Joe Hanley

A reminder that the consultation for the Government Review of @socialworkengland.bsky.social finishes on 26th November www.gov.uk/government/g...

bsky.app/profile/joeh...

I still think it’s worth completing, but it’s a classic case of shaping a consultation by controlling the inputs (and presumably outputs). I suggest registered social work academics should choose “practising social worker” and list their area “education.” END
consult.education.gov.uk/independent-...

This is further complicated by a range of questions shortly after asking about the “core objectives” of Social Work England. 4/5.

Yet another question academics will not be asked is the following. Which seems an impossible question to answer anyway, being that it is unclear if they are asking what responsibilities Social Work England legally have, act like they have, or should have. 3/5.

One question that academics are not asked is the following, which seems an odd inclusion anyway, and likely one that will be used with a view towards imposing planned reforms to social work education in the near future, disenfranchising key voices of educators in the process. 2/5

DID YOU KNOW? Social work academics get different questions to 'practising social workers' in the Social Work England review consultation! You’re forced to pick one role, even though many overlap, and choosing “academic” skips major sections, including everything on registration. A🧵1/5.

Social Work England to miss fitness to practise targets - Community Care Regulator has received 29% more concerns about social workers this year than last, undermining drive to tackle fitness to practise delays

Social Work England’s fitness-to-practise failures keep piling up, with social workers paying the price. Now its 9 months just to go through triage stage, despite 85% leading to no further action, and 4.3 years(!) to get an outcome from hearing stage.
www.communitycare.co.uk/2025/11/19/s...

Foster Care Uncovered Podcast Episode · Foster Care Uncovered · 17/11/2025 · 46m

Check out the first episode of Foster Care Uncovered, the new podcast from @sarahatfosterwiki.bsky.social and Louise Allen - "The stories behind the headlines, the truths behind the system - exposing, confronting, and moving foster care forward." 👏 👍
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/f...

When it comes to supporting apprentices, talk is cheap If Gillian Keegan wants to prioritise apprenticeships, then she needs to start by prioritising apprentices

Something I wrote previously about this trend in apprenticeships for @YorksBylines:
yorkshirebylines.co.uk/politics/whe...

Degree apprenticeships less accessible to disadvantaged young people than Russell Group unis Research reignites warnings that the route risks becoming 'another middle-class preserve'

Degree apprenticeships less accessible to disadvantaged young people than Russell Group unis" - really disapointing findings.

As I've said before we shouldn't let hope for what apprenticeships should be blind us from reality of what they currently are.
feweek.co.uk/degree-appre...

Social Work Professional Organizations Social Work Professional Organizations - A Comparative International Perspective; Using an interdisciplinary framework, this edited volume provides the first comprehensive, comparative analysis of soc...

Published today, 'Social Work Professional Organizations: A Comparative International Perspective' from @policypress.bsky.social.

Includes a chapter about @basw-uk.bsky.social from David Jones, Bridget Robb and me. Aailable here: policy.bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/social-work-...

Social workers - make sure you complete the Social Work England review survey. Last time, 96% opposed the fee rise, but they said the sample was too small.

Don't give them that excuse again...
consult.education.gov.uk/independent-...

National education expert joins University of Cumbria as Professor of Practice (Public Sector) | University of Cumbria News Matt Hood OBE, currently a Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has been appointed a Professor of Practice at the University of Cumbria.

Matt Hood appointed Professor of Practice at University of Cumbria: "Drawing on my experience and expertise in education, health & public service reform, I look forward to equipping students, academics & public sector leaders with the insight and tools..." news.cumbria.ac.uk/news/nationa...

Gibb it a rest! A review of Nick Gibb’s Reforming Lessons Nick Gibb’s Reforming Lessons aims to defend his ministerial legacy, but instead reads like a desperate attempt to rewrite England’s education failures

‘How I destroyed England’s state education system 2010 to 2024’ by Nick Gibb. Ummm… think I’ll give it a miss. But the article is a great read #EduSky. @joehanley.bsky.social @yorkshirebylines.co.uk

DfE cuts Social Work England funding - Community Care Department had increased Social Work England's funding by £5.2m this year, but rise has now been reduced because of projected underspend

"As of 30 September 2025 [Social Work England] projected that it would underspend the full-year budget by £969,000, 5.7% of the total" - via @community-care.bsky.social
www.communitycare.co.uk/2025/11/11/d...

Great experience being invited to talk at UC Berkeley about my work on policy networks and governance. Fitting ground to explore resistance and dissent.

