Over 6,000 people have signed Community Care's e-petition on the Downing Street website calling on the prime minister to urge The Sun newspaper to back the social work profession rather than constantly undermine it.
The deadline for signatures passed yesterday, with the total on 6,008.
Everyone who has signed the petition should receive a response from the prime minister, one of his officials or a minister, addressing the issues it raises.
The petition forms part of Community Care's Stand Up Now for Social Work campaign to improve the representation of the profession in the media.
It follows a letter sent by Community Care to Sun editor Rebekah Wade calling on her to rethink the newspaper's negative attitude to social workers.
The petition begins: "We the undersigned petition the prime minister to call on The Sun newspaper to back the social work profession." It points out that The Sun decided to place all blame in relation to the Baby P case on the heads of social workers and calls on the paper to highlight the positive work social workers do.
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