The General Social Care Council (GSCC) has announced that Jane Held will be taking up the position of Interim Director of Regulation from June, whilst it undertakes the permanent recruitment to this role.
Jane’s appointment will support the growing work of the GSCC in social care workforce regulation, focusing on the drive to register all social workers by April 2005, when protection of title will come into force in England.
Jane Held has a wealth of experience in the social care sector. She has previously held the position of Director of Social Services at London Borough of Camden and Southend on Sea Borough Council. Before these roles, she was also Assistant Director of Social Services at Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. She was also Co-Chair of the ADSS Children and Families Committee from April 2002 to January 2004.
The appointment follows the announcement of an evolving management structure for the social care regulatory body. Mike Wardle, formerly the Director of Standards and Regulation, has been appointed to the new post of Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Strategy. The new role will focus on helping to set the strategic direction for the GSCC through policy development, business planning and development, and building relationships with stakeholders.
Announcing the new appointment, Chief Executive Lynne Berry said:
“I am delighted to welcome Jane to the GSCC to take forward our vital work in the areas of workforce registration and quality in social work education and training.
“Jane’s long experience of local government will be hugely valuable for the organisation. Her first class skills, commitment and enthusiasm will help us deliver the challenging and exciting timetable of work ahead of us, including registering qualified social workers by April 2005 and paving the way for registration of new parts of the 1.2 million strong social care workforce.”
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gscc 016.04
4 June 2004
Notes to editors
1. Media contact details:
Victoria Ellen:020 7397 5829
Out of hours:07771 914 481
Registration helpline:0845 070 0630
2. For further details on registration, please email registration@gscc.org.uk or telephone 0845 070 0630. For other information on the General Social Care Council, visit www.gscc.org.uk or call 020 7397 5800.
3. Protection of title is being introduced by the Government from 1 April 2005. This will ensure the title ‘social worker’ is only used by people who have registered as a social worker with the General Social Care Council or one of the other councils in the UK. This will protect the high standards of the sector, and protect the professional status and reputation of the thousands of qualified and committed social workers in England. All social workers must be on the Social Care Register before protection of title comes into force.
4. The General Social Care Council came into being on 1 October 2001. It was set up in England under the Care Standards Act 2000 to establish codes of practice for social care workers and employers, to set up a register of social care workers and to regulate social work education and training. Similar bodies exist in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.