Acknowledgement of Country

The Social Workers Registration Board of South Australia (SWRB SA) acknowledges that the land we work on is the traditional lands of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and we pay our respects to elders, past and present. The SWRB SA acknowledges and respects that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are the First Nations people of this country and recognises them as traditional owners and occupants of South Australian land and waters. The SWRB SA acknowledges the violence of the colonial past and social work’s part in this history and the impacts colonisation continues to have on First Nations people. The SWRB SA acknowledges the strong and enduring connection to land and culture for First Nations people.

From the Presiding Member

It has been an extremely busy and rewarding few months for the Social Workers Registration Board. Members of the Board recently spent a day in Board governance training and met with the Social Workers Registration Board of Aotearoa New Zealand to gain insights into the challenges and workings of their Board.

The Board continues to be involved in discussion about various elements required to ensure registration of social workers will be possible from 1 July 2025. The Board has been involved in ongoing discussions about the definition of social work services and the scope of practice, and looks forward to further key milestones next year, once legal mechanisms have taken place. The Board and staff continue to work well together in preparation for the commencement of the legislation next year.   

We are also very pleased to endorse and publish the SWRB Annual Report for 2023/2024 which outlines our key achievements including staff and Board appointments, office establishment, strategic and guiding principles, and our stakeholder and consultation activities. 

From the Director

The past few months has been a period of tremendous progress and achievement, as the Social Workers Registration Board (SWRB) continue to work toward establishing the foundations for registering social workers in in South Australia. The administrative and operational infrastructure necessary to support the work of the Board is well established and operational.

It is exciting to see our office team grown from 3 people in May to 10 people in November. I am very pleased with progress towards implementing the processes and workflows for registration.  We are also very pleased to have our Aboriginal Regulatory Lead, Regulation Lead and Accreditation Lead now on the team. We can now invest in developing the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Strategy, implementing accreditation processes, and determining our role in investigations as a modern regulator.

A recent achievement of the SWRB included the sector wide consultation on the definition of social work services and the scope of practice. The responses were rich and thoughtful, providing context for the next stage in the drafting of the definitions.  The SWRB will be publishing the findings of this consultation on the website in the coming weeks.   

The SWRB is now consulting on a second draft of the definition of social work services and scope of practice. This consultation includes 6 Government agencies, 12 non-Gov agencies, 6 peak bodies, First Nations organisations, Unions and the Higher Education sector and will conclude in early December.  

As a new regulator we continue to seek advice from our social work regulator colleagues in New Zealand and England as well as other regulators in Australia such as AHPRA and the Teachers Registration Board. These conversations and relationships provide valuable insights as we continue towards our own registration in July 2025. 

2nd Phase Consultation

Throughout October and November, the SWRB have been engaging with the sector on the draft definition of social work services and scope of practice with key stakeholders and organisations.

Consultations have been led by our Director, Sarah Wendt, Principal Policy Advisor, Louise Butler, and Registration Lead, Chris Reynolds. We are very grateful to the organisations who continue to engage, having spent valuable time providing feedback and offering solutions as we transition to registration.  

Below are some of the organisations that we have engaged with over the past month. 

IMPORTANT UPDATE: AASW ASWEAS 

We are pleased to announce that the AASW ASWEAS (Australian Social Work Education and Accreditation Standards) have been published. The publication includes the Social Work Registration Board and what this will mean for accreditation in South Australia (see page 6 & 7). 

We look forward to informing the sector about how we will be working with the new ASWEAS.  If you would like to read the publication in full you can view them here:  

SWRB OFFICE UPDATE

    Our 2023/24 Annual Report is now available on the website 

Stay Connected 

Visit our FAQ’s on the website:  swrb.sa.gov.au if you have any questions or email us on swrb@sa.gov.au.