The General Social Care Council was established in October 2001 to regulate the social care workforce in England through codes of practice and a social care register. It also regulates social work training and is a key player in establishing a new social work degree.

Mr Brooke said: “The General Social Care Council has an exciting and challenging timetable of work ahead and I am delighted to welcome two experienced and knowledgeable new members to our Council to help us deliver it.”

Non lay member
Malcolm Jordan

Currently based in Wiltshire, Mr Jordan has over 30 years experience in the field of social care work. A qualified social worker, he has held positions as Principal Lecturer at Medway and Maidstone College of Higher Education, as social work adviser to the erstwhile Department of Health and Social Security (1975-78), as Deputy Director of Social Services in Lancashire (1978-87) and a director of a residential school for children with severe learning disabilities. For the past 12 years he has worked as an independent consultant in social care. He occasionally serves as a lay chair to NHS complaints panels.

Lay member
Melanie Henwood

Ms Henwood works as a self-employed independent health and social care analyst. She has 20 years experience in research and analysis focusing on families in general and on older people in particular. Ms Henwood is the author of a number of key papers on health and care issues, including authorship of the report from the Kings Fund National Care and Support Inquiry (2001). She is also an advisor to the Joseph Rowntree Fund’s Older People’s Committee.

Lorna Shearman 020 7397 5830
Notes to editors: The General Social Care Council was established under the Care Standards Act 2000.

Members of the GSCC are appointed in a personal capacity to reflect the diversity of stakeholder interests, which will be affected by the Council's work. There is a statutory requirement for a lay majority on the Council and a lay chair.

Equivalent bodies exist in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales: The Scottish Social Services Council; the Northern Ireland Social Care Council and the Care Council for Wales.

The wide-ranging public consultation on draft codes of conduct and practice for social care workers and employers closed on 29 March 2001. The four countries are now working on the wording of the codes to ensure they are aligned throughout the UK. They will be published in Summer 2002.

The GSCC and its UK sister bodies are currently considering the rules and requirements for registering and estimated 1.45million social care workers beginning in Spring 2003. It will take several years to register the complete workforce.