More women in senior children's social work roles
By Gemma Raw
Research by the Association of Directors of Children's Services (ADCS) has found that 64% of upper tier local authorities in England had female directors as of March 2022.
This is the highest percentage of female senior social workers in children's services since ADCS began reporting the figures in 2008. In 2018 there was a 50/50 split between male and female directors of children's services.
However, the current 64% figure remains significantly less than the proportion of women working in all social work jobs. According to official government children and families social care workforce statistics from 2021, 87% of the 32,502 social workers in England were female. This compares with 75% in the teaching profession and 45% in other professional occupations.
Comparison with business
The percentage of women in senior children's social work jobs compares favourably with the business community. Although the percentage of women in senior management positions in UK mid-size businesses has been growing steadily and is higher than the global average, it's still relatively low in relation to the gender split in the UK population generally. According to Grant Thornton's 2022 Women in Business survey, the figure currently stands at 32% (a 5% increase over 2021). The overall UK population is around 51% female and 40% male.
Lack of ethnic diversity
The ADCS report also highlighted the continuing lack of ethnic diversity in senior children's social work jobs. Only 5% of directors of children's services were from black and other ethnic minority backgrounds. Government statistics show that, in the wider children's social care workforce, the figure is 23%. Again, this is higher than in the teaching profession (9%) and in other professional occupations (15%).
"There remains not enough directors from black and other ethnic backgrounds across the country," said ADCS President Steve Crocker. "However, we know that leadership programmes within the sector are directly addressing this issue."
Developing tomorrow's leaders
In 2020 a new programme was launched to grow the UK's talent pool of future directors of children's services. Called 'upon', it's supported by the Department for Education (DfE) and delivered by The Staff College, Institute of Public Care, Skills for Care and GatenbySanderson.
“The role of a DCS is probably one of the most challenging and rewarding roles anyone could undertake," commented Jane Parfrement, Director of upon and Chief Executive of The Staff College. "We want participants to bring an open mind and enthusiasm and leave with a passion to be the leaders who will make a positive change to children’s lives.”
