The history of the regulation of the personal social services from 1970 onwards is described, contextualised and analysed. The various purposes and styles of inspection within regulatory systems are identified and discussed. The effects and contributions of competitive tendering of services, the Performance Assessment Framework, Joint Reviews, Best Value and Special Measures are noted. Adverse criticisms in the late 1980s of the Social Services Inspectorate, established in 1985, are contrasted with the high regard in which the Inspectorate was held by the late 1990s. The chapter then sets out the subsequent rapid changes to the regulatory structure in the years 2004-2010.The campaign for the registration of social workers, leading to the establishment in 2001 of the General Social Care Council, and its subsequent replacement first by the Health and Care Professions Council and then by Social Work England, is also discussed.The chapter compares unfavourably the experience in England, with its chronic institutional instability, with those of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, which have been characterised by more constructive partnerships.
Social work education: learning from the past?