Caseloads, absence, vacancies, turnover and agency workers
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Figures on social workers (FTE and headcount), leavers and turnover (FTE and headcount), absence (FTE), agency workers (FTE and headcount), vacancies (FTE) and caseload (FTE).
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Data set details
- Theme
- Children's social care
- Publication
- Children's social work workforce
- Release
- Reporting year 2021
- Release type
- Geographic levels
- Local authority, National, Regional
- Indicators
- Agency cover rate (FTE)
- Agency worker rate (FTE)
- Agency worker rate (Headcount)
- Time period
- 2017 to 2021
Data set preview
| time_period | time_identifier | geographic_level | country_code | country_name | region_code | region_name | old_la_code | new_la_code | la_name | social_worker_fte | leaver_fte | turnover_rate_fte_% | working_days_lost_fte | absence_rate_fte_% | agency_fte | agency_worker_rate_fte_% | agency_cover_fte | agency_cover_rate_fte_% | vacancy_fte | vacancy_rate_fte_% | vacancy_agency_cover_rate_fte_% | case_holders_fte | cases | caseload_fte | social_worker_headcount | leaver_headcount | turnover_rate_headcount_% | agency_headcount | agency_worker_rate_headcount_% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Reporting year | National | E92000001 | England | 32502 | 4994.5 | 15.4 | 258371.2 | 3.1 | 5976.5 | 15.5 | 4557.8 | 76.3 | 6521.9 | 16.7 | 69.9 | 20548.9 | 335510 | 16.3 | 34679 | 5729 | 16.5 | 6148 | 15.1 | |||||
| 2021 | Reporting year | Regional | E92000001 | England | E12000001 | North East | 2101.4 | 272.6 | 13 | 17955.6 | 3.4 | 212.4 | 9.2 | 116.8 | 55 | 200.6 | 8.7 | 58.2 | 1414.8 | 25940 | 18.3 | 2191 | 308 | 14.1 | 217 | 9 | |||
| 2021 | Reporting year | Regional | E92000001 | England | E12000002 | North West | 4541.2 | 660.2 | 14.5 | 45375.7 | 3.9 | 778.4 | 14.6 | 565.8 | 72.7 | 877.3 | 16.2 | 64.5 | 2698.2 | 49492 | 18.3 | 4814 | 731 | 15.2 | 795 | 14.2 | |||
| 2021 | Reporting year | Regional | E92000001 | England | E12000003 | Yorkshire and The Humber | 3687.3 | 524.5 | 14.2 | 34436.4 | 3.7 | 542 | 12.8 | 386.9 | 71.4 | 684.4 | 15.7 | 56.5 | 2222 | 37630 | 16.9 | 4010 | 602 | 15 | 558 | 12.2 | |||
| 2021 | Reporting year | Regional | E92000001 | England | E12000004 | East Midlands | 2421.3 | 355.4 | 14.7 | 19105.5 | 3.1 | 405.4 | 14.3 | 270.4 | 66.7 | 386.2 | 13.8 | 70 | 1578.3 | 25590 | 16.2 | 2650 | 420 | 15.8 | 411 | 13.4 |
Variables in this data set
| Variable name | Variable description |
|---|---|
| absence_rate_fte_% | Sickness absence rate throughout year (FTE) |
| agency_cover_fte | Number of agency workers at 30 September covering vacancies (FTE) |
| agency_cover_rate_fte_% | Agency cover rate (FTE) |
| agency_fte | Number of agency workers at 30 September (FTE) |
| agency_headcount | Number of agency workers at 30 September (Headcount) |
Footnotes
- Caseload is calculated as the total number of cases held by FTE social workers (including agency workers) in post at the 30 September divided by the number of FTE social workers (including agency workers) at 30 September that hold one or more cases.
- Full-time Equivalent (FTE) figures are calculated by aggregating the total number of hours that social workers are contracted to work and dividing by the standard hours for their grade. FTE figures exclude social workers for whom FTE information was missing or not known.
- Leavers are social workers who left a child and family social worker post at a local authority in the year ending 30 September. This includes social workers who are staying at a local authority, but moving to a non-child and family role and those continuing as children’s social workers but moving to a different local authority. Leavers also include social workers who have begun a career break, those seconded out of an organisation or those leaving the profession altogether. They do not include social workers who have started maternity or sick leave, or moved from one children’s social work position to another children’s social work position within a local authority.
- The rate of agency workers covering vacancies at 30 September is calculated as the number of FTE agency workers divided by the number of FTE vacancies at 30 September. Where a local authority has reported more than one agency worker covering the same vacancy, this rate may exceed 100%.
- The agency worker rate is calculated as the number of FTE (or headcount) agency staff working as social workers at 30 September divided by the sum of the number of FTE (or headcount) agency staff working as social workers at 30 September and the number of FTE (or headcount) social workers.
- The FTE vacancy rate is calculated as the number of FTE vacancies at 30 September divided by the sum of the number of FTE vacancies at 30 September and the number of FTE social workers at 30 September.
- The absence rate is calculated as the number of days missed due to sickness absence during the year divided by the number of FTE social workers at 30 September multiplied by 253 days (the number of working days in a non-leap year, taking account of bank holidays). The rate for a leap year is based on 254 working days.
- The turnover rate is calculated as the number of FTE (or headcount) social workers leaving a social work role in the year divided by the number of FTE (or headcount) social workers in post at the 30 September.
- Headcount is a count of all individual children and family social workers, regardless of their working pattern: where a social worker holds more than one post within a local authority, only one post is counted (refer to the methodology section for more information).
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