Joe Hanley ⏹️ on X: "In announcing the National Review into death of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes tonight, SoS Nadhim Zahawi stated repeatedly “Sunlight is the best possible disinfectant”. Completely agree, and so it is important to shine a light at who is leading this new review. A thread 1/8" / X In announcing the National Review into death of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes tonight, SoS Nadhim Zahawi stated repeatedly “Sunlight is the best possible disinfectant”. Completely agree, and so it is important to shine a light at who is leading this new review. A thread 1/8

Interesting chair choice, Annie Hudson, just became a Dame & was reported as a likely chair for the Grooming Inquiry until she withdrew a couple of weeks ago. Here is a 2021 (twitter) thread I posted when Hudson was appointed to chair Arthur Labinjo-Hughes review.
x.com/JoeEHanley/s...

Good that the overdue review of Social Work England has finally been launched. Always sceptical of these types of reviews/consultations, but still hope as many social workers as possible give their honest assessment of the regulator's performance.
consult.education.gov.uk/independent-...

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

In honour of Halloween, I'm conjuring up this 2020 (open access) article where we analysed the role of 'hauntology' 💀in neoliberalism and social work. Beware: the ghosts of policies past still linger… 🪦🧌👻
journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

Interesting to look back at this article from 2019 when Social Work England launched & the CEO argued their novel approach to Fitness to Practice could prevent fee rises. Fast forward to 2025 & persistent failures in this area now being used to justify fee rises #fromthearchives

Charting a Path for Disaster-Informed Social Work: Developing a Free Online CPD Course in England This article documents the development of a free-to-access online social work in disasters continuing professional development (CPD) training course in England. The training is contextualized withi...

"Charting a Path for Disaster-Informed Social Work".

New article from our research team on disaster social work CPD. With @dr-nashwa-ismail.bsky.social, @bekahpierre.bsky.social, @gavinmoorghen.bsky.social, Maris Stratulis, Mariam Raja, and Lena Dominelli.
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

'Social work regulation should be independent of government - even if that means higher fees' - Community Care Social work regulation should not be subject to political priorities, nor should it be involved in promoting the profession, writes Robert Templeton

Interesting article in @community-care.bsky.social from Robert Templeton arguing that social workers should/would pay more for regulation if Social Work England would just stay in their lane. www.communitycare.co.uk/2025/10/16/s...

Former children’s minister, Edward Timpson CBE KC, announced as new Frontline chair Former children’s minister Edward Timpson will take on the role of chair of Frontline’s board of trustees in January 2026.

Former Conservative MP Edward Timpson to become next chair of Frontline. Timpson was children's minister when Frontline launched and has been a vocal supporter since. John Timpson previously sat on Frontline board and Timpson Group are a supporter of Frontline.
thefrontline.org.uk/press-releas...

We worth a read “I can wholeheartedly recommend this book (…) for those working in education who have been exasperated by Gibb and his buddies for the past 15 years, it will be tragically vindicating to read how little of substance exists behind the man and his reforms.”
👏🏼 @joehanley.bsky.social

Gibb it a rest! A review of Nick Gibb’s Reforming Lessons Nick Gibb’s Reforming Lessons aims to defend his ministerial legacy, but instead reads like a desperate attempt to rewrite England’s education failures

"It provides an unparalleled insider account of how the English education system has ended up in such a mess."Very interesting counter-balance by @joehanley.bsky.social to hagiography around Nick Gibb and Cons ed policymaking, urging you to read Mr Gibb's book. yorkshirebylines.co.uk/news/educati...

"Gibb’s apparent Pavlovian response to hearing his favourite words and authors led him to swiftly appoint (often highly inexperienced) people to key positions of influence over the education of England’s millions of children"

Thanks to Joe for reading Reforming Lessons, so I don't have to!

Gibb it a rest! A review of Nick Gibb’s Reforming Lessons Nick Gibb’s Reforming Lessons aims to defend his ministerial legacy, but instead reads like a desperate attempt to rewrite England’s education failures

My review of Nick Gibb's Reforming Lessons is now available on @yorkshirebylines.co.uk:

"This book unavoidably feels like a desperate attempt by a long-standing minister to safeguard his legacy from the reality of the education system he left behind"
yorkshirebylines.co.uk/news/educati...

Gibb it a rest! A review of Nick Gibb’s Reforming Lessons Nick Gibb’s Reforming Lessons aims to defend his ministerial legacy, but instead reads like a desperate attempt to rewrite England’s education failures

✍️ Gibb it a rest!

Nick Gibb’s Reforming Lessons aims to defend his ministerial legacy, but instead reads like a desperate attempt to rewrite England’s education failures

By Joe Hanley

@joehanley.bsky.social