Join the National Advisory Forum

Help us shape social work regulation

Are you a social work student, or a social worker working within the private, voluntary or independent sector? You can use your voice to contribute to our work.

We are now welcoming applications for our National Advisory Forum.

This is a unique opportunity to get involved in social work regulation as we move into our second 3 year strategy.

How to apply

To apply, please complete an expression of interest form.

Email the completed form to [email protected]. You must do this by midday on Thursday 2 November 2023. We won’t consider applications we receive after this deadline.

We accept and welcome video applications. We’ll consider these equally alongside written applications.

Unfortunately, we won’t be able to give feedback at the application stage.

If you want to speak to us about the role or need help with your application, contact [email protected].

What is the role of the National Advisory Forum?

The role of the forum is to act as a critical friend to Social Work England. Members bring a wealth of lived and learned experience to regulation. They also drive co-production across the organisation, embedding it in our ways of working.

For more information about the National Advisory Forum, you can:

• read about the role of the National Advisory Forum
• read the terms of reference
• read the Co-production – reimbursing expenses and involvement payments policy
• watch this interview with members of the forum

Who can apply?

We welcome applications from (both of the following):

• registered social workers working in the private, voluntary or independent sectors (e.g. independent fostering agency, charity, independent social work).
• Social work students

This is because we have lower representation in the forum from these groups.

There are some criteria you need to meet. For us to consider you, you must be (all of the following):

• knowledgeable and have lived and/or learned experience of social work
• able to attend meetings 6 times a year and (where relevant), have an agreement with your employer to attend meetings and undertake work as required
• passionate about improving the social work profession
• willing to challenge and offer constructive criticism
• organised and able to work to agreed timescales
• respectful of others
• able to communicate with a diverse range of people
• able to understand the role of regulation
• supportive of our aims and embody our values

Drop-in sessions

We’re running 2 informal online drop-in sessions for people who are interested in submitting an application.

These will take place on:

• Tuesday 17 October 12 to 1pm   

• Wednesday 25 October 5:30 to 6:30pm   

These sessions will give you a chance to speak with current members of the National Advisory Forum and members of our engagement team.

Book your place via Eventbrite.

If your application is successful

If your application is successful, we will invite you to a recruitment session and a short informal interview. This will be on Wednesday 6 December.

Both the recruitment session and interview will be done virtually. We use Microsoft Teams.

Please contact [email protected] if you need support to attend a recruitment session or interview.