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Hundreds of social workers in England are being “left in limbo”, often unable to work, because of long and increasing delays in fitness to practise (FTP) cases.
That was the warning from the British Association of Social Workers (BASW), Social Workers Union (SWU) and UNISON in a joint statement yesterday setting out their “significant concerns” about Social Work England’s operation of the FTP system.
The bodies, who each represent tens of thousands of social workers, were responding to an admission from the regulator in February that average FTP case lengths would increase from just over two years, currently, during 2024-25.
This was because Social Work England had to reduce FTP final hearing numbers to manage a projected budget overspend in 2023-24, and also due to the high likelihood that its 2024-25 budget settlement from the Department for Education would be insufficient to increase the number of hearings.
BASW, SWU and UNISON said they worked collaboratively with Social Work England and had raised the issue of FTP delays in their regular stakeholder meetings with the regulator in order to resolve the issue.
‘Hundreds of social workers left in limbo’
However, they added: “The time has now come for swift action, as hundreds of social workers are currently left in limbo.”
This exerted an “intolerable and unfair” toll on these practitioners’ mental health, which led some to stop working because of “unmanageable” distress.
Others were unable to work because employers did not consider them for roles when they learned they were subject to an FTP investigation. This was even the case when practitioners were not subject to interim orders placing restrictions on their practice or suspending them altogether, said BASW, SWU and UNISON.
They called on Social Work England to divert resources to FTP, including by simplifying the “laborious and obstructive” approach to registration renewal and making this biennial, rather than yearly.
They also warned Social Work England against raising the fee practitioners pay to register, which has been fixed at £90 a year since the regulator’s inception in December 2019, but which the regulator has said it would review between 2023 and 2026.
Regulator criticised for ‘adversarial approach’
However, while BASW, SWU and UNISON acknowledged that Social Work England had received more cases than expected since 2019, they also claimed delays were driven, in part, by the regulator investigating too many cases and taking an “adversarial” approach.
There were “many examples” of cases that progressed beyond the triage stage when there was “no reasonable reason for them to do so”, said the bodies. At triage, Social Work England determines whether there are reasonable grounds to investigate the social worker’s fitness to practise.
Then, at the investigations stage, the regulator “in almost all cases” only sought evidence supporting the allegation against the registrant, they said. Information that could clear the social worker was “not considered or overlooked” even when drawn to the attention of investigators, the bodies added.
What BASW, SWU and UNISON want to see
“This has the effect of cases progressing that do not need to, taking up significant resources, the very problem that leads to delay at all stages,” said BASW, SWU and UNISON.
They called on the regulator to ensure investigations were “more collaborative and thorough” and update training and guidance for case examiners. These FTP staff determine, following investigation, whether there is a realistic prospect that the concerns about the registrant could be proved and, if so, whether their fitness to practise may be found impaired.
Such revised guidance for case examiners should ensure examiners “make assessments from a neutral, less combative position, taking into account contextual factors”.
BASW, SWU and UNISON also called on the regulator to “develop alternative outcomes” for cases where the person has been awaiting a final hearing for multiple years and “adopt a more reasonable approach to voluntary removal”.
Call for urgent discussions
This is the process by which the regulator decides whether to accept a person subject to FTP proceedings’ request to be removed from the register, which is based on whether there is a public interest in the fitness to practise case continuing.
The three organisations sent the statement to Social Work England on 25 April, along with a letter in which they asked for “urgent and progressive discussions…to address the issues we have raised”.
In this, it said it looked forward to meeting with BASW, SWU and UNISON to further discuss the issues.
How Social Work England responds to FTP criticisms
- Delays in concluding FTP cases: the regulator said it agreed that “delays in concluding cases that have been referred to a hearing are unacceptable and [had] said so publicly on a number of occasions”, and it had raised this with the DfE. It also said it kept affected social workers updated on delays.
- The impact of delays on social workers: Social Work England said it had a support process in place when it has serious concerns about the wellbeing of any party to a case and considered serious concerns about a social worker’s health when prioritising cases referred for a hearing.
- Employers not hiring social workers subject to investigation but with no restrictions on their practice: the regulator acknowledged that this happened sometimes, and in such cases it offered to write to prospective employers to confirm that were no restrictions on the person’s practice, while it had also issued guidance that stated this. It offered to work with BASW, SWU and UNISON on any work they planned to do to address this issue.
- High case numbers: Social Work England said it had received 30% more FTP concerns than was planned for before its establishment and its resource level was “insufficient to deal with the new cases referred for, and awaiting, a hearing”.
- Whether too many cases pass the triage test: it said that of 1,900 concerns it received last year, 66% were closed at the triage stage, and that internal reviews and its watchdog, the Professional Standards Authority (PSA), had concluded that it used its triage test appropriately and in line with its duty to protect the public.
