Introduction

There is growing evidence that transnational social workers (TSWs) contribute significantly to the national workforce of many developed countries, including Canada (Pullen Sansfaçon et al, 2012), England (Hussein et al, 2011), Ireland (Walsh et al, 2010) and New Zealand (Bartley et al, 2012). These transnational movements occur within a set of constraints at different stages, from application, qualifications recognition and securing jobs, to practising in a new environment. Some of these difficulties might arise from how social work practice has evolved as a profession within different national and local contexts, as well as how it connects to wider policies and national priorities. Others may relate to international agreements and processes of qualifications and experience recognition. Thus, different TSWs are faced by a multitude of challenges and hurdles, some of which are similar to professionals from other domains, such as medicine or engineering; yet, others are specific to the nature of social work itself. These layered challenges are observed by, and impact on, TSWs themselves, both at individual and professional levels, as well as in relation to their new context of practice in the destination countries.

Aims and methods

This chapter aims to discuss, based on empirical research, the various challenges and opportunities when TSWs engage in British social work practice. These are identified through the perspective of different actors, including TSWs themselves, their managers and colleagues.

The analysis utilises data from different sources and studies. First, it explores trends in the levels and profile of non-UK-qualified social workers registered in England through interrogating data held by the previous and current social work regulators in England, the General Social Care Council (GSCC) and the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). It then draws on rich qualitative and quantitative data obtained through interviews, focus group discussions and national surveys with different stakeholders (see Hussein et al, 2013; Hussein, 2014). Data sources include: workforce records (GSCC 2003–12 and HCPC 2012–15); online surveys of non-UK-qualified TSWs (n = 101 in 2010 and n = 32 in 2014); interviews (n = 18) and two focus group discussions (n = 7) with TSWs; and interviews with British managers and social workers (n = 6) and service users (n = 35).