Parliament has offered numerous opportunities to shine light on the social care sector, something which I’ve welcomed with open arms.
Recently I had the honour of meeting with representatives from the trade union for social workers, along with the Chief Executive of the British Association for Social Work. This was a great chance to share ideas in an informal setting, discussing the major challenges facing social workers today.
I was pleased that the meeting arrived at a mutual consensus on our main priorities ahead of my speech in the Social Care debate on Wednesday. This debate was raised to consider funding in the Social Care sector and whilst I was pleased to participate in it, I felt obliged to speak frankly on the issue. The sector desperately needs to be innovated, and I welcome the opportunity to maintain an open dialogue.
The real highlight of my week was chairing the All Party Parliamentary Group for Social Work’s roundtable event. The discussion was incredibly fruitful, although it was disappointing to hear how undervalued our frontline care workers feel on a daily basis. Mental wellbeing for children is simply non-negotiable and I think we have to do everything in our power to facilitate the difficult job that social workers have.
I hope that by applying continuous pressure on Government to take the matter seriously, we will soon see a dramatic change in the social care sector and I have every intention of carrying this forward.
I am immensely proud of my role in social work and am honoured to be able to represent the voices of those who work tirelessly to help those who can’t help themselves.