- Whether it only seeks evidence in favour of the complaint during investigations: Social Work England said that while investigations were inevitably focused on the regulatory concerns identified at the triage stage, this did not mean it only gathered evidence that supported the concerns. It added that its investigators were impartial and that they invited social workers to make any comments they wished at the start and also the end of the investigation, with both of these being passed to case examiners for consideration. It said the fact that 50% of cases decided by case examiners in 2023-24 were closed without further action did not indicate that they should not have been investigated. However, the regulator agreed that “more can be done to ensure that investigators have all the information they need to allow case examiners to make a decision, but this requires everyone involved in the investigation to engage consistently and fully”.
- Whether the case examination process is impartial: neither internal reviews nor the PSA had indicated any problems with decision making at this stage, said Social Work England. It also pointed to its case examiner guidance, which includes measures to promote fairness and impartiality. These include ensuring the social worker has had a reasonable opportunity to respond to the case against them and having each case determined by a pair of case examiners, who must agree.
- The reasonableness of the voluntary removal process: Social Work England said that, of 44 applications for voluntary removal received and considered since January 2023, 15 had been granted and 29 refused. It said that neither the PSA nor its internal reviews had raised concerns about the voluntary removal process.
- The need to explore alternative options for disposing of a case, without a hearing: the regulator agreed with this and pointed to a specific objective in its 2024-25 business plan around this. It said it would welcome further discussion with BASW, SWU and UNISON on this issue.
- Diverting resources from the registration process: Social Work England said it only spent 5% of its budget on registration, including annual renewal, and that the fact that over 98% of practitioners renewed last year did not suggest the process was too difficult for social workers.
- Whether registration fees will rise: the regulator reiterated that it would review the current fee structure during its current strategic planning period (2023-26) and that any increase would involve a full public consultation and engagement with the profession. “We understand the financial pressures that registrants face, which is why we continue to look to make efficiencies,” it added.
Unison has written to chancellor George Osborne asking him to support a £1 per hour pay rise for local government staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in 2014-15.
Unison, Unite and GMB submitted the pay claim in late 2013 and Local Government Employers (LGE) is currently consulting local authorities on the offer. A response is expected in mid-February.
But Heather Wakefield, Unison’s head of local government, suggested to Osborne that it might be “beneficial” to meet and discuss the offer before the LGE made its final decision.
She wrote: “I am writing to ask you to recognise the severity of the financial position in which many of my members find themselves and to take steps to ensure that they enjoy a pay increase this year which compensates for the 18% real-terms loss of earnings they have suffered since your government took office.
“There are means at your disposal to enable the Local Government Employers to award a pay increase which would start to compensate for the hardship my members are suffering – outlined later in my letter. I would ask you earnestly to employ them.”
Community Care has contacted the Treasury for a response.
]]>Southwark council has formally signed up to Unison’s ethical care charter, which urges local authorities to help put an end to low wage, by-the-minute home care.
Southwark said it had already put into place the majority of the elements in the charter, including introducing the London living wage for home care workers working for private providers and ensuring visits last for a minimum of 30 minutes.
In April 2013, the council agreed to investigate whether it was possible to commit to the remaining three main principles of the charter: scrapping zero hours contracts hours, paying for travel time between clients and occupational sickness schemes.
On Tuesday 19 November, members of Southwark’s cabinet received a report concluding that the council can adopt a new approach to commissioning services. The report recommended signing up to the charter and working towards its complete implementation.
“There is still work to do to bring in the final pieces of the charter,” said Catherine McDonald, cabinet member for adult social care, health and equalities in Southwark.
“But I am delighted to be signalling our commitment and to be leading the way to better home care.”
She added: “I believe that having a better paid, better skilled and well-motivated workforce in our community will help ensure high quality care, reducing unnecessary demand for hospital services and helping people stay in their own homes for longer, which is where they have told us they want to be.”
Southwark is one of the first local authorities to sign up to the charter. Heather Wakefield, Unison’s head of local government, said: “Southwark is leading by example in adopting the charter and tackling the problems with home care contracts head on.
“A lot of hard work will be needed to make this commitment a reality, but the way Southwark has involved workers, providers and people who need care in working together on the charter bodes well for the future.”
Unison’s branch secretary in Southwark, Sue Plain, said: “Our home care members have campaigned hard for this and will leave a legacy of better terms and conditions for those who follow them – and a better quality of home care for all the residents of Southwark. They should be very proud of the achievement and well done to the council for listening and taking action.”
]]>Unison, GMB and Unite have submitted a pay claim for a rise of £1 per hour for local government workers including care staff and social workers in 2014-15.
The unions said this would bring the lowest paid workers – who are on £6.45 per hour – up to a rate roughly equivalent to the living wage (outside London) of £7.65.
The claim would only apply to those covered by the National Joint Council for Local Government Services.
Local Government Employers (LGE) has yet to respond to the claim.
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