Northern Ireland - Professional Standards

In Northern Ireland, social workers are regulated by the Northern Ireland Social Care Council

The Northern Ireland Social Care Council (NISCC) is the regulator for the social work and social care workforce in Northern Ireland. They maintain a register of all social workers and social care workers, ensuring that they are properly qualified and competent to practise.

You can download the latest (revised 2015) NISCC Standards for Conduct and Practice for social workers here.

National Occupational Standards (NOS) describe the competencies required of social workers in whatever setting they may work. National Occupational Standards are valuable tools to be used as benchmarks for qualifications as well as for defining roles at work, staff recruitment, supervision and appraisal.

The National Occupational Standards for Social Work in Northern Ireland, reviewed in 2011, are held by the Northern Ireland Social Care Council and, with other related standards, can be downloaded here.

In Northern Ireland, Newly Qualified Social Workers must complete an Assessed Year in Employment (AYE). Details of the AYE can be found here.

The UK’s social work regulatory bodies all have standards and/ or guidance that inform the process of re-registration for social work practitioners which, in turn, relates to various forms of professional development that continues throughout a social worker’s career.

In Northern Ireland, the NISCC has requirements related to the Code of Practice for re-registration which can be accessed here.

Northern Ireland has a Post Qualifying Framework of standards called Professional in Practice, details of the PiP can be found here.

In Northern Ireland, there are Approved Social Worker (ASW) roles and the NISCC approves courses that qualify people to become ASWs. Further information can be found here.