A social worker from Benfleet who worked whilst temporarily excluded from the Social Care Register has been suspended for 18 months by an independent panel of the General Social Care Council, the workforce regulator.

On 8 January 2007, Rawle McCarthy, 41, received an Interim Suspension Order for six months whilst a complaint against him was investigated. Despite this, McCarthy continued to work for the London Borough of Haringey until 13 February 2007 when the services manager discovered the existence of the ISO and reported his breach of this to the GSCC. The GSCC were not made aware that McCarthy was working as a social worker when they issued the ISO in January.

Following a one day hearing in London, a panel of three independent committee members found McCarthy’s actions (in working whilst suspended) to be dishonest and to amount to misconduct. They said there was a failure to uphold the principles in the Code of Practice for Social Care Workers which deal with being honest and trustworthy and working in a lawful, safe and effective way. All social workers agree to abide by the code when they register with the GSCC.

However, in deciding to issue him with a suspension rather than removing him from the register, they noted that McCarthy had admitted the misconduct and there was no apparent harm caused to people who use services.

The title of ‘social worker’ is protected by law, meaning that anyone who works in a social worker role whilst not on the register is in breach of the Care Standards Act 2000. In June 2007, McCarthy accepted a caution from police in relation to this.

Following an earlier hearing, in July 2008, Mr McCarthy had received a three year admonishment (a public caution marked next to his name on the register) when he was found to have committed misconduct by forming inappropriate personal relationships with two parents whose children had been referred to Southend Children’s Services. Further details can be found at: http://www.gscc.org.uk/Conduct/Conduct_hearings/recently_concluded_hearings/

Sir Rodney Brooke, Chair of the GSCC, said: “The majority of people on our register uphold the Code of Practice for Social Care Workers which sets out the expectations of social workers as they go about their daily work. However, it’s important that we take action against the small minority of social workers who breach the code, thereby damaging the trust and confidence that people who use services and the wider public have in social care services.”

Social workers have a right of appeal to the independent Care Standards Tribunal.

Further details about this and previous hearings can be found on the at these pages
http://www.gscc.org.uk/Conduct/Conduct_hearings/recently_concluded_hearings/