Evidence gathering

Consultations with the social work sector, including front-line social workers about a national social work agency as part of a planned National Care Service, were held in 2021.

The consultation asked about social work leadership, improvements to social work education, workforce planning and a national pay scale for social workers. Responses indicated strong support for a national social work agency. 

Engagement relating to the development of options for the NSWA has taken place over time through a range of existing policy, professional and partnership forums. This has included input from stakeholders across national and local government, the third and independent sectors, public bodies, businesses and higher education, and has informed the development of the proposal alongside wider policy and impact assessment work.

The evidence gathered through consultation and engagement demonstrates that the proposal aims to improve the quality, consistency and sustainability of social work and social work services across Scotland. This includes strengthening national workforce planning, improving social work education, enhancing professional learning, introducing national standards and supporting trauma informed practice. These aims address long established system pressures such as workforce shortages, inconsistent practice, and variable service experiences for consumers.

Below is a list of those engaged: 

Local authorities

As primary employers of social workers, responsible for service delivery across Scotland’s regions, as well as the NHS (where they employ social workers).

Third and independent sector advisers

Organisations, including charities, social enterprises or private businesses, delivering social work and related services under contract with local authorities, including fostering, adoption, secure care, and advocacy services.

Scottish Government and public bodies

Internal Scottish Government teams and agencies such as the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC), Care Inspectorate.

Social work sector membership bodies

Organisations, including the Scottish Association of Social Work, Social Work Scotland and Unison.

As part of formulating the business case and conducting associated impact assessments (Consumer Duty and BRIA), feedback was gathered from the extensive list of stakeholders in the table above. These discussions highlighted gaps in the current approach to developing this policy, including the need for clear communication, proportionate expectations and targeted support. 

Evidence gathered to date indicates that the proposal is unlikely to create direct harm for consumers. The main risks identified relate to transitional complexity, potential burden on small and micro‑providers adapting to national standards, and uncertainty during early implementation. These risks were raised in engagement sessions and reflected in the BRIA. No alternative delivery model examined during policy development was considered better placed to reduce these risks, as options such as a non-departmental public body (NDPB) or partnership‑only model lacked deliverability, authority or shared accountability. The executive agency model remains the option with the strongest capacity to improve outcomes and mitigate potential harms

Future engagement with a wider range of business stakeholders, trade unions and other representatives will also inform the development of strategic planning for the NSWA, including its one-year interim corporate plan. The process of capturing feedback will be iterative in nature, ensuring future revisions of this impact assessment reflects the most current needs and expectations. 

A multi-stakeholder work plan has been developed for the delivery of the Trauma Responsive Social Work Services Programme. A Partnership Delivery Group includes third sector, public sector, educational partners, and other representative groups, including: Care Inspectorate, Community Justice Scotland and NHS Education for Scotland (NES). 

Since its inception in 2023, this programme has piloted sites to deliver training and implementation support and the list of sites continues to expand. The NSWA will build upon existing work to deliver this programme, offering a service to recipients of training. Evaluations have been carried out of training delivered so far to consider the process and impact of the Trauma Responsive Social Work Services Programme. 

Data has also been considered to examine the scope and breakdown of the social work profession. As of 05 January 2026, there was a total of 10,778 social workers registered with the Scottish Social Services Council, including retired social workers and those not working in a frontline role.  Of those registered, there are 6,748 frontline social workers employed by local authorities.  The remainder of social workers work across a variety of organisations, including private and voluntary services: government, higher education and further education institutions, the Care Inspectorate and the SSSC. Their work is supported by social work assistants. Recent estimates list 1,099 social work assistants  employed in Scotland. At present, there are 1,893 social work students on the SSSC register.  The associated Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) and Fairer Scotland Duty Assessment (FSDA) for this policy break down the profession by protected characteristics and look at the socio-economic circumstances, where available. This is useful for understanding how our approach to the NSWA may need to be tailored to ensure all are able to access the services of the NSWA. 

Although substantial evidence has been gathered, several gaps remain. These include:

• a lack of national baseline data on consumer confidence in social work
• limited evidence from people with lived experience of accessing social work services across adult, children’s, justice and mental health services
• gaps in understanding the impact of national standards on small rural and island providers
• incomplete national data linking student placements to workforce supply

To address these gaps, officials will undertake targeted engagement with lived‑experience groups, students and small providers; undertake consumer perception work to establish a baseline; and develop data‑sharing arrangements with SSSC, HEIs and local authorities to consolidate workforce and placement intelligence. These actions ensure this CDIA can be strengthened iteratively as the policy progresses.