Social worker careers

We are passionate about supporting people to live the lives they want

Social work in Scotland is a diverse and vital profession focused on promoting human rights, equality, and social justice, with various educational pathways and career opportunities available. Social workers make a difference to individuals and families by facilitating peoples' right to self-determination and challenging socio-economic deprivation. Social workers have a duty to respect peoples' rights to make their own choices and informed decisions to achieve outcomes important to them whilst also balancing professional duties to ensure the safety and wellbeing of individuals and families.

To work in any type of care post, you do need to be registered with Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) which is an organisation set up by law to protect the public by registering and regulating social service workers in Scotland. SSSC set national standards of practice that you must follow in your daily work and action can be taken if the standards are not met.

What to expect working as a social worker

As a social worker, you will work with people to find solutions to their problems. This may involve working with individuals, families and other professionals to safeguard them from harm or abuse or supporting people to live more independently.

You will work with individuals, their families and others around them and with different service user groups including:

Adults
Older Adults
Dementia
Transition
Children and families
Physical Disability
Learning Disabilities,
Mental Health
Justice (community and prison based)
Drug and Alcohol
Refugees and asylum seekers
Foster carers, Adoption and Kinship Care
Pre Birth
Unpaid carers

You may specialise in a particular client group. This work can involve:

visiting individuals wherever they are (which could be at home or in, for example, a care home, hospital, homeless centre, or prison)
assessing an individuals' needs
organising and implementing support
multidisciplinary working and making referrals to other services and agencies
keeping detailed records and writing reports
attending meetings

An important part of social work is building professional relationships with the individual and people important to them so that you can work together to make changes.

Must have skills and values

Social workers need to:

Uphold and promote human rights
Be anti-discriminatory and anti oppressive in their approach to practice promoting inclusion
Respect the inherent worth and dignity of all people and their rights, including as defined within the legislation.
Recognise and respect diversity and challenging negative discrimination on the basis of age; gender or sex; gender identity; sexual orientation; religion; spiritual beliefs; culture; ethnicity; socio-economic status; ability; racial or other physical characteristics. This also involves treating an individual as a whole person within family, cultural, community, societal and political contexts.
Promoting the full involvement and participation of people receiving services, as far as they are able, in ways that address what matters to them and enables them to be empowered, unless it compromises the safety and wellbeing of self or others.
Be able to work under pressure and be resilient
Encompass an empathetic and compassionate approach
Be autonomous in organising and plan their own workload
Be understanding and respectful of other people's lifestyles and background showing unconditional positive regard and demonstrating honesty and integrity in their approach.

Job profiles

Scottish Social Services Council - SSSC

The Social Services | Careers in care | SSSC website provides lots of information about:

Role and career stories including videos of two of our employees
Preparing to study social work
Degree routes
Enhancing career pathways for social workers
Careers in care learning resources

SSSC Careers

Neve's story (PDF, 100 KB)

Continuous Professional Learning

Where the role can lead

You could take further qualifications related to social work in, for example, counselling or mediation. Once qualified, many social workers or other posts that require a social work qualification join the British Association of Social Workers (BASW). You have to keep your skills and knowledge up to date with annual CPD (continuing professional development). BASW runs courses, conferences and seminars where you can exchange ideas and update your skills.

Sponsorship programme

Perth and Kinross council has a small sponsorship programme for staff who wish to access social work training while continuing to work. This is an opportunity for the council to 'grow our own' social workers and provide career development and career pathways. The types of people who apply are those in roles such as Outreach Worker, Social Work Assistant, Senior Social Care Officer, Justice Assistant and Community Care Assistant.

PKC sponsor staff on to the Open University (OU):

BA Honours Social work employment route. This route normally takes 3 years to complete although there is some flexibility.
Post-Graduate Diploma (PG Dip) This route is eligible for applicants who already have a degree and is a condensed 18-month employment route.

There can be both funded and self-funded options within the sponsorship programme.

The application process is managed by the HSCP Learning and Development team for all applicants across the Council, with input and support from people with lived experiences Children, Families and Justice Service colleagues.

Application criteria

Qualifications

To apply for the BA Social Work course:Applicants must have at the veryminimum:

120 academic credits or above at SCQF Level 7

This could be HNC or SVQ3 and additional qualifications or assessed modules at SCQF Level 7 or above. SVQ3 alone is not sufficient to access sponsorship.

To apply for the PG Dip: applicants will normally require:

an honours level degree (SCQF Level 10)

Experience

Applicants must have at least two years full time equivalent experience in a role involving direct work with service users (e.g. be currently undertaking assessments and care planning).

Most of our previously sponsored staff have had substantial experience in social care roles such as a Social Work Assistant, Community Care Assistant or Support Worker, and wish to take the next step in their career to become Social Workers.

Study

Applicants must demonstrate their ability to study at the academic level required and their readiness to undertake a demanding programme of study while working.

