What is the GSCC?
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The General Social Care Council (GSCC) was launched in October 2001 and is the first regulator of the social care workforce in England . The GSCC’s mission is to promote the highest standards of social care in England for the benefit and protection of people who use services and the wider public by:
- acting as a guardian of standards in social care practice and as a champion of a committed workforce;
- requiring the highest standards of conduct from social care workers, and compliance with a code of practice;
- promoting the highest standards of training for social care workers;
- always keeping the best interests of service users and the wider public at the heart of the organization; and
- working in an open, accessible and inclusive way.
The GSCC will regulate the conduct of social care workers by:
Champion of the profession
The GSCC will also champion the contribution of over one million people employed within social care in England - from social services directors and qualified social workers to care home managers and care assistants. We will do this by:
- increasing public confidence in the workforce through higher standards; and
- promoting good practice and challenging bad.
GSCC and service users
The GSCC places the needs of people who use social care services at the heart of its organisation. Its Council has a majority of lay members, including service user representatives.
The GSCC's executive management team includes people drawn from senior leadership positions in central and local government.
GSCC and the social care landscape
The GSCC is an executive non-departmental public body (NDPB) that works closely with the Department of Health. It was set up under the Care Standards Act 2000 and is responsible for regulating the social care workforce. The Commission for Social Care Inspection regulates social care employers. The role of these, and other, social care organisations is summarised below.
The social care landscape
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What it does |
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Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI)
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The CSCI combines the work of the Social Services Inspectorate (SSI), the SSI/Audit Commission joint review team and the National Care Standards Commission (NCSC), to create a single inspectorate for social care. |
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Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE)
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Set up in October 2001. Develops and promotes knowledge about what works best in social care. Provides independent advice, based on evidence of best practice, to service users, their supporters and carers, practitioners and service managers. |
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Skills for Care (formerly Topss England)
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From 1 April 2005, responsible for the strategic development of the adult social care workforces in England . This is part of the development of the newly licensed ‘Skills for Care and Development’ Sector Skills Council (SSC).
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As legislative and executive authority has been devolved to the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland assemblies, separate regulators exist for each part of the UK : |
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General Social Care Council
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Set up by the Care Standards Act 2000. Regulator of social care workforce in England. |
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Northern Ireland Social Care Council
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Social care regulator for Northern Ireland. Established under the Health & Personal Social Services Act (Northern Ireland) 2001 and launched in October 2001. The aim of the NISCC is to increase the protection of those using social care services, their carers and the public by raising standards of practice in the social care workforce. There are over 30,000 social care staff in Northern Ireland. |
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Scottish Social Services Council
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Social care regulator for Scotland. Established under the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001 and launched in October 2001. The aim of the SSSC is to increase the protection of those using social care services, their carers and the public by raising standards of practice in the social care workforce. There are around 100,000 social service workers in Scotland. |
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Care Council for Wales
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Social care regulator for Wales. Established under the Care Standards Act 2000 and launched in October 2001. The aim of the Care Council is to increase the protection of those using social care services, their carers and the public by raising standards of practice in the social care workforce. There are around 70,000 social care workers in Wales. |
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