News Archive 2003
Click on the titles below to check out 2003 news and press releases relating to NISCC. Earlier material for previous years can be accessed by clicking on the links on the left hand side.
A career in Social Work or social care?
The Northern Ireland Social Care Council exhibited at Job Scene Northern Ireland to promote Social Work and social care professions and training. The two-day event, 26 and 27 September, gave the public and those interested in working in the social field information and advice about pursuing these careers.
Why do people want to become Social Workers? When asked recently one professional said ‘I will have been in social work thirty years this year, so it’s kind of hard to remember exactly how it happened. What I do know is that I wanted to work with people and I wanted to make a difference to people’s lives. It may sound like a cliché, but it’s not. The most rewarding thing about my career, when I sit back and think about it is that I actually have been able to make a difference to some people. Certainly not everybody I tried to help and maybe not as much as I might have liked. But for some people, I did make a difference. That’s why I would encourage people who are interested to come into social work. Social work does work. It’s a challenging profession and requires increasing knowledge and skill. I feel that the new degree will be of great benefit as it offers more time and opportunity to undergo the training that is required these days. I am delighted that it will start in 2004.
Social Workers work with a wide range of people in our society who at different times in their lives need help and support. The job can be demanding and people’s needs are becoming increasingly complex. Social workers need to have the appropriate level of education and training to help them respond effectively to these demands. The introduction of an honours degree course in Social Work, followed by a supervised year in practice before registration, and mandatory participation in post qualifying training will provide this.
The new Social Work honours degree will be offered by a number of colleges and universities in Northern Ireland. Further information on the course, how to apply and what is required for entry is available from the Northern Ireland Social Care council, who are the regulatory body for all social care professions. They can be contacted on telephone (028) 9041 7600, website info@niscc.n-i.nhs.uk.
End.
Notes to Editors
For further information, please contact Brendan Johnston, NISCC Chief Executive, Tel: 028 9041 7603 or Brigid McSorley, Communications Officer Tel: 028 9041 7610.
1. The Northern Ireland Social Care Council will be at stand 31, promoting careers in Social Work and Social Care.
2. NISCC is a non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. It was established under Section 1 of the Health and Personal Social Services Act (NI) 2001 and came into operation on October 1 2001.
3. Similar councils have been established in England, Scotland and Wales.
4. The Council is comprised of 23 members appointed by the Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. Membership includes a range of interests, including one third lay people (users of services, carers and members of the public), one-third registrants and one-third other stakeholders (employers, unions and professional associations). Chair of the Council is Dr. Jeremy Harbison and Chief Executive is Mr Brendan Johnston.
5. The Council has a duty to promote high standards of conduct and practice among social workers and social care workers and high standards in their training. It will do this by establishing registers of particular groups in the social care workforce, publishing and promulgating codes of practice for all the workforce and complementary codes for employers, regulating the education and training of social workers and undertaking the functions formerly carried by the Training Organisation for Personal Social Services (TOPSS). NISCC has the power to deregister those who do not meet the terms of registration.
6. The Council has already embarked on a significant programme of work, which includes working, in co-operation with the Councils in England, Scotland and Wales to procure a computerised system for registration of the workforce. Council staff are also working closely with DHSSPS officials on developments relating to the reform of social work training. NISCC has also launched an advertising campaign to promote social work as a positive career choice in NI.
7. The Council has been active in placing emphasis on the views of service users and it has established sub-committees of users and carers to guide its considerations on policy issues.
Joint NISCC/SHSSB Press Release - 2 July 2003
Southern Health and Social Services Board and Trusts Lead the Way in Registering for Quality Social Care Services
Today, at a presentation in Board headquarters in Armagh, social work staff from the Southern Health and Social Services Board and local Trusts became the first ever social workers to sign up under the government’s new registration scheme for social care staff in Northern Ireland.
Registration of the social care workforce is operated by the Northern Ireland Social Care Council. More than 30,000 social care workers, across all sectors, will sign up to the process over the next few years.
