Inquiry into Social Workers Registration Act 2003

June 03, 2016 at 10:09 AM

Inquiry into the operation of the Social Workers Registration Act 2003

The closing date for submissions is Wednesday, 13 July 2016

As part of a wider review of the current operation of the Social Workers Registration Act 2003 the Minister for Social Development has presented an issues paper to us. This paper identifies and discusses key issues with the current operation of the Act, including its relationship with other legislation such as the Vulnerable Children Act 2014. The Minister has asked us to consider these issues and the options to address them, with a view to making recommendations to Government for legislative reform. In this context, the terms of reference for our inquiry are to consider:

  • whether registration of social workers should be mandatory and the potential challenges to registration at present
  • the adequacy of current competence assessments and other pre-requisites for registration
  • how fitness to practise social work is assessed by the Board
  • the level of oversight of social workers by the Social Workers Registration Board
  • the process and powers of the Complaints Assessment Committee
  • the adequacy of grounds of discipline and sanctions available to the Social Workers Complaints and Disciplinary Tribunal
  • the appropriateness of suspension and cancellation of registration and practising certificates as sanctions for non-compliance.

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