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A B S T R AC TChildren's services are currently undergoing their biggest changes in a generation. The government is seeking to create a more coherent, seamless configuration of services, with a view to securing improved outcomes for all children. However, there is a current crisis in the recruitment and retention of a range of child welfare professionals, including children's social workers, which must be addressed in order for this ambitious agenda to be achieved. This paper discusses the findings of a series of focus group discussions with social workers undertaking the London Post Qualifying Child Care Award in response to the Children's Workforce Strategy consultation process. These findings are then analysed within the context of the wider literature on social work practice and workforce development. It is argued that central to the debate on how to sustain a competent and stable social work workforce should be consideration of the consequences of initiatives to audit and assess performance; the promotion of relationship-based social work; and the wider role of social work in preventative and protective services for children.

Social work education In England has undergone major reform in the past five years but social work practice remains under review. Part of the reform has been the extension of the number of days in practice learning for social work students. Traditionally social work students have undertaken the practice element of their training in social work agencies. The expansion of days in placement has been accompanied by a diversification of practice settings. This article presents data from an evaluation of an initiative in London whereby social work students undertook placements in primary and secondary schools. The evaluation was informed by questionnaire surveys of five groups of respondents: students, their on-site and off-site practice supervisors, social work academics and other stakeholders of social work education in the area. Interviews with six participants explored some of the survey findings in greater depth. The evaluation findings draw attention to the need for careful preparation for placements in schools of students and of school based staff in the light of the possible continued demand for such placements.