Congratulating the first registrants, NISCC Chair, Dr Jeremy Harbison said:
“We welcome the commitment of the Southern Health and Social Services Board, its Trusts and agencies in moving forward to be the first group of staff to register with the Northern Ireland Social Care Council. This is the first time that all social care staff in Northern Ireland will be signing up to agreed standards of training and practice. It means that the two hundred thousand people using social care services each year in Northern Ireland will benefit from higher standards of care. Service users and their carers can be confident that they can depend on a suitably trained and trusted workforce. “
Amongst those presented with their NISCC Registration certificate was Mr Brian Dornan, SHSSB Director of Social Services. Speaking after the presentation, Mr Dornan said:
“I am proud to be one of the first social workers to register with NISCC. Registration provides public recognition that we are committed to - and will be held to - meeting high standards of practice and training.”
“Social care is undergoing its biggest transformation for 30 years. Registration is a landmark for anyone employed in the sector, whether they’re a qualified social worker, a day care assistant in a home for older people or a care worker helping young children. Social care workers do crucial work such as helping disabled people live independent lives, supporting the needs of individuals and families, and protecting the interests of children and some of the most vulnerable people in society. Registration is a major part of the drive for higher standards of care, and will help to give social care workers the recognition they deserve. “
Ends
Notes to Editors
1. Media contact details:
Ruth Rodgers, Public Relations Officer, SHSSB – Tel: 028 37 414604
André McKeown, Communications Officer, NISCC – Tel: 028 90 417610
2. The Northern Ireland Social Care Council is a non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. It was established under Section 1 of the Health and Personal Social Services Act (NI) 2001 and came into operation on October 1 2001.
3. Similar councils have been established in England, Scotland and Wales.
4. The Council is comprised of 21 members appointed by the Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. Membership includes a range of interests, including one third lay people (users of services, carers and members of the public), one-third registrants and one-third other stakeholders (employers, unions and professional associations). Chair of the Council is Dr. Jeremy Harbison and Chief Executive is Mr Brendan Johnston.
5. Council members who have personal or work-based links with the Armagh/Southern Health and Social Services Board Area include:
Mr Mel Byrne, a senior social worker from Banbridge who works for Craigavon and Banbridge Community Trust.
Mrs Linda Davison, a qualified social worker from Lurgan, who currently works as National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) Co-Coordinator/training consultant with Down Lisburn Health and Social Services Trust.
Mr Brendon Murphy, from Newry who is a lay member of the Council, representing the voice of users of services. Brendon has a strong academic background including an MBA, an MSc and a Master of Research. He recently was awarded the Churchill Fellowship for research. With extensive experience of the services offered by Social Care Workers he has definite ideas on how the profession should evolve.
Mr John Rafferty, a registered mental nurse from Camlough, currently head of a residential home providing health and social care, in Newry and Mourne Health and Social Services Trust, and has been involved in the Southern Health and Social Services Board Day Care Medicine Policy Group.
6. This is the first time that the estimated 30,000 people working in the social care sector across NI have been regulated. An initial four thousand workers will register in Northern Ireland in the first year. The Social Care Register will increase the protection of service users, helping employers to ensure that only suitable people are employed and retained in the social care workforce. Action will be taken against the small minority of the workforce whose behaviour is not up to the standard expected in social care. The register will put social care on a similar footing to other public service professions, such as nursing or teaching.
7. The first NISCC Registrants to receive their certificates today were:
Mr Brian Dornan SHSSB
Ms Ann Godfrey SHSSB
Mr Ian Montgomery SHSSB
Mr Tony Rodgers SHSSB
Mr Louis Boyle Craigavon and Banbridge HSS Trust
Mr Mel Byrne Craigavon and Banbridge HSS Trust
Mr Jim Flynn Newry and Mourne HSS Trust
Ms Christine Compton Positive Futures
Mr Wesley Ramsey Positive Futures
Ms Patricia Higgins NISCC
Mr Brendan Johnston NISCC
Mrs Lorraine Simmons NISCC
Mr Victor McElfatrick DHSSPS (SSI)
Press Release - 11 June 2003 Cathedral City Plays Host to NI Social Care Regulator
Northern Ireland Social Care Council, the new regulatory body for the social care workforce in Northern Ireland, will be visiting Armagh city later this week for its June meeting. The Council was established in October 2001 as part of the Government strategy to raise standards and improve quality of services in health and social care. Members of the Council are people who use social care services, members of the public and people who work in, or are involved in social care. Their role is to work in partnership with those developing and providing social care services to improve and regulate standards across the social care workforce.
