Northumberland struggling to recruit and retain social workers

Northumberland is struggling to hang on to current social workers, and recruit new ones.

Northumberland County Council is struggling to both recruit new and retain existing social workers, councillors have been told.

Members of the council’s family and children’s services overview and scrutiny committee were told that staff are either leaving to do better-paid agency work or quitting the profession entirely.

The problem is said to be nationwide, although Northumberland’s turnover rate of 15.9% is above the national average.

Speaking at Thursday’s meeting of the committee, head of service Mary Connor said: “There’s not a clear reason why staff are leaving. Some are moving to agency roles and others are leaving the sector.

“Recruiting agency staff has also been challenging. The sickness rate has been low but I would say it has been rising since these numbers were published, which reflects the way staff are feeling on the frontline in terms of stress.

“However, all 16 staff recruited in 2021 are still within Northumberland. Despite the challenges, we’re still committed to providing the best service possible to children and families, and we’re still seeing a lot of positive outcomes.”

Coun Suzanne Fairless Aitken said the figures were “frightening” while Coun Richard Dodd said the problem had been around for years. But Coun Anna Watson was full of praise for the work the council’s existing social workers carry out.

She said the work was “highly responsible” and added: “They are really really integral to the safety of our children and also our older people.

“It’s a really good job, working with people, helping them. It’s very challenging but it must be very rewarding as well.”