Social Work England (SWE) is the specialist regulatory body for social workers. The SWE six ‘Professional Standards’ apply to all social workers. The standards aim to improve public safety and confidence in social work.
Standard four ‘Maintaining my continuing professional development’ contains 8 parts and these detail the requirements which social workers must meet to maintain their registration regardless of their employment status or whether they are currently practising. SWE expect to see how social workers have reflected on their learning and how it has impacted their social work practice.
Continuous Professional Development (CPD) is the reflection and learning activity that social workers undertake throughout their career to maintain and improve their practice. Social workers must complete and record CPD in their SWE online account to remain on the SWE register.
The deadline for the SWE renewal deadline is approaching. Without an active registration and the completion of at least two pieces of continuous professional development (CPD) including at least one piece of CPD with a peer reflection a social worker will be unable to practice under this protected title after 30th November 2023.
SWE Requirements Before 30th Nov 2023
Renewals for Social Work Registration take place annually
In 2023 the renewal period ends on 30th November 2023
As part of the renewal process a minimum of TWO pieces of continuous professional development (CPD) including at least ONE piece of CPD with a peer reflection must be recorded on individual social workers online SWE account
Only CPD completed within the current registration year (1st December 2022- 30th November 23 will be accepted
SWE CPD Expectations
When recording CPD social workers need to reflect on what they have learnt and how this has improved their skills and knowledge
The CPD standards which are met need to be highlighted and should be referred to in the reflection log
CPD should be relevant to a social workers role and focus on the application of their learning in practice
All 8 parts of the CPD standard do not have to be demonstrated in each piece of CPD however, it is good practice to ensure that all of the 8 parts are evidenced during one year
SWE will randomly select 2.5% of social work registrants for CPD validation after 30th November 2023
Recording CPD
All recorded CPD must be anonymised and unidentifiable
All CPD entries must be a true reflection of your own work
The SWE online account system will log you out after 60 minutes and you will lose any unsaved CPD records
It is recommended that you complete a CPD record on one of the form template detailed below, then simply copy and paste each section into the SWE CPD fields. This will avoid you losing any unsaved work.
You do not need to provide evidence of CPD for example by uploading certificates
The ‘submit CPD’ highlighted area must be pressed once the CPD record has been completed to activate submission into the online SWE account
An email should be received from SWE to confirm the recording of a completed, submitted CPD record
Peer Reflection
You must record at least one piece of CPD that you have reflected on with a peer and will have the option to add peer reflection in the CPD form
You do not need to record the name of the person who you have discussed your CPD with
Peer reflections can be formal or informal
Peer reflections can take place as a 1-1 or in a group setting
The role of a peer is to support you to think about how you can improve your practice and share what you have learnt with others
A peer could be:
Social workers registered in with Social Work England, Northern Ireland Social Care Council, Scottish Social Services Council, or Social Care Wales
Your line manager or supervisor
Other professionals who have knowledge of your social work practice for example:
Nurses
Health visitors
Midwives
Doctors
School teachers
Police officers
Probation officers
Mental health workers
Occupational therapists
Psychiatrists
Psychologists
Registered with Social Work England