Demographics and diversity of the social work register
Data as at 31 March 2024
Total number of social workers on the register
As at 31 March 2024 there were 102,861 social workers on our register.
Age and gender of social workers at 31 March 2024
When joining the register or renewing their registration, social workers are asked to provide their age and gender in accordance with our registration rules. As such, we hold data for the age and gender of all social workers on the register.
Number of social workers by age:
As at 31 March 2014:
- aged 24 or under: 2,171
- aged 25 to 29: 8,436
- aged 30 to 34: 11,738
- aged 35 to 39: 14,334
- aged 40 to 44: 14,434
- aged 45 to 49: 12,790
- aged 50 to 54: 13,093
- aged 55 to 59: 12,549
- aged 60 or over: 13,316
Number of social workers by gender
As at 31 March 2024:
- female: 85,787
- male: 16,959
- prefer not to say: 65
- prefer to self describe: 50
Diversity of social workers at 31 March 2024
When joining the register or renewing their registration, social workers are asked to provide their diversity data. We ask for this data as part of meeting the public sector equality duty.
Percentage of social workers who have and have not provided diversity data
At 31 March 2024:
- 94% have given all 5 answers
- 95% have given at least 1 answer
- 5% have given no answers
Number of social workers by disability
As defined under the Equality Act 2010, disability refers to whether a person has a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on their ability to do normal daily activities.
As at 31 March 2024:
- yes: 9,315
- no: 83,535
- prefer not to say: 4,844
- unknown: 5,167
Number of social workers by ethnicity
| Ethnicity grouping | Number of social workers |
|---|---|
| Ethnicity grouping African | Number of social workers 11,623 |
| Ethnicity grouping Any other Asian background | Number of social workers 633 |
| Ethnicity grouping Any other Black/African/Caribbean background | Number of social workers 965 |
| Ethnicity grouping Any other ethnic group | Number of social workers 458 |
| Ethnicity grouping Any other Mixed/Multiple ethnic background | Number of social workers 840 |
| Ethnicity grouping Any other White background | Number of social workers 4,420 |
| Ethnicity grouping Arab | Number of social workers 78 |
| Ethnicity grouping Bangladeshi | Number of social workers 602 |
| Ethnicity grouping Caribbean | Number of social workers 4,206 |
| Ethnicity grouping Chinese | Number of social workers 275 |
| Ethnicity grouping English/Welsh/Scottish/Northern Irish/British | Number of social workers 62,016 |
| Ethnicity grouping Gypsy or Irish Traveller | Number of social workers 65 |
| Ethnicity grouping Indian | Number of social workers 2,935 |
| Ethnicity grouping Irish | Number of social workers 1,330 |
| Ethnicity grouping Pakistani | Number of social workers 1,833 |
| Ethnicity grouping Prefer not to say | Number of social workers 2,157 |
| Ethnicity grouping White and Asian | Number of social workers 660 |
| Ethnicity grouping White and Black African | Number of social workers 705 |
| Ethnicity grouping White and Black Caribbean | Number of social workers 1,420 |
| Ethnicity grouping Unknown | Number of social workers 5,640 |
Number of social workers by religion
As at 31 March 2024:
- Buddhism: 707
- Christianity: 42,336
- Hinduism: 817
- Islam: 3,808
- Judaism: 459
- none: 39,155
- other: 2,001
- prefer not to say: 7,363
- Sikhism: 841
- unknown: 5,374
Number of social workers by sexual orientation
As at 31 March 2024:
- bisexual: 2,397
- gay man: 1,326
- gay woman: 2,015
- heterosexual: 83,230
- prefer to self describe: 558
- prefer not to say: 7,955
- unknown: 5,380
Number of social workers when asked if their sex at birth was the same as their gender
As at 31 March 2024:
- yes: 87,498
- no: 6,447
- prefer not to say: 3,583
- unknown: 5,333
Nationality of social workers at 31 March 2024
When joining the register or renewing their registration, social workers are asked to provide their nationality, region and the sector that they work in.
Top 10 most common nationalities of social workers
Nationality refers to their country of citizenship and should not be confused with national identity, or where they earned their social work qualification.
As at 31 March 2024 there were :
- American: 398
- British: 92,606
- German: 333
- Indian: 653
- Irish: 1,023
- Nigerian: 623
- Polish: 371
- Romanian: 352
- South African: 644
- Zimbabwean: 2,327
Region and sector type of social workers at 31 March 2024
Number of social workers by region
This information has been derived from employer postcodes. Employment information is not a mandatory requirement during registration. As such, we do not have employment information and/or the sector type for all social workers.
As at 31 March 2024:
- Midlands: 16,367
- Eastern: 8,676
- London: 16,521
- North East: 4,963
- North West: 13,854
- South East: 13,182
- South West: 8,370
- Yorkshire and the Humber: 9,857
- rest of UK: 447
- unknown: 10,624
Area of social work practice
Employment information is not a mandatory requirement during registration. As such, we do not have employment information and/or the sector type for all social workers.
| Area of social work practice | Number of social workers |
|---|---|
| Area of social work practice Adult - hospital work | Number of social workers 3,038 |
| Area of social work practice Adult - learning disabilities | Number of social workers 3,602 |
| Area of social work practice Adult - mental health | Number of social workers 9,293 |
| Area of social work practice Adult - older people | Number of social workers 7,342 |
| Area of social work practice Adult - other | Number of social workers 9,402 |
| Area of social work practice Adult - physical disabilities | Number of social workers 884 |
| Area of social work practice Child in need and in protection | Number of social workers 21,531 |
| Area of social work practice Children and families - other | Number of social workers 15,248 |
| Area of social work practice Children with disabilities | Number of social workers 2,658 |
| Area of social work practice Children's hospital social work | Number of social workers 177 |
| Area of social work practice Children's mental health | Number of social workers 2,322 |
| Area of social work practice Court services/CAFCASS | Number of social workers 1,873 |
| Area of social work practice Criminal justice | Number of social workers 270 |
| Area of social work practice Domestic abuse | Number of social workers 196 |
| Area of social work practice Fostering, special guardianship and adoption, residential | Number of social workers 10,740 |
| Area of social work practice Leaving care post 18+ | Number of social workers 712 |
| Area of social work practice Lecturer or other academic | Number of social workers 1,346 |
| Area of social work practice Other specialist services | Number of social workers 4,956 |
| Area of social work practice Substance misuse | Number of social workers 312 |
| Area of social work practice Unaccompanied asylum seekers and refugees | Number of social workers 502 |
| Area of social work practice Youth justice | Number of social workers 689 |
| Area of social work practice Unknown | Number of social workers 5,768 |