Announcing the public meeting in Armagh, Council Chair, Dr Jeremy Harbison said,
“In Northern Ireland, over two hundred thousand people use social care services each year and all of them will benefit from our work to improve standards, as we register and regulate the social care workforce. Our Council members represent a wide range of social care interests throughout Northern Ireland. It is important for Council meetings and events to be held outside Belfast to ensure that people from local communities have the opportunity to get involved in the Council’s work.
“A lot has happened since the Council opened for business in October 2001. Last September we published Codes of Practice for social care workers and their employers, which set standards of training and practice for the workforce, and in April we opened the NISCC Register for Social Care Workers. There are almost 30,000 social care workers in Northern Ireland to be registered. Staff employed in the SHSSB Board and Trusts were the first to receive their NISCC registration application forms. Over the next year we will be registering around 5000 staff across Northern Ireland who are social workers, team leaders, residential childcare staff or heads of homes and day centres. We will then work with employers to register the wider social care workforce over the next few years. “
The public session of the meeting will be held at the Armagh City Hotel from 10.30am – 1.30pm. Anyone wanting to attend should contact Siobhan Bennett at NISCC on 02890 417600 to reserve a place and request copies of the papers for the meeting.
Notes to Editors
1. For further information on this press release, please contact Brendan Johnston, Chief Executive (Tel: 028 9041 7603) or Andre McKeown, Communications Officer (Tel: 028 9041 7610).
2. The Northern Ireland Social Care Council is a non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. It was established under Section 1 of the Health and Personal Social Services Act (NI) 2001 and came into operation on October 1 2001.
3. Similar councils have been established in England, Scotland and Wales.
4. The Council is comprised of 21 members appointed by the Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. Membership includes a range of interests, including one third lay people (users of services, carers and members of the public), one-third registrants and one-third other stakeholders (employers, unions and professional associations). Chair of the Council is Dr. Jeremy Harbison and Chief Executive is Mr Brendan Johnston.
5. Council members who have personal or work-based links with the Armagh/Southern Health and Social Services Board Area include:
Mr Mel Byrne, a senior social worker from Banbridge who works for Craigavon & Banbridge Community Trust.
Mrs Linda Davison, a qualified social worker from Lurgan, who currently works as National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) Co-Coordinator/training consultant with Down Lisburn Health & Social Services Trust.
Mr Brendon Murphy, from Newry who is a lay member of the Council, representing the voice of users of services. Brendon has a strong academic background including an MBA, an MSc and a Master of Research. He recently was awarded the Churchill Fellowship for research. With extensive experience of the services offered by Social Care Workers he has definite ideas on how the profession should evolve.
Mr John Rafferty, a registered mental nurse from Camlough, currently head of a residential home providing health and social care, in Newry and Mourne Health & Social Services Trust, and has been involved in the Southern Health & Social Services Board Day Care Medicine Policy Group.
6. The Council has a duty to promote high standards of conduct and practice among social workers and social care workers and high standards in their training. It will do this by establishing registers of particular groups in the social care workforce, publishing and promulgating codes of practice for all the workforce and complementary codes for employers, regulating the education and training of social workers and undertaking the functions formerly carried by the Training Organisation for Personal Social Services (TOPSS). NISCC has the power to deregister those who do not meet the terms of registration.
7. The Council has already embarked on a significant programme of work, which includes working, in co-operation with the Councils in England, Scotland and Wales to procure a computerised system for registration of the workforce and developing codes of conduct and practice. Council staff are also working closely with DHSSPS officials on developments relating to the reform of social work training. NISCC has also launched an advertising campaign to promote social work as a positive career choice in NI.
8. The Council has been active in placing emphasis on the views of service users and it has established sub-committees of users and carers to guide its considerations on policy issues.
Ends
MINISTER ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO SOCIAL WORK STUDENT SUPPORT
The Minister with responsibility for Health, Social Services and Public Safety, Angela Smith, has today announced wide-ranging changes to the student support available to those who will undertake social work training at under-graduate level from September 2004.
Commenting on the new scheme, the Minister said: “The funding scheme being announced today, for students who will commence study on the new Honours Degree in Social Work in 2004, marks a dramatic milestone in the process of reforming professional social work training.”
