The inquiry is part of a wider review of the current operation of the legislation.

The Minister for Social Development, Anne Tolley, has presented the Social Services Committee with an issues paper, which identifies and discusses key issues with the current operation of the Act, including its relationship with other legislation ie the Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

The Select Committee has been asked to consider these issues, and the options to address them, with a view to making recommendations to Government for legislative reform.

In this context, the terms of reference for the inquiry are to consider:

1. whether registration of social workers should be mandatory and the potential challenges to registration at present
2. the adequacy of current competence assessments and other pre-requisites for registration
3. how fitness to practise social work is assessed by the Board
4. the level of oversight of social workers by the Social Workers Registration Board
5. the process and powers of the Complaints Assessment Committee
6. the adequacy of grounds of discipline and sanctions available to the Social Workers Complaints and Disciplinary Tribunal
7. the appropriateness of suspension and cancellation of registration and practising certificates as sanctions for non-compliance.

Note that the Committee’s inquiry only covers the points included in the terms of reference (anything outside of these points would be considered out of scope).

The closing date for submissions is Wednesday, 13 July 2016