The three-year social work degree to be introduced next September should be four years, according to former president of the Association of Directors of Social Services Mike Leadbetter.

Speaking at a recruitment and retention conference in London, Leadbetter said the new three-year degree should be extended to four years so it could be more specialised.

Leadbetter said the three-year degree was welcome but that social workers' training was still lagging far behind that of vets, accountants and lawyers. He also said that in order to retain good staff, it was inevitable that the basic pay for a social worker would have to increase to between £28,000 and £30,000.