PEOPLE who have experience in supporting vulnerable children, young people, adults or families – but do not have a social work degree – are being invited to apply for a post-graduate training programme that will give them the qualification they need.
Leicester City Council is now recruiting to the Government’s 2026-27 Step Up To Social Work programme and wants to hear from aspiring social workers – graduates or career changers - who would like a place on it.
Step Up To Social Work is a 14-month, full-time training programme backed by the Department for Education (DfE), which offers a combination of academic study and hands-on social work experience in a local authority. It will run from January 2026 to March 2027.
Successful applicants will receive their training costs and a bursary of £21,995 over the duration of the programme to support them whilst in training.
Laurence Jones, the council’s strategic director of social care and education, said: “Social care is a very challenging, but very rewarding profession. There will be many people who have experience of working with vulnerable children or families but don’t have a social work degree, and this training programme gives them the chance to become a qualified social worker whilst receiving financial support to retrain.
“Over the last 14 years around 40 people have taken up this training opportunity, and we look forward to receiving applications from people interested in joining us.”
The council is holding an online training event on Tuesday 25 February for people to find out more about the programme. Anyone interested can contact Sara.Paskell@leicester.gov.uk
The application portal and full details are also available at: Step up to social work - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The Step Up programme will support 700 individuals to enter the social work profession in local authorities across England in 2026. This will be the ninth cohort of Step Up since 2010, with the programme successfully supporting over 2,900 social workers to enter the profession across England.
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Notes to editors
- More information about applying to Step Up to Social Work can be found here: Home | Step Up to Social Work (pocketrecruiter.com)
- The Step Up programme runs every two years.
- Applications will open from 17 February to 25 March 2025 (subject to regional demand), followed by regional assessment centres for candidates successful at the initial application stage. Students can expect to start the programme in January 2026, completing their training in March 2027.
- Candidates are eligible to apply if they have:
- a minimum 2:2 degree qualification (level 6).
For some Local Authority areas, final year students will be eligible to apply with a minimum 2:2 predicted grade. For all other Local Authority areas, they must have completed their degree programme to apply.
- 6 months’ full-time (or equivalent) direct experience, either in a paid or voluntary capacity, of working with vulnerable children, young people and/or families, carers or vulnerable adults
- A GCSE in English or English language at grade 4 (C) or above (or an approved equivalent)
For some Local Authority areas, there will also be a requirement to have a GCSE in Mathematics (or an approved equivalent).
- The programme is for those without a degree in social work and who want to become a social worker. Successful applicants will train through a combination of academic study and hands on social work experience in a local authority.
- On successful completion of the programme, trainees will qualify with a Postgraduate Diploma in Social Work enabling them to apply to register with Social Work England and to practice as a qualified social worker, making a difference by nurturing relationships with families during difficult times and by protecting children.