Team leader support

Applicants can only apply having discussed this learning opportunity and the implications for them and their team and gaining their Team Leader's approval.

Mental health officer programme

The Advanced Social Work Studies (Mental Health Officer Award) PgCert at The University of Edinburgh programme is the postgraduate qualification for qualified social workers wishing to practice as mental health officers (MHOs). It has been designed and delivered in partnership with 13 local authorities in the East of Scotland and the University of Edinburgh.

The programme focuses upon the role of the MHO in relation to relevant Scottish legislation. In addition to the taught elements, students undertake two periods of assessed MHO practice.

Under Section 32(2) of the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003, local authorities have a statutory duty to appoint and provide training for MHOs to undertake mandatory responsibilities, enshrined in legislation, currently:

the 2003 Act
the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000
the Criminal Procedures (Scotland) Act 1995

The programme also prepares MHOs to integrate knowledge of other relevant legislation, including:

the Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007

Its primary aim is to provide the Advanced Social Work Studies (Mental Health Officer Award) in partnership with the East of Scotland MHO Award Partnership.

The application process is managed by the Mental Health Officer Team and the HSCP Learning and Development team for all applicants across the Council, with input and support from East of Scotland MHO Award Partnership.

Study

Applicants must demonstrate their ability to study at the academic level required and their readiness to undertake a demanding programme of study while working.

Team leader support

Applicants can only apply having discussed this learning opportunity and the implications for them and their team and gaining their Team Leader's approval.

MSc/PG DIPLOMA/PG Certificate in applied professional studies (Adult services, Support and protection)

The Postgraduate Certificate Applied Professional Studies (Adult Services, Support and Protection) is appropriate for practitioners and front-line managers working in diverse roles within adult social care. Students on the course may come from a health and social care, social work, occupational therapy or housing background and may be working in statutory services or the voluntary and independent sector. Applicants also have the option to study just one of the two modules. Practitioners and managers are required to deliver support and protection services to a varied population, in imaginative ways and within a challenging wider context. The pace of change in law, policy and service structures adds to this complexity. Our courses offer a valuable space where health and social care practitioners and managers can engage with that complexity; widen their knowledge of relevant theory and contemporary research and share practice experiences with professionals from across Scotland.

The application process is managed by The University of Stirling and the HSCP Learning and Development team for all applicants across the Council.

Study

Applicants must demonstrate their ability to study at the academic level required and their readiness to undertake a demanding programme of study while working.

Team leader support

Applicants can only apply having discussed this learning opportunity and the implications for them and their team and gaining their Team Leader's approval.

Practice learning

A Practice Educator in social work is an experienced, registered social worker who acts as a teacher, mentor, and assessor for social work students during their practical placements. They guide students in applying social work theory to real-world situations, foster their professional skills and values, and ultimately determine their "fitness to practice" upon qualification

The Graduate Certificate in Practice Learning (Social Services) is facilitated through Edinburgh Napier University. The main aim of the programme is to provide an integrated course of knowledge, skills and values to equip you to work effectively as a social work practice educator in social services settings including the achievement of high quality ethical interventions, positive learning outcomes and the development of learning cultures. The programme has been developed in accordance with the Rules and Requirements for Specialist Training for Social Service Workers Scotland (2005) and the Standards for Practice Learning Qualifications at SCQF Level 10. The award of 'Graduate Certificate in Practice Learning (Social Services)' is therefore equivalent to the qualification of 'Practice Learning Qualification (Social Services) Stage 3'. The programme is also cognisant of the SQA Group Award Specification for a Professional Development Award (PDA) in Practice Learning (Social Services) and has been validated by the Scottish Social Services Council. It will enable you to provide formally assessed practice learning opportunities for social work students across the higher education sector and to provide support, feedback and assessment of their learning against the Standards in Social Work Education (SiSWE).

Study

Applicants must demonstrate their ability to study at the academic level required and their readiness to undertake a demanding programme of study while working.

Requirements and commitment to practice learning

Requirements for your notes of interest:

Must be a qualified social worker with at least three years' experience and registered with the SSSC
Must have experience as a link worker and supporting student learning
Must have approval from line manager and agreement from them to attend the University teaching sessions. Please note any study arrangements will have to be negotiated with the team leader directly.
Must have support of your team to facilitate student placements. The placement last for 95 days, over 20 weeks from end of August 2026 - January 2027 or November 2026 to March 2027.
Must attend Perth and Kinross Practice Educator eight weekly forums to keep up to date on Practice Learning, placement planning, national developments and network with other Practice Educators across the council.
Must commit to continuing to support social work student and practitioner learning during your studies and after qualification. This could be through placements, mentoring, academic teaching and or facilitating peer learning sessions
Must be able to attend and actively participate in the professional qualification ensuring you have the time to commit to study and the academic work. Anyone who withdraws from the course will be asked to repay the costs in full of the qualification.

Last modified on 04 November 2025

What to expect working as a social worker