National developments
Find out about about social work education policy and projects being developed.
Graduate Apprenticeship in Social Work
A new pilot Graduate Apprenticeship in Social Work (GA in Social Work) began during academic year 2025 to 2026.
The pilot programme is underway at the University of the West of Scotland. It has 26 apprentices from 5 employers.
Skills Development Scotland developed the graduate apprenticeship with support from the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) and partners across the social work sector.
The national framework and profile
The national framework and occupational profile set out:
- what student social workers must learn
- the skills they should develop
Every learning provider (university) who wants to offer the GA in Social Work must develop their own local programme around the national framework.
The framework and occupational profile provide national consistency. The individual university programme offers local flexibility.
The GA in Social Work will support employers to offer a paid, work-based route to qualify as a social worker. It will create an additional pathway for those who want to enter the social work profession who cannot access traditional routes. It’s also for those in employment but without a first degree.
This offers a development opportunity for employees. It also offers an additional pathway for employers to recruit externally.
Local learning partnerships
Local learning partnerships (LLPs) are a model of formal locally-led collaborations between social work employers and education providers. They’re designed to strengthen and support social work education and ongoing workforce development.
Two information packs are available to help you learn more about LLPs.
General Information pack
This gives an overview of:
- the purpose of LLPs
- their core components
- the development support available
Download the General information pack (PDF)
Exploring readiness pack
This outlines:
- the approach to information sessions
- the mandatory components of LLPs
- guidance on evaluating readiness
- a self-evaluation tool
Download the Exploring Readiness pack (PDF)
The Scottish Government has set out how investment in social work education will support testing of the LLP model.
Developing a national training plan for social workers
From autumn 2026, we’ll ask for your suggestions on learning and skills priorities.
Working with you, we’ll develop a national training plan for all social workers, across every service area.
We'll also work with you, alongside the SSSC and partners, to review existing specialist social work awards.
We want to understand what’s currently available and what future demand looks like.
We want to know whether additional specialist pathways are needed to support you and the people you work with.