Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that social workers receive adequate training to (a) recognise and (b) investigate cases where children may be at risk of harm.

Provision of continuous professional development for employed social workers is a matter for their employer. The regulator for the social work profession, Social Work England, sets the professional standards which all social workers must meet. These include recognising the risk indicators of different forms of abuse and neglect and their impact on people, their families and their support networks. Social workers complete initial education and training courses which are approved by the regulator against the education and training standards. Course providers must update and design their courses as a result of developments in research, legislation, government policy and best practice.