The cross-Government action plan is the official response to theprogress report by Lord Laming, which called for the children'ssecretary to 'immediately address the inadequacy of the training andsupply of frontline social workers' (News, 19 March).
Plans include sponsoring 200 university places from September so thatthe highest achieving graduates can sign up to conversion courses tobecome social workers.
A new recruitment advertising campaign also starts this month.
Children's secretary Ed Balls said, 'In his progress report, Lord Lamingfound that we have good foundations in place, but that more needs to bedone.
'This country has one of the best child protection systems in the world.But good practice is not yet standard practice everywhere and we shouldnot rest until it is.'
The Government has also published the first report of the Social WorkTask Force, with advice about the future of the Integrated Children'sSystem, which social workers use for record-keeping.
In a letter to Ed Balls and health secretary Alan Johnson the taskforceadvises that the system should be reformed and that local authoritiesshould be able to choose simpler software systems.
Helga Pile, Unison national officer for social workers, said more neededto be done to cut caseloads and paperwork and tackle threats andassaults on social workers.
She said, 'I am sure social workers everywhere will welcome thecommitment to overhaul the Integrated Children's System, which isuniversally disliked for its sheer complexity and the amount of time ittakes out of a worker's day.'
FURTHER INFORMATION
www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/laming
