Social Work England sees unprecedented demand for contributions to Social Work Week 2024

It was announced today that Social Work England has received over 60 applications to take part in Social Work Week taking place from Monday 18 to Friday 22 March 2024.

This is an additional 30% compared to those interested in delivering a session in 2023.

The 2024 programme boasts one of the strongest line-ups to date. Around 20 sessions will run on Social Work England’s programme and even more events are planned by those who work or have an interest in the sector. All events will be free and available to attend online.

Beverley Tarka, the President of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) has been confirmed as a keynote speaker, with sessions will be hosted by well-known international speakers from across the profession on a wide range of topics and formats with panel discussions, workshops and presentations expected to take place.

This year's event has been built around 3 key themes:

• Learn: sharing the breath of good practice from a diverse sector
• Connect: lived, learning, and professional experiences – creating opportunities for the sector to connect
• Influence: understanding challenges and successes in the sector and exploring innovative solutions

As part of the week, there will be a focus on a “shared future for transformative change” on Tuesday 19 March to coincide with World Social Work Day.

Colum Conway, Chief Executive at Social Work England commented:

“It has been fantastic to see so much interest in Social Work Week 2024. We are keen for this event to be driven by the sector and for lots of different voices to be heard over the week. For us co-production is at the core of everything we do, so this is no different when thinking of Social Work Week.

“We look forward to sharing details of the full programme in the new year, but for now we urge anyone with an interest in social work to save the dates in their diary as the 2024 event is one not to be missed.”

Tickets will be made available to all the sessions that will be free to attend in January. Sessions can be attended by anyone with an interest in social work and not just social workers are encouraged to sign up but also those with lived experience of social work, students, employers and wider organisations to get involved.

Further details of the programme will be released in January, when Social Work England will publish its full programme on the dedicated Social Work Week section of its website. To keep up to date with the latest announcements visit the Social Work Week section of Social Work England’s website.

The sessions taking place will be coproduced with those with lived and learned experience and can be used as part of social workers’ continued professional development which should be recorded by social workers throughout the year.

Further details will also be shared on X (formally Twitter) and LinkedIn and in Social Work Now – Social Work England’s monthly newsletter. If you would like to receive copies of our newsletter you can sign up on our website.