A substantial number of agency social workers in Waltham Forest have transitioned into permanent roles over the past year.
Social workers are drawn to permanent roles because of the borough's career progression opportunities and a culture that values professional development.
Waltham Forest has prioritised investing in its workforce, with 37 social workers promoted last year alone, demonstrating the clear pathways available for those looking to advance their careers.
The borough's approach to social work is built on innovation and investment in staff, while a focus on resident-led practice ensures meaningful impact. For agency workers making the transition, Waltham Forest's process to make the agency to permanent switch takes as little as a month, with HR support ensuring a smooth transition whilst maintaining both case and workloads.
For many, the decision to go permanent is about more than financial benefits. Abigail Adieze, Waltham Forest's Assistant Director of Corporate Parenting, reflects on her career and her experience in both agency and permanent social work:
“I started off as an agency social worker with a London local authority on a three months’ work assignment. I was encouraged to take up a permanent post and I stayed with that local authority for over 13 years. During that time, I was supported and provided with various learning and development opportunities and the whole experience grounded me in the world of social work.
After 13 years at the first council, I was headhunted by another local authority where I worked as an agency worker for 3 months. I then considered a subsequent agency offer from another council which I accepted after much deliberation and personal conflict. The decision to leave after just three months left me feeling bad, I could still feel the level of disappointment from my manager, colleagues, children and foster carers when I told them I was leaving."
Abigail understands that agency social workers often believe that permanent roles don't offer flexiblity or are able to match their salary expectations. She has not found this to be the case since taking up her permanent in her role in Waltham Forest, and believes her permanent role has provided her with a range of opportunities:
"Whilst I decided at the early stage of my career that being an agency staff wasn’t for me, I acknowledge that people have various reasons as to why they chose the agency staff pathway and those reasons are specific to each individual. Some might say you’ll earn or save more as agency staff or have more flexibility. As a permanent staff member, I don’t feel that I am missing out on either. I know that the benefits that come with a permanent post far outweighs that of an agency post.
Reflecting on that journey to becoming permanent, I would say that having a sense of belonging and wanting to see opportunities and challenges through with young people and families were key reasons for the transition."
Waltham Forest has a clear progression pathway in place for permanent staff, allowing social workers to grow into leadership and strategic roles within the borough. Abigail doesn't doubt the quality of Waltham Forest's agency social workers, but believes the best way for them to reach their potential is through taking up a permanent role:
"Over the years, I have met exceptional social workers who remained agency workers, many of them have untapped leadership qualities which have remained undeveloped due to the ad-hoc nature of agency work. I still receive CVs from some of the social workers I met as agency workers many years back. I often wondered whether I would have got to my current leadership position as someone from the global majority without the professional development that comes with being permanent.”
In October last year, Waltham Forest hosted the borough's first “Agency to Permanent” event to persuade agency staff to transition to permanent or fixed term contracts. This happened against the backdrop of a council-wide transformation programme to create more efficient services. The in-person event was hosted for agency staff in Children’s Social Care and was the product of weeks of planning between HR and staff from within the service, including senior leadership. The case for transitioning focused on the borough's offer to permanent staff, which includes:
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A rewarding role in an Ofsted rated GOOD children’s services department
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Stable leadership rated by Ofsted as OUTSTANDING
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New Social Work Academy
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Strong Continuing Professional Development (CPD) offer including Virtual Reality (VR) training
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Competitive salaries and retention bonuses
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A range of health & wellbeing initiatives and vibrant staff-led networks such as our Race Equality Network
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Flexible working options
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Manageable caseloads
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Travel season ticket loan, cycle scheme, Local Authority pension