In the immortal words of John Lennon “you said you want a revolution.. well you know, we all want to change the world..”

Well in social work it is happening. It seems that a mini-revolution is occurring in the world of social work and social care. Factors leading to this are probably the general reaction to the various inquiries that occurred in recent years, the consequent and apparent reduction in interest in Children and Families work, an increasingly ageing population and a general climate change around social care. Quite simply there is a lack of social work and social care professionals - and those who are qualified own the market.

In November the GSCC launched the “Grow Your Own Social Worker” toolkit (see www.gscc.org.uk) to guide those interested through the myriad of career routes into the profession. Currently, in order to rejuvenate the profession it seems, the British Association of Social Workers (BASW) are developing a manifesto for social work - go to their website to add your contribution (www.basw.co.uk). This aims to “drive social work forward into the coming decade” by providing tools to lobby support for the profession.

In January, the Government announced that it will give £1000 to social care employers who take on a young, jobless person, either for experience, training or a job, as part of its preparations to launch a “National Care Service”. The new initiative is called “Care First Careers” and a series of regional launch events are taking place this month. More information is on the Job centre Plus website at www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk/JCP/Employers/carefirst/

It seems like social care is the career of the future, but with fewer people under 18 than over 65, will there ever be sufficient employees in this area? Many young people are drawn by the glamour of the “X Factor” fame or a job that will earn them money rather than the rewards of caring for another. Nevertheless, with the current employment market as it is, it seems like we are on the brink of a reborn, new generation of carers and the rebirth of social work as a core profession in the UK.