Calling all Social Workers

I love social workers--they're so helpful!!

Hello,
I've read the entire thread and still have tons of questions.  I graduated with my master's in social work in May and am currently working in mental health.  I want to spend a couple years in the UK working once I have a year or so experience here.  My many questions:
1. I've read and heard some unpleasant things about sw in the UK, one of them being that coworkers are unsupportive and resent foreigners becasue they make more money than they do.  Is there any truth to that?

2.What kind of supervision would I be getting in the UK?  I've heard that it, as well as other social work standards, is not as thorough or up to par as it is here.

3. How much money does a person actually have after taxes?  Is there enough to travel?  I don't need much, but I would like to travel.

4. How many weeks vacation is typical?

5. Can I be registered concurrently with the Scottish, Welsh and English boards?  I was hoping to do this to widen the job search.  Also, does anyone know if social work varies much from country to country?

6. I'm looking at recruiting agencies at the moment, specifically BBT and TTM.  Any recommendations or warnings would be appreciated.

7. How long are contracts for usually through agencies?  I thought they were mostly for two years but I would prefer one.  Also, if I had to break a contract and go home, what are the consequences?

8. Lastly- Is it worth it to go over?  The work itself sounds even more challenging than it is here and I know I need to be in a place with a supportive supervisor and coworkers this early on in my career since I'm still figuring out what I'm doing.


Any insights would be greatly appreciated, pm me if you aren't comfortable posting publicly.

Thanks,
Tara

Tara,
Returned after eighteen months with Essex County Council.  Although not a SW, commissioner.  What I did notice is:  What looks like good pay, say 25,000 27,000 £ is nothing to live on, especially if you are single.  Any area around or close to London, it's totally out of the question.  Cannot speak to supervision, but with the posts so utterly underpaid, my best guess it, not so good.  But, must remember that where is work, in whatever capacity, there are always spots and supervisors that are good, and some..not so good.  Unions in UK are not a strong as here.
If you want to work, don't use an agency.  They are making money on you.  I did my entire relocation from HSMP permit, to accepting post with Essex on my own. 
If you were to go, just understand how expensive it is there, and plan for it.  US dollar is half of what the pound is, and don't see that changing anytime soon.
Holiday time is generous.
My experience in UK was totally worth every minute, good and the not so good.  If the right post came around, I would go back in a minute.  Miss my friends from there everyday.  My grandparent's save one, were all from UK.
Helen

See, I think how much you make depends entirely on where you are.  I'm in Cardiff and £27K is more than enough to live on here.  The cost of living is so much lower here than in London.  If you were open to sharing a flat with people, your costs would go even further.  I do love the month of paid leave besides the public holidays, and I have recently learned that we usually get two days for bank holidays with the council, not just the one everyone else gets.  I don't entirely understand how that works, but I'm not arguing.

I won't be much help on the other questions as my job is not a traditional social work job in the UK, but I've been happy with the people I've met.  I work with social workers throughout the council and nobody so far has made me feel resented.  Everybody has been quite kind to me. 

I believe you can be registered with the other countries, but I would probably recommend getting your GSCC and then applying for concurrent registration in other countries.  If you know you prefer to go to Wales or Scotland then start in those countries.  It is a bit of a bear getting your first registration done when you qualified in another country (by the way, when they talk about qualifying here, it is referring to your education, not your license--just a thought that helped me in my registration process).  It also costs a lot more from another country, but once you have it, it's much more transferable.  I highly recommend just doing it now since you have to have employers or university dept heads sign forms.  I ended up having to register with a social work recruiter that I didn't intend to work for to get my registration done without sending everything back to Idaho (including my passport that had to be verified by them).

Best of luck!

You are waiting to come to the UK after experience in the US then you could try for the HSMP if you are able to and just come on your own. Then you can either do locum/temporary contract work or go for a permanent position. If you come from the US through a recruiter you are generally looking at permanent work with the benefit being a moving allowance.

1. I've read and heard some unpleasant things about sw in the UK, one of them being that coworkers are unsupportive and resent foreigners becasue they make more money than they do.  Is there any truth to that?

I earn the same as my colleagues. Are you referring to locums who earn hourly wages??  They are on short contracts and have to deal with that aspect of the work. You are expected to be on the ground running and can be asked to leave or quit as you wish. It's a trade off. I like the stability of a permanent position. I've moved up quickly too.

2.What kind of supervision would I be getting in the UK?  I've heard that it, as well as other social work standards, is not as thorough or up to par as it is here.

