A message from Patricia Higgins Chief Executive, Social Care Council
As Chief Executive of the Social Care Council it gives me immense pleasure to extend a very
warm welcome to all of our readers. Since July 2023, as a number of our readers will be aware,
we have taken on the strategic responsibility for driving forward the social work and social care
research agenda. We are delighted that Anne McGlade has joined the team to lead this work,
and we also welcome Andriana Alkiviadou to the team as she continues to work alongside Anne.
The Social Care Council has a long history of supporting the activities related to the previous
Social Work and Social Care Research Strategies, and within our Strategic Plan for 2023 - 2027
we have formalised this commitment and prioritised research and evidence. Our ambition is to
develop a Centre of Excellence for social work and social care education, learning, leadership
and research to support evidence based and high-quality practice. We aim to support the
development of robust research and evidence in social work and social care that can support
improvement and transformation in our health and social care services.
Whilst we do not underestimate the task ahead we also know that we are building on what is
already in place, and the commitment to research and engagement in related activities by many
other stakeholders. I have been impressed by what I have seen to date especially the work of
the Building Research Community. This community operates as an excellent network for
engagement, sharing good practice and generating new ideas. We will continue to support and
strengthen this network and look forward to developing new engagements and partnerships as
we build our infrastructure and governance arrangements for this work. It is our intention to
make the value and use of research evidence visible both internally in our organisational
activities and externally in our work with stakeholders.
We look forward to a productive and creative time ahead.
Best wishes