Drink and drug driving policy

• About this policy
• Considering impairment
• Drink and drug driving related offences
• Factors to be considered when assessing seriousness
• Health concerns 

About this policy

We investigate fitness to practise concerns about social workers, which can include convictions for drink and drug driving offences. As these are criminal convictions, they will usually result in a fitness to practise investigation by reason of the conviction.

This policy sets out the factors our decision makers (adjudicators and case examiners) should take into account when considering (both of the following):

• the seriousness of the offending
• the question of whether a social worker’s fitness to practise can or should be found impaired when convicted of such an offence

Considering impairment and sanction

The test applied by decision makers when considering impairment is whether (either of the following apply):

• there is a realistic prospect of the social worker’s fitness to practise being found impaired (by case examiners)
• a social worker’s fitness to practise is impaired (by adjudicators)

A social worker is fit to practise when they have the skills, knowledge, character and health to practise their profession safely and effectively without restriction. If a decision maker decides a social worker’s fitness to practise is impaired, this means they have serious concerns about the social worker’s ability to practise safely, effectively, or professionally.

More information about fitness to practise impairment can be found in our case examiner guidance and sanctions guidance.

Some concerns are so serious that if proven, a finding of impairment is likely (even if the social worker is not found to represent a risk to the public). This is because a failure to make a finding of impairment may undermine public confidence in the profession or may fail to maintain the professional standards expected of social workers.

In the absence of any aggravating factors, a drink or drug driving conviction is unlikely to require a finding of impairment or a sanction to be imposed.

If decision makers decide that a finding of impairment is required then they should use the sanctions guidance to determine a proportionate sanction.

In determining a sanction, the decision makers should also take into account the relevant aggravating or mitigating factors.

Drink and drug driving related offences

When we refer to drink and drug driving related offences, we generally mean (any of the following):

• driving or being in charge of a motor vehicle with alcohol concentration above the prescribed limit
• driving or being in charge of a motor vehicle with concentration of specified controlled drugs above the specified limit [1]
• driving or attempting to drive or being in charge of a motor vehicle when under the influence of drink or drugs
• driving or attempting to drive or being in charge of a motor vehicle whilst unfit through drink or drugs
• driving or being in charge of a vehicle under the influence of prescribed drugs if you are medically unfit to do so
• driving under the influence of legal drugs over the specified limits if you have not been prescribed them
• failure to provide a specimen without a reasonable excuse

[note 1] Drug Driving (Specified Limits)(England and Wales) Regulations 2014 set out the specified con-trolled drugs and the limits that apply. They include drugs that have widespread medicinal uses and those that do not.

Factors to be considered when assessing seriousness

While any sentence imposed by a court in relation to these offences may be relevant, there are other factors that may aggravate or mitigate the seriousness of the offending.

Decision makers should consider whether there are any aggravating or mitigating factors relevant to the offending.

Aggravating factors

Potential aggravating factors to be considered include, but are not limited to (any of the following):

• the sentence imposed includes a period of disqualification from driving of over 12 months
• there is evidence of an unacceptable standard of driving by the social worker, and particularly serious would be involvement in a road traffic collision
• causing injury to another person
• the social worker failing to report the criminal proceedings to the regulator
• the criminal conviction relating to more than one driving offence (for example there is an additional offence of driving while disqualified)
• the offence relating to the use of drugs for non-medicinal purposes, including legal and illegal substances
• the extent to which the social worker’s level of alcohol or drug impairment was over the legally specified limit (if appliable). The higher the level of alcohol or drug concentration the more serious the offending would be considered.
• the offence taking place during the social worker’s commute to or from work
• the offence taking place while the social worker was undertaking work duties including being on-call/standby
• the social worker carrying passengers related to their professional role in their vehicle at the time of the offence
• the circumstances of the offence suggesting the social worker being unreasonably uncooperative with police or other authorities

Mitigating factors

There are several mitigating factors that can be taken account when making a decision. Some of these are set out in more detail in the case examiner and sanctions guidance.

Potential mitigating factors, in the circumstances of these types of convictions, include but are not limited to (any of the following):

• the offence in question not being a repeat offence
• the social worker demonstrating remorse and insight in relation to the offending behaviour
• the social worker is otherwise of good character
• the social worker undertaking voluntary relevant remediation including (but not limited to) completing relevant driving courses (for example a drink-drive rehabilitation course).
• if there is evidence to suggest the social worker ingested the alcohol or drugs unintentionally (for example, having a drink spiked)
• social worker's health (please see the 'health concerns' section below for further detail)

Health concerns

Decision makers should refer to our guidance on health concerns if they think that health concerns may be underpinning an offence of drink or drug driving.

Decision makers may need to consider whether a statutory ground in relation to the social worker’s fitness to practise being impaired by reason of adverse physical or mental health may need to be explored.

Health concerns and drink or drug driving offences

In cases where a social worker is convicted of a drink or drug driving offence, the decision makers cannot assume that the social worker has an unmanaged health condition that requires further exploration.

The circumstances in which decision makers should consider further exploration of health as a statutory ground may be if they identify (one or more of the following factors):

1. Is there evidence of an underlying health condition (including stress and anxiety) linked to the social worker’s use of alcohol and/or drugs identified in the submissions of the social worker or evidence of other parties?
2. If so, is there an absence of evidence as to how any underlying conditions are being managed?
3. Does the social worker have a history of similar offending? (For example, more than one drink or drug driving offence.)
4. Was the social worker significantly over the limit?

If decision makers identify one or more of these factors, they may consider requesting information relating to the health of the social worker. They may also add adverse physical or mental health as a statutory ground.

If health is not the underlying basis of fitness to practise impairment

If decision makers instead decide that a social worker’s health was a factor in the offending, but perhaps not the underlying basis of their impairment, then decision makers can still consider their health as a possible mitigating factor when considering the question of impairment.