It depends on your managers. I think my supervision is very good.

3. How much money does a person actually have after taxes?  Is there enough to travel?  I don't need much, but I would like to travel.

I moved here to travel and I seem to have plenty to do that and enjoy London too.

4. How many weeks vacation is typical?

I get 26 days a year.

5. Can I be registered concurrently with the Scottish, Welsh and English boards?  I was hoping to do this to widen the job search.  Also, does anyone know if social work varies much from country to country?

I'd email and find out if they would somehow recognize the others' registration to avold the high costs of registering as an internationally qualified social worker 3 times. Part two is processed by the International Recognition Service operated by the GSCC so I'd like to think there is an easier way to go about this.

Or just settle on one country and go for it. It shouldn't be too hard to find a job unless you are super picky, but as a foreign SW with no UK experience you can't always afford to be so. Sometimes you are at the mercy of recruiters. You can always try to luck at contacting councils directly. Not all are experienced hiring international SW without going to an agency to do the Home Office work though... or get through the interviewing process for that matter!

England and Wales are similar and Scotland is different in how social care/services is structured.

6. I'm looking at recruiting agencies at the moment, specifically BBT and TTM.  Any recommendations or warnings would be appreciated.

I registered with everyone. I was particular about the type of job I wanted to it helped to widen my chances. Be persistent and get EVERYTHING in writing when it comes time to come over.

7. How long are contracts for usually through agencies?  I thought they were mostly for two years but I would prefer one.  Also, if I had to break a contract and go home, what are the consequences?

If you are being recruited for a permanent post it is likely to inccur a high fee for the council so they generally like to have a 2 year contract to protect their investment. If you break the contract, most councils will ask for your relocation fees to be returned.

8. Lastly- Is it worth it to go over?  The work itself sounds even more challenging than it is here and I know I need to be in a place with a supportive supervisor and coworkers this early on in my career since I'm still figuring out what I'm doing.

Um, what do you mean 'even more challenging'? The work is still the work but it is the systems you are operating under and the challenges of being in a foreign country and all the stuff that goes with that that makes everyones' experiences unique.

I say go for it. You never know where it will lead you next.

Hi everyone!

I was hoping to ask you a few questions about being a social worker in England as well. I'm American but have spent most of the past three years in London (two BUNAC visas, tourist visas, etc) and am trying to figure out whether to do a PGCE in English or to do my MSc in Social Work. I think both teaching and social work are careers I would find rewarding and interesting, but there's a massively different cost in pursuing them.

I would need to do 6 months to a year of paid or volunteer work in a social work related capacity to be able to apply for the masters in Social Work. Because I want to do it IN London, it will have to be unpaid.

So, there's the cost of living for a year in London, plus two years of grad school & another two years cost of living expenses to obtain the MSc. (The PGCE is just the one year cost of living + one year tuition, but I don't know how much of a shortage there really is for English teachers...)

Because of the high cost involved, I'm really concerned about just how much of a 'shortage occupation' social work is.

-Three years on from now, how likely is it that there will still be a lack of social workers in England?
 
-Also, could any of you recommend organisations to do volunteer work through, preferably in London? A lot of the places I've looked into don't really seem to need people for very many hours a week...

Thanks!

I think social work has been a shortage occupation for the last decade. Make of that what you will. I agree that outside of London and the southeast, the cost of livng tends to be cheaper, so you may wish to widen your search.

For social work training and registration, I think if you register with one council and then need to transfer, there is a process for that. See

http://www.socialworkandcare.co.uk/socialwork/

and

http://www.gscc.org.uk/Home/

For volunteer opportunities, try here:

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/HomeAndCommunity/Gettinginvolvedinyourcommunity/Volunteering/DG_064405 

Thank you so much for the links! Those are really very helpful.

I've looked into a couple of residential volunteer programs in London--one that works with the homeless in Camden, and another that works with children in Whitechapel--and I'm hoping one of those opportunities will pan out.

 If not, though, I think just because I'm so familiar with the city I'll probably stay in London and just find a roomshare somewhere inexpensive in east London: Clapton, Dalston, etc.

Sorry to bother you all with so many questions, but most of the communities & forums I've found for social workers have been U.S. oriented, so I'm very curious about certain things. When you were applying for positions, did you find that the ranking/reputation of where you'd obtained your MSW or MSc/MA in Social Work from played a significant part in how hireable you were considered?

