The PSA publishes its review of Social Work England’s performance for 2024/25

We have today published our annual performance review of Social Work England. During 2024/25, we conducted a monitoring review of Social Work England’s performance against the Standards of Good Regulation (the Standards).

For this period, Social Work England has met 16 out of the 18 Standards. Our report explains how we made our decision. 

Social Work England has maintained its approach not to review any continuing professional development (CPD) records submitted by registrants following the renewal period, whilst it redesigns its approach to CPD. We acknowledge that there could be other ways for regulators to assure themselves that their registrants are fit to practise, but Social Work England had previously gained assurance through its CPD review. Having removed that review and not replaced it with any other system – but for some very basic checks – we do not think the processes in place are sufficient for Social Work England to satisfy itself that social workers continue to be fit to practise. Therefore, we decided that Standard 13 is not met.

Social Work England has not met Standard 15 for the fourth consecutive year. This was due to our ongoing concerns about the time it is taking Social Work England to progress fitness to practise (FTP) cases at each stage of the process, and the large backlog of cases at the hearings stage. However, we note that it is clear Social Work England recognises the problem with its performance with respect to FTP timeliness, and it is taking a range of steps to try to improve its performance. In line with our Escalation Policy, we have written to the relevant Secretaries of State to provide an update on Social Work England’s performance.

In 2024, we introduced a new approach to assessing regulators against our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Standard. In order to meet the Standard, regulators must assure us they are delivering the four high-level outcomes supported by our evidence matrix. Social Work England has continued to meet Standard 3 this year. In particular, we noted that its engagement with the Witness to Harm project, including updating its guidance for witnesses and potential witnesses, amounted to good practice. However, we also note that Social Work England still does not collect diversity data for its Board members or for complainants. We will continue to monitor these areas in our next review period. 

You can find out more about Social Work England’s review in our full report. Find out more about how we review the regulators.

The judgements we make against each Standard incorporate a range of evidence to form an overall picture of performance. Meeting a Standard means that we are satisfied that a regulator is performing well in that area. It does not mean there is no room for improvement. Similarly, finding that a regulator has met all of the Standards does not mean perfection. Rather, it signifies good performance in the 18 areas we assess.

Our oversight does not stop when we publish our report. It is an ongoing, continuous process and, where we have identified areas for improvement, we pay particular attention to these as we continue to monitor the regulator’s performance.

Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care

Contact: media@professionalstandards.org.uk

ENDS