Wales Online gives an account of conditions in an Intake and Assessment team dealing with child protection in Cardiff.
High caseloads, stress, low morale and unfilled vacancies are mentioned as being important factors. One social worker is said to have a caseload of 49.
I think we need some solid national data on what is happening in child protection teams. We know that since Baby Peter the number of care orders made has increased dramatically, but we don’t have a clear picture of the impact of this on the workforce. Central government could fund a quick independent research study. That would not be expensive and it would be a solid base for a more strategic approach, which at present is sadly lacking.
