure is not ‘significantly robust’ enough’ to deliver on the Children and Families Act, which was granted royal assent in March.

VCF collaborated with recruitment firm, HCL Social Care, to engage with social workers of all levels and experience, from whom almost 500 gave comprehensive and significant feedback.

Four themes repeatedly emerged: lack of management support, not listening to front line social workers, inconsistent training and development of the workforce and poor recruitment and retention practices – particularly in the locum sector.

In its research report ‘Voices from the Front Line: Supporting our social workers in the delivery of quality services to children’, published today, VCF makes six key recommendations which would enable social workers to meet the practice demands and deadlines laid down in the Act.

Chief executive of VCF, Mor Dioum, said: ‘We welcome the Children and Families Act which encourages development of the childcare sector, as well as ensuring a strong advocate for children’s rights. However, we are concerned that, despite a raft of reviews and recommendations over the past five years, the current social work system is not significantly robust enough to deliver on the Act.

‘We have observed, with growing alarm, the significant budget cuts levied on local government, which has consequently compressed the strain on the children and families’ social work sector. Demand is growing but services are being reduced.’

Gary Chatfield, managing director at HCL Social Care said: ‘For social workers in children’s services this should be a time of great hope but the high levels of frustration expressed by our respondents is simply soul-destroying.’

The Victoria Climbié Foundation was established by Mr and Mrs Climbié (Victoria’s parents) to campaign for improvements in child protection policies and practices and to ensure effective links & coordination between statutory agencies, care services and BME communities.

Read full research report: Voices from the front line: Supporting our social workers in the delivery of quality services to children