Children matter. Children's social work matters. 

It’s a simple statement, but one that every children’s social worker in Yorkshire and the Humber region wholeheartedly believes. It’s what unites us in children's social work. And it’s why as the UK’s biggest region outside of London, we’ve been working together in a unique way for the past 10 years. 

Under Children's Social Work Matters, all of our 15 local authorities work together as one big children's social work team to address the key challenges facing our profession. By sharing knowledge and experience in this collaborative way we can drive our standards of care higher and ensure children throughout Yorkshire and the Humber feel safe. That's what Children's Social Work Matters is about. 

None of this is possible without the dedication of highly trained children’s social workers. So we’ve made a pledge that when you work in Yorkshire and the Humber, we will work harder to support you with the challenges of your role.  

“Social work professionals are vital to ensuring children and young people across Yorkshire & the Humber are safe and able to fulfil their potential. The CSWM initiative brings the whole region together to support the development of a resilient, well-supported social work workforce which can achieve this.”

Sophie Wales, Service Director, Children’s Services, Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council and lead Assistant Director for CSWM.

Our pledge to social workers 

Children’s social workers build relationships with and give vital support to children and families.  They ensure that vulnerable children are safeguarded from harm. It’s our duty to support our dedicated social workers. 

Our pledge to our social workers is that we will give them: 

• Greater support 

• More time with children 

• Tailored induction process 

• Support + opportunity 

• Better communication 

Greater support 

The wellbeing of our staff is paramount. We’ve invested in leadership and management training so that children’s social workers in our region receive the highest level of support and supervision with clear leadership. Social work will always be challenging and will never be a 9-5 job, but we continue to work hard to ensure caseloads are as manageable as possible. 

More time with children 

We have already made significant improvements to our systems, processes and procedures which have brought about efficiencies and reduced unnecessary paperwork, giving you more time to work with children, use your professional skills and ultimately do more of the job you came in to the social work profession to do. 

Tailored induction process 

As a newly qualified children’s social worker, you’ll have a formal induction and dedicated support throughout your Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE) and this will be tailored to your needs. 

Support + opportunity 

You’ll work as part of a highly committed and passionate team who support one another. You will benefit from shared knowledge and learning across the region and have access to a wider choice of training opportunities to develop your career in the areas in which you’re really passionate about.  

Better communication 

You’ll benefit from effective joined up thinking with local Universities through our Teaching Partnerships, with health professionals, the police, schools and other partner organisations. As a region we’re established at working closely together to learn from one another and adopt best practice, helping us all keep children safer.