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Scottish social workers are spending so much time on bureaucracy they are struggling to establish effective relationships with clients, according to a report into the future of the profession.

Interim findings from the 21st Century Review of social work in Scotland says that there is an increasing "downward shift" in the time social workers spend on developing therapeutic relationships with service users. The report says time is squeezed by paperwork and heavy caseloads.

There is a growing mismatch between what social workers feel they are trained to do and what they are required to do, while too much emphasis is placed on crisis intervention at the expense of developing preventive services, the report says.

Willy Roe, chair of the review group, said: "We know that social workers are most effective when they are able to build consistent therapeutic relationships with their clients, yet they have little time to do so. We must ask ourselves whether this is practical and offering best value.

"A lot of social work interventions are done in crisis situations after the damage has been done, yet the investment in preventive services is low in comparison. We need to look at what the balance should be in the future," he added.

The report from Edinburgh University, commissioned by the Scottish executive, says a generic social work education programme should be retained, with increased specialisation in its later stages or after qualification. There is also a need for greater continuity of staff and service delivery.

The report adds that there is an "urgent need" to strengthen its professional identity so that it can establish clear roles for individual social workers. It adds that loss of professional identity - with a subsequent impact on recruitment and retention - was more to blame for problems in the service than shortages of staff and resources.

The review is to report findings to the Scottish executive in the autumn.

• From www.21csocialwork.co.uk