Continuing, the Minister said: “It has been identified that the social work workforce requires at least 300 newly qualified social workers annually to meet the needs of Northern Ireland. This scheme is designed to attract a wide spectrum of applicants, by making the social work degree more accessible to all. Thereby we will hope to ensure that the social work workforce reflects the community as a whole.
Concluding, the Minister said: “These are exciting times in social work education. The message to those contemplating a career in this field is there has never been a better time to train for social work and with this new student support package, many more people will be able to do so in future.”
Dr Jeremy Harbison, Chair of the Northern Ireland Social Care Council which regulates standards in social work education, training and practice, commented: “The announcement of this student support scheme is a tremendous boost for the social work profession in Northern Ireland. Social workers fulfil a demanding role, providing essential help and support to some of the most vulnerable people in our society. This scheme will help us to attract the best possible social work students to meet the needs of users of services and their carers”.
NOTES TO EDITORS
Social work training in Northern Ireland is being transformed from September 2004.
The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety has undertaken a major review of student funding arrangements, so that NI students on the new Honours Degree in Social
Work can now expect to have:
- Non-means-tested bursaries of at least £2,500.00 in each year of the course;
- An additional element will be payable for mature students (25 years old and over);
- £500 towards travel expenses incurred during work based learning; and
-Tuition fees paid.
Continued access to normal student support through local education authority funding and student loans.
Also, periodically, employers in the Statutory and Voluntary Sectors may advertise for Trainees, who will have broad previous experience related to social work. Details of this Trainee Scheme will be made available by employers.
Details of the full breadth of the Reforms can be found on the DHSSPS Internet site http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/hss/swtr/index.html. Information about education and training for social work and social care can be obtained from the NISCC website at www.niscc.info
Northern Ireland Social Care Council is a non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. It was established under Section 1 of the Health and Personal Social Services Act (NI) 2001 and came into operation on October 1 2001.
ISSUED ON BEHALF OF THE NSPCC AND THE NORTHERN IRELAND SOCIAL CARE COUNCIL - May 30, 2003
FULL STOP: NSPCC SIGNS UP TO REGULATION PROCESS
THE NSPCC has become the first major charity in Northern Ireland to sign up under the government’s new regulation process for social care workers.
The registration process, operated in Northern Ireland under the auspices of the Northern Ireland Social Care Council, seeks to improve standards of care and provide better protection for the most vulnerable people in society.
Brendan Johnson, Chief executive of the Northern Ireland Social Care council welcomed the NSPCC’s lead in signing its 54 social workers up to the registration process:
“We very much welcome the NSPCC’s commitment to the new registration process and look forward to working with many more employers and thousands of social care workers in Northern Ireland to bring them the recognition they deserve and raise the standards of care for the protection of service users.”
Ian Elliott, Divisional Director of the NSPCC welcomed the opening of the registration process saying he hoped it would protect vulnerable children in the future:
“We are delighted to become the first charity in Northern Ireland to sign up to the registration process. Children, young people and their families should be able to have complete confidence in the staff working with them, no matter what organisation those staff are from. The new Social Care Council register will give a huge boost to that assurance. We are supporting the registration of all NSPCC staff here and in every country we work in.”
More than 30,000 social care workers, across all sectors, will sign up to the process in Northern Ireland over the next four years.
ENDS
FOR FURTHER INORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT NEIL LYNAS OR ANDRE McKEOWN ON 0771 3157902/028 9041 7610
First Ever Regulation of Northern Ireland’s Social Care Workforce Begins
Press Release 24 April 2003
The two hundred thousand people using social care services each year in Northern Ireland will benefit from higher standards of care and better public protection, as a result of the Social Care Registers opening across the UK.
A major part of the drive for higher standards of care, registration will help to give social care workers the recognition they deserve, and will allow service users to be confident that they can depend on a trained and trusted workforce.
This is the first time that the estimated 1.5 million people working in the social care sector across the UK have been regulated. An initial four thousand workers will register in Northern Ireland.
Survey evidence indicates overwhelming public support for regulation of the social care workforce, with over 90 per cent of people questioned in a recent NOP poll confident it will deliver higher standards of care and improved protection.
Those working in social care have long supported registration, to boost public confidence in their work, with 87 per cent support from those questioned in a MORI poll last year.
