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Tomorrow's social workers in the UK

This article explores the revolution which has taken place in social work education in the UK. There is a new Degree in Social Work structured around a core compulsory curriculum; a set of National Occupational Standards which constitutes the first official job description for social workers as well as the standards against which students will be assessed; and a new Code of Practice which heralds the first official ethical code for our profession. All this has taken place within an overarching framework of state regulation: new regulatory councils have been established in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to oversee these new developments. My main argument is that there is a tension between the minimalist approach to the entry criteria and ethical codes for our profession, and the ever-expanding official curriculum and job description. This tension is particularly acute in England so that the welfare of tomorrow's social workers and service users could be in jeopardy.