Concerns about the large number of new and inexperienced staff within its front line children’s services social work teams have been raised by Birmingham city council.
The council’s vulnerable children overview and scrutiny committee suggested there could be potential difficulties with inexperienced workers “being exposed too early on in their career to extremely complex and demanding casework which is beyond their skills and abilities.”
A report by the committee on recruitment and retention adds: “This is risky for the children and young people we work with and can also cause burnout or a desire to change career for the worker.”
The council has begun recruiting social workers from the US to tackle the shortage of experienced homegrown staff.
Have you or your colleagues experienced burnout at work? Is too much expected of inexperienced social workers in your department? We want to hear your experiences. Contact us in confidence by emailing simeon.brody@rbi.co.uk
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