News
Number of adoptions hits new low as children wait longer and adopter shortage grows
7+ hour, 21+ min ago (1058+ words) The number of adoptions in England has hit a new low, leaving children waiting longer for permanence amid a growing shortage of adopters, data has shown. Just 590 children were placed with an adoptive family in the third quarter of 2025-26 (October…...
Councils to face full adult social care assessments every 3 to 4 years, CQC confirms
2+ day, 22+ hour ago (541+ words) Councils will face comprehensive assessments of their adult social care performance every three to four years in future, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has confirmed. Those currently rated good or outstanding will generally go up to four years between assessments,…...
NQSWs risk being left in limbo by seven-month gap between final ASYE closing and start of replacement scheme, leaders warn
2+ day, 22+ hour ago (1097+ words) Social workers risk being left in limbo by a seven-month gap between the final children's assessed and supported year in employment (ASYE) closing to new entrants and the start of its replacement scheme. That was the warning from social work…...
Social Work England commissions research into practice placements
6+ day, 18+ hour ago (302+ words) Social Work England is commissioning research into the state of practice-based learning for students. The study will examine perceptions and experiences of placement quality, sufficiency and variation across regions, social work qualifying routes and workforce contexts, such as statutory or…...
Government has 'stalled' on disabled children's law reform, charity warns
1+ week, 6+ hour ago (566+ words) The government has been accused of "stalling" on reforming the law on social care for disabled children following its initial response to a two-year review of the legal framework. Children's minister Josh Mac Alister, who issued the response, made no…...
Supervision of foster carers will stay with councils as other social work roles are regionalised, says Df E
1+ week, 6+ day ago (925+ words) Foster carer supervision will remain a council responsibility as other fostering social work roles are regionalised, the Department for Education (Df E) has said. Regional fostering hubs, which are responsible for attracting prospective carers in most parts of the country, will…...
Adult social care to return to coastal council's control after 20 years in NHS hands
2+ week, 4+ day ago (842+ words) Adult social care will return to council control in a borough next year after over 20 years in NHS hands. Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust has decided to serve notice on its contract to deliver adult social care services…...
My reasonable adjustments were dismantled after my manager changed': a neurodivergent social worker's story
3+ week, 4+ day ago (1282+ words) The small meeting room was never meant to be mine." It was simply a quiet, often unoccupied, space I had identified after we moved offices, where I could concentrate, away from the constant hum of an open-plan children's services office....
Most social workers don't receive adequate case handovers, finds poll
3+ week, 4+ day ago (225+ words) Most social workers rarely or never receive satisfactory handovers when a case is passed on to them, a Community Care poll has found. Just under a third (30%) said they sometimes had a satisfactory handover, while only 15% said this was a…...
Do LS referrals up 10% but practitioners bringing down lengthy backlog
3+ week, 6+ day ago (382+ words) The number of Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (Do LS) referrals rose by 10% last year, but practitioners managed to bring down the lengthy case backlog, official data has shown. English councils received a record 364, 900 applications from care homes and hospitals to…...