The Government’s emphasis on strengthening safeguards and outcomes for looked after children in their response to the Children’s Workforce Strategy consultation has been welcomed by the General Social Care Council (GSCC).

Their response, published yesterday (13 February 2006), re-emphasises how valuable the children’s social care workforce is and the need continuously to improve recruitment, retention and quality of practice, especially through an integrated qualifications framework to develop a “truly world-class workforce.”

GSCC chair Rodney Brooke said:
“The children’s social care workforce work with some of the most vulnerable service users in society and it is essential that they are properly trained and prepared for this worthwhile job. The Government’s recognition of the valuable work these individuals carry out and their commitment to improving qualifications is good news.”

“This announcement comes after the Care Services Minister, Liam Byrne’s, announcement last week that 750,000 social care workers across both children and adult’s services will be the next groups to register with the GSCC. All social care workers are already covered by the GSCC’s codes of practice, and registration will be the next step in ensuring that all social care workers are trained, checked and accountable for their practice.”

“The GSCC looks forward to working with the Government and the Children’s Workforce Development Council (CWDC) to help develop an integrated qualifications framework and in rolling out registration to these next groups.”

One of the key features of the Children’s Workforce Strategy and the Department of Health’s White Paper (Our health, our care, our say) is integration. The work of the GSCC in regulating social care workers in different settings will help ensure that standards continue to improve as integration grows.