The Social Care Registers will increase the protection of service users, helping employers to ensure that only suitable people are employed and retained in the social care workforce. Action will be taken against the small minority of the workforce whose behaviour is not up to the standard expected in social care. The register will put social care on a similar footing to other public service professions, such as medicine and teaching.
Each country in the UK has its own regulatory body, they are the Care Council for Wales; the General Social Care Council (for England); the Northern Ireland Social Care Council and the Scottish Social Services Council. The Councils are each responsible for the registration and regulation of social care workers in their country. They work in co-operation and with other regulatory bodies such as the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
Des Browne, Minister with responsibility for Health, Social Services and Public Safety welcomed the beginning of registration for the social care workforce in Northern Ireland. He felt that this recognised the significant contribution made to society by social care and that it will enhance the status of the social care workforce:
“The Northern Ireland Social Care Council will be instrumental in strengthening public confidence in social care workers. The work of the Council is a vital element in the Government agenda for improvement and increased quality through social care.”
Brendan Johnston, Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Social Care Council said:
“Social care is undergoing its biggest transformation for 30 years. Registration is a landmark for anyone employed in the sector, whether they’re a qualified social worker, a day care assistant in a home for older people or a care worker helping young children. Registration provides public recognition that workers are committed to - and will be held to - meeting high standards of practice, something that doctors and nurses have enjoyed for years.
“Registration also represents a milestone in improving the protection of the nearly 2 million people across the UK who depend on the vital social care services every day. Social care workers do crucial work such as helping disabled people live independent lives, supporting the needs of individuals and families, and protecting the interests of children and some of the most vulnerable people in society.”
Registration of the social care workforce in Northern Ireland has been welcomed by many employers and service providers. Ian Elliott from the NSPCC welcomed the opening of the registers saying he hoped it would protect vulnerable children in the future.
“Children, young people and their families should be able to have complete confidence in the staff working with them, no matter what organisation those staff are from. The new social care council registers will give a huge boost to that assurance, once they are up and running. We will be supporting the registration of all NSPCC staff in Northern Ireland and in every country we work in.”
“Working as the NSPCC does with children and young people who have been hurt by those who were supposed to care for them, we are completely committed to doing everything we can to make sure that paid carers are suitable for the jobs they hold. Registration – and the possibility of being de-registered and prevented from working in social care – is a big step forward in safeguarding and we’re right behind it.”
All workers will need to apply to be on the register. Within the next few years, only qualified social workers on the appropriate country’s register will be able to call themselves social workers, and employers will need to check that all their employees and applicants hold up-to-date registration.
In view of the size of the social care workforce in the UK, registration will begin incrementally and will take some years to complete. Those holding a recognised social work qualification will be the first group to be registered. Northern Ireland will also be registering all care staff working in residential child care, and heads of homes and day centres. Registrants will need to satisfy a number of criteria covering qualification and training, adherence to the Code of Practice for social care workers and a declaration of good character. Every application will also need to be independently endorsed and validated by an employer.
Ends
Notes to Editors
1. For further information on this press release, please contact Brendan Johnston, Chief Executive (Tel: 028 9041 7603) or Andre McKeown, Communications Officer (Tel: 028 9041 7610).
2. The Northern Ireland Social Care Council is a non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. It was established under Section 1 of the Health and Personal Social Services Act (NI) 2001 and came into operation on October 1 2001.
3. Similar councils have been established in England, Scotland and Wales. The four Chairs/Convener of the Councils are:
England: Rodney Brooke – Chair
Northern Ireland: Jeremy Harbison – Chair
Scotland: Morag Alexander – Convener
Wales: Mutale Nyoni - Chair
4. Each UK Council has a Registration Committee that will consider any application to the Social Care Register about which there are concerns. A Conduct Committee that will consider allegations of misconduct about a registered worker. These committees are made up of lay people and qualified workers.
5. Research was carried out by NOP on behalf of the General Social Care Council between 27 February-4 March 2003, interviewing 1,018 people of 15+ years. Earlier research into the views of the social care workforce was carried out by MORI on behalf of the GSCC, between 17-20 September 2002, supplemented by qualitative research by Forum Qualitative.
DHSSPS NI announces grant scheme for innovative projects in care
DHSSPS NI – March 2003
The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety Quality & Performance Improvement Unit is inviting staff from across the NI Health and Personal Social Services and in the voluntary sector to enter their ideas for improving care services to their Cash Grant Scheme competition.
