We promote education and training

• increasing opportunities to expand skills and productivity of everyone in the sectors workforce
• establishing career pathways
• working with stakeholders to increase the number of underrepresented groups in social work education.

We check the quality of education and training

The SSSC has responsibility for the approval and quality assurance of the:

• Social work degree
• Childhood Practice Award
• Mental Health Officers Award
• Practice Learning Qualifications (Social Services).

We undertake workforce development

Workforce development is about improving standards in social care services and the creation of a better skilled workforce by improving the existing training for social workers and care staff and by predicting skills needed for future service demands.

• identifying the numbers of social workers and social service workers required
• determining the education and training requirements of the workforce
• addressing the challenge of recruitment and retention of social service workers.

Our mission is to improve the confidence of:

• employers in the competence of their workforce
• employees in their own knowledge and skills
• people who use services in the quality of service provided.

We are part of Skills for Care and Development (SfCD)

We work in partnership with employers in Scotland to reduce skills gaps and shortages and help improve skills, standards and services. Our four main goals are:

• to reduce skills gaps and shortages
• improve productivity, business and public service performance
• increase opportunities to expand the skills and productivity of everyone in the sector’s workforce
• improve learning supply including apprenticeships, higher education and National Occupational Standards (NOS).

Visit the Sector Skills Assessment pages to find out more.