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 Aboriginal 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 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

Happy New Year!

Welcome to the first newsletter of 2025 from the Social Workers Registration Board.

We all hope you were able to have had some time to rest and relax over the holiday period. As we embark on a new year, it’s important to take a moment to reflect on the progress made in 2024. It was a year marked by significant achievements, including establishing the Board and Office, and engaging in rich discussions about social work services and scope of practice with the sector.

2025 will be a momentous year as we move towards implementation of the Social Work Registration Act 2021.  An important role of the Board was to provide a definition of social work services which is a significant move forward. As outlined in more detail by the Director, the definition has been shaped through extensive consultation. Thank you for taking the time and engaging in this very important discussion.

In early 2025, the Board will continue to focus on several key priorities, including endorsing the policy and processes for registration and investigation, trial and testing of the portal for registration, and establishing committees of the Board, including finance, risk and audit. Importantly, we are establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Committee and we look forward to sharing more about this soon with you.

There is still much work to do.  We are committed to ensuring we are all ready to reach the important milestone in July 2025 when we commence to register social workers in South Australia.

From the Director

We hope that everyone in the sector was able to take some time over the holiday break to spend time with friends and family. 

I would like to take this opportunity to provide an overview of the sector engagement and consultation process regarding the description of a scope of practice and the definition of social work services, which took place in the second half of 2024.

Sector engagement is an ongoing commitment to ensure that social workers, employers, and the public are well-informed ahead of the commencement of Social Work Registration. By the end of 2024, we had delivered 33 face-to-face and live online information sessions, reaching approximately 1,250 participants, with an additional 745 people viewing the recorded sessions.

Consultation on the description of the scope of practice and definition of social work services was conducted in two rounds. The first round, a targeted consultation, was held from August to September 2024 through an online YourSay campaign, which garnered 472 individual responses, 19 organizational submissions, and insights from three Lived Experience Network focus groups with 29 participants. A comprehensive report documenting the first round of consultation is available on our website. (See below for link).

The consultation confirmed strong support from both the sector and individuals with lived experience for the registration of social work. We provided detailed responses to each organisational submission and held follow-up meetings to address specific concerns. Constructive suggestions were thoroughly reviewed and incorporated into the second draft of the definitions paper, which also included a list of roles and individuals excluded from registration. This second draft was then shared with key social worker employers, peak bodies, unions, universities, and the AASW.

The second round of consultation took place from October to December 2024, inviting feedback on the revised definition of social work services and exclusions. This round included engagement with 26 organisations through face-to-face and online sessions, and the SWRB received 14 written submissions from stakeholders.

Scope of Practice and Social Work Services Definition

Following extensive sector consultation, the SWRB is now finalising the description of scope of practice and the definition of social work services and exclusions. The aim is to describe the broad scope in which social workers can practice, while creating a definition that is deliberately narrow, capturing only high-risk and essential elements of social work practice. This, alongside a more focused exclusions list and proposed alternative registration pathways, seeks to mitigate workforce risks and minimize disruptions to service delivery.

As the regulator, our priority is to protect the public and enhance the profession of social work. We do this by protecting core social work functions that involve risks to vulnerable individuals and communities.

We look forward to engaging further with the sector and providing an extensive communication campaign in due course, as we prepare for the implementation of registration from July 2025.

Question of the month

As a modern regulator, one of our key responsibilities is to inform and educate both the sector and the public about our role and its connection to the social work profession. We would like to take this opportunity to clarify some key concepts and hope you find this information helpful as you prepare for registration.

How do the Scope of Practice and Social Work Services definitions relate to each other for the purposes of registration?

South Australia has a significant opportunity to lead the nation as the first jurisdiction to implement a Scheme regulating the provision of social work services. This includes defining the qualifications and experience required to work within an identified scope of practice, setting a benchmark for the profession nationally.

There are two components to describing social work registration: Scope of Practice and Social Work Services.

The Scope of Practice is the overarching description of social work. A Scope of Practice defines the activities, roles, and responsibilities that a particular profession or field is authorised to undertake. It outlines the boundaries of practice for individuals working in that profession. The purpose of a Scope of Practice is to clarify professional boundaries, set education standards across the profession, allow for effective regulation, and to protect the public.

Social Work Services sits within the Scope of Practice and is work only a registered social worker can do, based on their training, expertise, and the needs of the client or community. These services are more narrowly defined than the Scope of Practice.

The diagram below illustrates how the Scope of Practice and Social Work Services intersect.  

We hope that you find these descriptions helpful.  Please contact us via the email address if you have any questions or concerns.  

Stay Connected

Visit our FAQ’s on the website:  swrb.sa.gov.au 

If you have any questions, email us on swrb@sa.gov.au.