To ask the Minister of Health, given that the Northern Ireland Association of Social Workers has reported that 88 per cent of social workers regularly work unpaid hours and that 50 per cent of social workers report staff vacancies in their team, how she plans to address this issue.

I am aware of the Workload Survey report provided by the Northern Ireland Association of Social Workers (NIASW) in September.

Social work, like many other services in the HSC, has seen an increase in demand over the past number of years. More people are seeking social work help than ever before and social workers are responding positively to those people in need of support or protection.

In recognition of the growing demand over the past number of years, Trusts have employed 375 more social workers (an 11% increase) between 2011 and 2016. We know that there isn’t a shortage in the supply of social workers to fill vacant posts. We also know that, while some areas have a higher turnover of staff than others, generally, the social work workforce is relatively stable. Recent reports to the Department provide evidence that Trusts are discharging their statutory functions in line with requirements.

The NIASW report highlights a number of issues regarding delays in recruitment to vacant posts and I would agree with the recommendation that employers should be seeking to fill vacancies in a timely way. The HSCB has been working with the Trusts and Business Services Organisation (BSO) in an effort to speed-up the process of recruitment to vacant posts, which has had some success. This should alleviate some of the pressures on social work teams.

I also agree with the report’s recommendation for employers to undertake an audit to establish the number of unpaid hours worked by social work staff and the number of vacancies in social work teams in HSC. This will establish an accurate assessment of the scale of the problem and ensure employers comply with Human Resource policies in regard to staff working additional hours and vacancy management.

Many professionals in HSC often go above and beyond their duty; however it is unacceptable if staff are routinely working excessive hours. All social workers have a responsibility to ensure they practice safely and it is important that employers exercise a duty of care to their staff