2002 archive

Social work degree accreditation process begins in earnest

29/05/2002

The General Social Care Council has given the green light for universities in England to begin applying for accreditation to offer the new degree in social work.

Details of how to apply for accreditation were published at the same time as information from the Department of Health.

Universities can access documents on the accreditation process on this website under Education and Training/Education and Training Providers. Printed copies of the GSCC’s documents – Accreditation of universities to grant degrees in social work and the Statement of commitment – will be available early next month.

The new degree, announced by the Department of Health in 2001, will replace the current professional social work qualification, the Diploma in Social Work, from Autumn 2003. Different arrangements apply in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

The General Social Care Council is one of a wide range of stakeholders working with the Department of Health to introduce the new degree, which is aimed at building on the best of social work education and training and improving the status, image and position of social workers. The intention is to better equip social workers to provide high quality services to the public and ensure a sound basis for the registration of social workers by the General Social Care Council over the next few years.

Chair of the GSCC, Rodney Brooke, said the GSCC shared the enthusiasm of the Department of Health to implement the new degree in England by 2003. He said: “It’s been a tight timescale for the GSCC and I congratulate staff who have worked hard to produce this documentation. The GSCC believes that this new qualification for social workers, along with our codes of practice, registration of the workforce and the work of partner organisations, will make a major contribution to improving standards in social care. This is a new landscape for social care, enhancing protection for vulnerable people, and raising the status of the profession.”

Universities have been invited to submit applications for accreditation between 1 June and 31 October 2002. Dates for submission will be negotiated and agreed with each university and a decision will be made within four weeks of receipt of the submission. Further submissions will be invited and considered during 2003.

A list of universities accredited by the General Social Care Council will be published annually and the first list will be available in late 2002.