I did my BSW in Canada and a related MA in Yorkshire (related to my field of social work and the only uni here to do that degree), so I am not sure I can answer your question re: rankings and hire-ability. I think, due to the general shortage, it may not be as relevant.

Regarding rankings, good information can be found here:

http://education.guardian.co.uk/universityguide2008

Also, I think the University of Bradford has a good ranking in the UK and is known to have cheaper international student fees, generally. You'll have to do your homework, obviously! 

See http://www.brad.ac.uk/acad/socsci/course/postgraduate/MASocialWork.php

http://www.brad.ac.uk/external/tuitionfees/health.php

http://www.brad.ac.uk/admin/student-registry/tuitionfees/Tuitionfees200708/Postgraduate_International%202007.html

When you were applying for positions, did you find that the ranking/reputation of where you'd obtained your MSW or MSc/MA in Social Work from played a significant part in how hireable you were considered?

In my experience on hiring panels, a master's is insignificant. Social work experience is most desirable and marketable. I have a MSW and BSW.

Most councils want you up and running.

This posting has been so helpful! I'm a dual citizen, but I've only lived in the States- we plan on moving to England next fall.  I finished my MSW this Spring and have worked in Child Protective services for five years (prior and during school). I did some amazing internships and learned that I really probably want to go into politics and care primarily about health care and equitable access. I am one of those "different" kind of social workers, says my advisor, that would prefer to work out legislation or lobby Congress or attend an interagency meeting to doing direct service- I always feel a little awkward admitting that, it's so un-social workery- but if none of us loved this aspect of the work - the macro/planning work- then there wouldn't be local councils,- no jobs and few services, right?

Oye, so right now I'm trying to get a position as a relief hospital social worker, would love to do that in the UK next year, but I also have great training and knowledge in protective services and know that's a need everywhere. (By the way, someone at the start of this thread was asking why there's such a shortage, I know the answer to this for the UK - did that ever get answered/do people want to know?)

ANYWAY -- to sum up what I have learned from this thread:
You must fill out the GSSC application
   -don't worry you will get it done
   -the application is primarily to show that you have the educational background, so when they ask for licence they mean diploma
   -make sure to have everything verified, check and double check before sending

Register with agencies
  -if you want, they can help the process but vary in helpful advice

Local councils have plenty of opportunities, but most openings are with child and family (read Children's Services) and the pay is comparable in most areas with the States, because cost of living is higher. To get into other fields is a little more rare, but do-able, keep trying.

Is anyone else a dual cit? Did this make anything easier?

when they ask for your qualifications it means your diploma.  I had to send copies of both those and my professional license in for my gscc from another country.

I found I really didn't have a hard time job-wise once I could show experience here in the UK and got the terminology (for instance, if you did clinical in the US, don't call yourself a psychotherapist, that means psychoanalyst here).  I would have found a full-time job easily if I'd wanted to do straight child protection work.  Once my CV worked better in the UK it was easy to find a job, just hard to find the job I wanted since the non-traditional ones don't come around too often.

oh, and yay for the macro social workers!!  I think it's great that you like that.  I enjoy much of it, and my best friend is much more macro, but plans on getting her PhD after she finishes her LCSW.

I am one of those "different" kind of social workers, says my advisor, that would prefer to work out legislation or lobby Congress or attend an interagency meeting to doing direct service- I always feel a little awkward admitting that, it's so un-social workery- but if none of us loved this aspect of the work - the macro/planning work- then there wouldn't be local councils,- no jobs and few services, right?

When I left school I was very macro interested. Then I started travelling the world but when I go back I will gear myself that way again. I don't think there is anything "un-social-workery" about it! 

When I left school I was very macro interested. Then I started travelling the world but when I go back I will gear myself that way again. I don't think there is anything "un-social-workery" about it! 

Agreed! We need people to work at all levels: it's essential! 

Agreed! We need people to work at all levels: it's essential! 

Definitely!  I don't see anything "un-social worky" about your interests!  It may not be what the general public thinks of when they think of social work, but then again, what people think of when they think of social work is a very narrow view! :b


And I just wanted to let you guys know that I arrived here in London on Tuesday, had my first interview yesterday, and was offered the position today!  I was feeling unsure about it but after a call to my family (heh, even though it was 4 am their time) I'm feeling better and accepted.  Most of my fears are just stemming from the fact that it's the unknown, but heck, all of this is the unknown! :b  And it's a locum position, so it's not like I'm in it for life.  So if there is anyone else in Ealing...