That’s according to the latest Social Work and Workforce Health Check, an annual survey which assesses the health and wellbeing of social workers and other frontline practitioners within Children’s Services.
Practitioners say they take pride in their job, while the majority plan to stay with the council in the year ahead and would recommend the council as an employer.
They also feel that the council promotes relationship working and a relationship-based approach, which encourages them to better support children, young people and families in the city.
The survey found that, while some social workers are working over their contracted hours and may experience stress due to work, the majority know where to get help if they are concerned about their wellbeing and feel able to discuss stressful situations or their workload with their manager so they can agree ways forward.
The quality and frequency of supervision has improved this year, thanks to actions taken since the previous survey, with almost all practitioners now saying they are satisfied with the quality of the supervision and support that they receive from their manager.
And significantly more social workers are satisfied with the learning and development opportunities available to them, while the vast majority of staff are happy with communication from senior management.
Councillor Beverley Momenabadi, the council’s Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, said: “Our social workers and frontline practitioners across Children’s Services do an incredible job in often very trying circumstances and, as a council, it is important that we do all we can to support them in their role.
“We already have robust action plans in place and will work tirelessly to further improve the health and wellbeing of our social workers and wider workforce.
“Across the country there continues to be significant challenges for the social work profession, particularly in recruitment and retention, and so we are really pleased with the overall findings of this year’s Health Check, and especially that social workers see their future with us at the council and would recommend Wolverhampton as an employer to their friends.”
The findings of the Social Work and Workforce Health Check will be presented to members of the Strong Families, Children, and Young People Scrutiny Panel on Wednesday (15 March, 2023).
For more information about social work jobs available with the City of Wolverhampton Council, please visit A Career in Social Work.
