Who Wants to be a Social Worker? Using Routine Published Data to Identify Trends in the Numbers of People Applying for and Completing Social Work Programmes in England

Despite widely reported problems with recruitment and retention,there is surprisingly little published research investigatingthe numbers of people wishing to enter social work and theirdemographic characteristics. This article uses routinely collectedpublished higher education data and reports produced by theGeneral Social Care Council (GSCC) and its predecessor the CentralCouncil Education for Education and Training in Social Work(CCETSW) to look at recent trends in the numbers of people wishingto become social workers. It argues that information on theoverall numbers of people applying each year is less helpfulthan understanding more about which groups are under-representedin social work and why. It also draws attention to some positiveindicators, such as the comparative success of social work inattracting groups who may currently be under-represented inhigher education. In addition to suggesting that we need toknow more about the numbers and types of people applying tobe social workers, it concludes that additional work is requiredin establishing employment patterns among the social work workforceas a whole. For example, a high proportion of newly qualifiedsocial workers take up paid employment in social work, but littleis known about what happens to them at later stages of theircareer.