Under this scheme, the DHSSPS will award around £40,000 in grants to individuals or groups working in the Health and Personal Social Services, Health and Social Services Councils and voluntary organisations to carry out practical projects which will result in better care. It involves staff submitting innovative ideas for ways of improving services, along with a request for a grant.
Approx. 80 applications are received each year, with ten or so selected for funding. Upon receipt of the funding, the teams develop their projects, and the culmination of process is a presentation day/awards ceremony, usually held in April. A Cash Grant Newsletter is then issued giving details of the projects funded - this is widely distributed throughout the HPSS and Community and Voluntary Sector.
You can order a copy of the application form from the DHSSPS website at www.dhsspsni.gov.uk or contact Suzanne Vance, Quality & Performance Improvement Unit on 90 524998 or 90 520000 or email: suzanne.vance@dhsspsni.gov.uk.
The closing date for receipt of applications is Friday 11 April 2003. Applications received after this date will not be considered. If you want any more information about this competition, or have any queries about completing the application form, please contact Linda Boomer on 90 524245 or 90 520000.
8 January 2003
LAW TO PROMOTE QUALITY IN HEALTH AND PERSONAL SOCIAL SERVICES
Legislation which places quality and safety at the heart of the Health and Personal Social Services, has been laid before the House of Commons.
The legislation, the HPSS (Quality, Improvement and Regulation) (NI) Order 2003, provides for the introduction of a wide range of measures designed to assure the quality and safety of health and social services.
The Order was initially introduced to the Northern Ireland Assembly in September 2002 as the HPSS (Quality, Improvement and Regulation) Bill by the then Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. Full consultation on the policy proposals underpinning this Order took place in Northern Ireland and the draft Order itself was also subject to consultation.
The Order will bring arrangements for NI into line with arrangements already in place in England, Scotland and Wales.
The Order will place the requirement to deliver on the quality of services at the heart of health and social care by imposing a statutory duty of quality on the HPSS.
It will increase protection of service users by extending regulation to cover a wider range of services delivered to children and vulnerable adults by the HPSS and the independent sector, reducing the risk of abuse of or harm to service users and it will promote equality by ensuring that services meet common minimum standards of care.
The Order will provide re-assurance about the quality and safety of services by creating an independent body to regulate services and to inspect and publicly report on the quality of services delivered by both the HPSS and the independent sector.
NOTES TO EDITORS:
In its first Programme for Government, the Executive of the Northern Ireland Assembly made a commitment to put in place a framework to raise the quality of services provided to the community across the Health and Personal Social Services. As a first step, in fulfilling this commitment, proposals were put forward in the "Best Practice – Best Care" consultation document issued in April 2001. The results of that consultation process along with decisions on the way forward were published in June 2002. The proposal for legislation, included within the decisions, had been agreed by the Executive.
The HPSS (Quality, Improvement and Regulation) Bill was introduced in the Assembly on 23rd September 2002. The Second Reading took place on 1st October 2002. The Bill had just entered the Committee stage at the time when the Assembly was suspended.
The draft Order was issued for public consultation between 18th November and 16th December 2002.
Copies of the following documents are available on the DHSSPS website at http:/www.dhsspsni.gov.uk:
1. "Best Practice – Best Care";
2. "Best Practice – Best Care: Summary of responses"; and
3. Consultation on a proposal for an Order in Council: The HPSS (Quality, Improvement and Regulation)(NI) Order 2003.
This legislation is broadly in line with legislation introduced in England and Wales by the Care Standards Act 2000 and the Health Act 1999 (C.8) as amended by the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act (2002) (C17). In Scotland similar legislation is contained in the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001.
28 January 2003
New regulator prepares to examine Laming report
The Northern Ireland Social Care Council, the new social care workforce regulator, will study the findings of the Climbié Inquiry published today (28 January 2003).
NISCC is a non-departmental public body, established by Government raise standards in the social care workforce in Northern Ireland through registration, codes of practice, and regulation of social work training.
NISCC Chief Executive Brendan Johnston said it was important to be aware that the Laming report specifically addresses child protection issues in England. The context for deliver of social care services, including child protection, in Northern Ireland is very different, nevertheless the NISCC would be looking to see what part it could play in improving standards. Mr Johnston said he shared the sadness of colleagues in social care, health and the police at the tragic death of Victoria Climbié.
