News
'Obsessive. Compulsive. Social Worker: how living with OCD shapes my practice"
1+ hour, 58+ min ago (1227+ words) This article is part of Community Care's 'Neurodiversity belongs in social work' campaign, which aims to spotlight the diverse minds in social work and challenge the systems that weren't built for them. It's the end of the day, and something's…...
Training schemes for experienced social workers to launch next year, says DfE
1+ day, 4+ hour ago (434+ words) Two government training schemes for experienced children's social workers will launch next year, the Department for Education has confirmed. The DfE is developing programmes covering advanced child protection practice and social work leadership, which will be targeted at social workers…...
'What neurodivergent social workers are up against today - and how to help"
1+ day, 7+ hour ago (736+ words) This article is part of Community Care's 'Neurodiversity belongs in social work' campaign, which aims to spotlight the diverse minds in social work and challenge the systems that weren't built for them. Neurodivergent social workers have always been part of…...
ASYE replacement limited to social workers carrying out statutory duties, says DfE
2+ day, 2+ hour ago (1046+ words) The replacement for the assessed and supported year in employment (ASYE) in children's services will be limited to permanently social workers carrying out statutory duties, the Department for Education has said (story updated). This means the two-year support scheme will…...
More people dragged into self-funding as means-test thresholds frozen for 16th year
2+ week, 2+ day ago (394+ words) More people will be dragged into self-funding their care, after the government decided to freeze means-testing limits for the 16th consecutive year. The upper and lower capital limits governing access to care in England for 2026-27 will remain at levels that were…...
DfE drive to cut fostering 'bureaucracy' sparks safeguarding concerns
3+ week, 1+ day ago (1261+ words) The government's drive to cut "bureaucracy" in reforming England's fostering system has sparked concerns that the changes will weaken safeguards for children. Both the British Association of Social Workers (BASW) and children's rights charity Article 39 raised the issue, after the…...
'My manager kept me in social work after my granddaughter's death"
1+ mon, 1+ week ago (482+ words) Our My Brilliant Colleague series invites you to celebrate anyone who has inspired you in your career. It is part of Community Care's ongoing Choose Social Work campaign, which aims to champion the brilliant work social workers do every day…...
'Why so few men feel they belong in children's social work"
1+ mon, 1+ week ago (1003+ words) Children's social work is facing a recruitment and retention crisis that can no longer be separated from questions of gender. Men remain significantly underrepresented across the profession, and particularly in children and families services. In 2024, men made up just 12.5% of…...
The state of social work education: key takeaways from Social Work England review
1+ mon, 2+ week ago (1604+ words) In November 2025, Social Work England published a report detailing its findings from five years regulating the social work education sector. The study, Preparing for'practice:'social work'education in'England, drew on its inspections of 257 courses from September 2021 to March 2025 and its annual…...
'Why social work needs to talk about shame"
1+ mon, 2+ week ago (855+ words) As a social worker for over a decade, working across children's social care, care leavers and adolescents at risk of extra-familial harm, there is one word I almost never heard spoken explicitly in professional spaces: shame. We talk a lot…...