HC Deb 18 January 1991 vol 183 cc624-5W
Mr. Hinchcliffe

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what action he is taking to ensure that adequate funding is available to social work agencies taking practice students on placement;

(2) what action he is taking to rectify the shortfall in practice placements for social work students;

(3) what action he is taking to ensure that enough qualified social work practice teachers are available by 1995 to meet directives of the Central Council for Education and Training in Social Work.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

Employers in the personal social services are responsible for ensuring that they have adequate numbers of suitably qualified staff. In consequence they have a primary interest in providing high-quality practice experience for social work students. We recognise that it is important to secure this provision and, to this end, we shall shortly be announcing a new initiative aimed at assisting employers to boost the supply of practice teachers and placements as part of a wider training strategy for the personal social services.