He welcomed the report by Lord Laming, which received evidence from the NISCC equivalent body in England, the General Social Care Council, amongst its 3,800 submissions.
The Northern Ireland Social Care Council was set up in October 2001 under legislation passed in April 2001 following the 1998 White Paper, Modernising Social Services. Victoria Climbié died in February 2000.
Mr Johnston said: “The death of Victoria Climbié and the circumstances surrounding it are terrible and shocking.
“The social care world is changing fast. Many of those changes were put in train before Victoria’s murder and are still coming on stream – but they are changes which in the next few years will considerably improve public protection and reduce the risk of this happening again. For example, we now have a code of practice for social care workers and employers. Some of the mistakes and problems that happened in this case and others before it are explicitly addressed in those codes of practice. For example, the code requires all social care workers to work in partnership with other agencies, as well as setting out the responsibilities of both workers and employers to ensure the delivery of high quality care.
“In addition, from this Autumn 2004, qualifying training for social workers will be a NISCC-approved degree that will require and deliver training in inter-professional working in a wide range of multi-disciplinary environments. And it will also place a much stronger emphasis on practical, work experience-based training.
“And in the future, we will have a register of social care workers. Workers who breach our code of practice could be removed from the register. In this way, any person found to be unsuitable would be prevented from working in social care.”
Mr Johnston stressed that as long as there are evil or inadequate people in the world, no system could ever totally prevent a tragedy occurring. But he added: “These measures, coupled with the work of other new bodies such as the NI Health and Social Services Regulation and Improvements Authority, which will be established in 2004 to regulate standards for employers of social care workers, and other innovations in the sector, will raise standards and improve protection.”
Mr Johnston said: “Social care is changing, in recognition of the important, life-sustaining work that social care workers do. Over the next few years, the NISCC will make a major contribution to raising standards in the interests of service users and the public. And it is right that we will champion the vital work done by so many committed social care workers. For society relies on skilled, dedicated social care workers. The tragic death of Victoria reveals just how much we rely on workers and managers to do their jobs well in order to save children from abuse and death.”
Ends
Notes to Editors
1. For further information on NISCC, please contact Andre McKeown, NISCC Information Officer (Tel: 028 9041 7610).
2. The Northern Ireland Social Care Council is a non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. It was established under Section 1 of the Health and Personal Social Services Act (NI) 2001 and came into operation on October 1 2001.
3. Similar councils have been established in England, Scotland and Wales.
4. The chairs/convener of the four UK regulatory Councils for the social care workforce are:
Northern Ireland: Jeremy Harbison
Wales: Mutale Nyoni
England: Rodney Brooke
Scotland: Morag Alexander
5. The Northern Ireland Social Care Council is comprised of 23 members appointed by the Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. Membership includes a range of interests, including one third lay people (users of services, carers and members of the public), one-third registrants and one-third other stakeholders (employers, unions and professional associations). Chair of the Council is Dr. Jeremy Harbison and Chief Executive is Mr Brendan Johnston.
6. The Council has a duty to promote high standards of conduct and practice among social workers and social care workers and high standards in their training. It will do this by establishing registers of particular groups in the social care workforce, publishing and promulgating codes of practice for all the workforce and complementary codes for employers, regulating the education and training of social workers and undertaking the functions formerly carried by the Training Organisation for Personal Social Services (TOPSS). NISCC has the power to deregister those who do not meet the terms of registration.
7. The Council has already embarked on a significant programme of work, which includes working, in co-operation with the Councils in England, Scotland and Wales to procure a computerised system for registration of the workforce and developing codes of conduct and practice. Council staff are also working closely with DHSSPS officials on developments relating to the reform of social work training. NISCC has also launched an advertising campaign to promote social work as a positive career choice in NI.
8. The Council has been active in placing emphasis on the views of service users and it has established sub-committees of users and carers to guide its considerations on policy issues.
Northern Ireland Social Care Council
7th Floor, Millennium House
19-25 Great Victoria Street
Belfast BT2 7AQ
Tel: 02890 417600 Fax: 02890 417601
Web: www.niscc.info
Email: info@niscc.n-i.nhs.uk
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