Fast-track programme offers graduates rewarding careers in child and family social work

Graduates and career changers will be given hands-on training in an extension of a fast-track programme to train the next generation of social workers.

Blackburn with Darwen Council is opening the recruitment round for two aspiring social workers to join the 14-month ‘Step Up to Social Work’ programme, helping to train hundreds more children and family social workers who support children and families most in need.  This will be the sixth cohort of child and family social workers to train through Step Up.  Several social workers at Blackburn with Darwen Council have already qualified through the scheme.

The extension of the Step Up programme is backed by £25million from the Government to fund an additional 700 places across the country, with students receiving a bursary of £19,833 to support them whilst in training.

Trainees can expect to learn through a combination of in-work and university experiences and upon completion, the diploma will allow graduates to register and practice as a social worker.

The Step Up programme runs every two years. Applications will open from February to March, followed by regional assessment centres for candidates successful at the initial application stage. Students will start on the programme in January 2020, completing their training in March 2021.

Candidates are eligible to apply if they have a 2:1 degree (for example, with honours), or a 2:2 plus a higher degree, which can include a master’s degree or a Postgraduate Certificate in Education, in a discipline other than social work. They should also have the equivalent of a GCSE grade C in maths and English, and experience of working with children, young people or families.

Find out more about applying for Step Up to Social Work.