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Core Competence Standards Break-down

In November we wrote about the amendments to the Social Workers Registration Act, which require all Social Workers to be registered from 27 February this year.  This will give everyone greater assurance of Social Workers’ qualifications, skills, and accountability of the standard of work that caregivers will receive. (read article)

The Social Worker Registration Board (SWRB) has set out ten Core Competence Standards that identify the minimum standards of practice Social Workers must demonstrate in all practice contexts.

We will be breaking down some of these Core Competence Standards to explain how your Social Worker should be interacting with you as a caregiver and with your whānau.

For the first of our Core Competence Standard break-downs we will be focusing on ‘Competence to promote empowerment of people and communities to enable positive change’.

This is in fact competence number eight, but we are starting with this one because it has a clear and important link to caregivers.

This standard sets out the expectation that the social worker should act in a compassionate, empathetic and respectful way in all their interactions with you and the tamariki in your care.

When making decisions for you and your whānau they should always seek to understand others to better assess their needs. Social workers should encourage and enable you to participate actively in decision making. 

They should also make you aware of resources that you could take advantage of, and assist you in accessing those resources.

These standards are what caregivers and tamariki / rangatahi (children / young people) should expect from Social Workers.

Ten core competence standards for social workers

If you have a concern or complaint about the standard of social work service you have received, please visit this page on the SWRB website: https://swrb.govt.nz/public-and-employers/. This page has a link to the Social Workers Code of Conduct, some suggestions for resolving the issue, and a form to complete. If you need help and support please call your Regional Coordinator or National Office – 0800 693 323.