Guidance on updating your skills and knowledge

Last updated: 5 November 2025

If you need to update your skills, knowledge and experience, you can use (any of the following):

• supervised practice
• formal study
• private study

It’s your responsibility to make sure what you learn during a period of updating your skills, knowledge and experience is enough to meet our professional standards.

About supervised practice

Supervised practice involves working under the supervision of a registered social worker in a social work-related role. This can be in the UK or another country and you should carry out social work duties.  

We don’t specify the activities that you must do as part of your supervised practise. However, the activities must relate to activities that social workers do in the UK. For example (any of the following):

• undertaking or shadowing assessments
• social work care planning
• applying legislation
• signposting and liaising with other agencies
• attending team and multi-disciplinary meetings
• case recording
• providing information, support and guidance to service users and their families
• shadowing social workers
• any other activities relevant to the social work setting

We don’t expect applicants to carry their own caseload.

Your supervisor

Your supervisor must (meet all of the following criteria):

• be registered with the relevant regulatory body for the duration of your supervised practice
• have been registered as a social worker for at least 3 years continuously and throughout the full period of the supervised practise
• there must be no perceived conflict of interest between you and your supervisor
• not be subject to any fitness to practise sanctions or proceedings

The supervising social worker does not necessarily have to be based where you do your practice. However, you must negotiate with them how they will supervise and assess the work you do.

We also expect that your workplace supervisor or manager is aware that you are working with a social worker to update your skills and knowledge. They should contribute to the process.

Keeping a record of supervised practice

For each period of supervised practice you do during the 12 month period, you’ll need to provide (all of the following):

• the contact details of your supervisor (this must be the same person who is signing off your updating skills and knowledge form)
• name of the regulatory body your supervisor is registered with
• your supervisor's registration number
• details of where you have undertaken your period of supervised practice
• dates and number of hours of supervised practice

We'll contact your supervisor so they can confirm this information.

About private study

Private study is a method of updating your skills and knowledge through self-structured learning.

Types of private study

Some examples of activities that you may include in your period of private study are (any of the following):

• reading journal articles or library books
• reading information on relevant websites
• observing or shadowing a social worker (which is different from supervised practice, as there is no formal supervision arrangement)
• attending training courses
• reflecting on and recording your learning

Limitations on private study

Private study can make up no more than half of the required period. This means that you can do private study for up to (either of the following):

• 30 days (if you are completing a period of 60 days)
• 15 days (if you are completing a period of 30 days)

A day is a minimum of 7 hours. The 30 or 60 days do not need to be continuous. However, you must have completed them 12 months before you submit your application.

Keeping a record of private study

You should keep a personal record of the activities you do throughout any period of private study.

For each day or activity that makes up your private study, it’s important that you keep a record of (all of the following):

• the date
• the number of hours
• what you did
• how this helped you meet our professional standards

You do not need to include the above information in the updating skills and knowledge form however should keep a record to ensure you are accurately logging how much time you are spending on each activity.