The Care Standards Act 2000 (Relevant Registers of Social Workers) Regulations 2005

Statutory Instruments

2005 No. 491

SOCIAL CARE, ENGLAND AND WALES

The Care Standards Act 2000 (Relevant Registers of Social Workers) Regulations 2005

Made

5th March 2005

Laid before Parliament

10th March 2005

Coming into force

1st April 2005

The Secretary of State and the National Assembly for Wales, acting jointly in exercise of the powers conferred upon them by sections 61(2)(b) and 118(5) of the Care Standards Act 2000(1), and being satisfied that the laws of Scotland and Northern Ireland under which the relevant registers are maintained correspond to the provisions in Part 4 of that Act, hereby make the following Regulations:—

Citation, commencement, interpretation and application

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Care Standards Act 2000 (Relevant Registers of Social Workers) Regulations 2005, and shall come into force on 1st April 2005.

(2) In these Regulations “the Act” means the Care Standards Act 2000.

(3) These Regulations apply in relation to England and Wales.

Prescription of relevant registers

2.  For the purposes of section 61(2)(b) of the Act, a relevant register is—

(a) the register maintained by the Scottish Social Services Council, under section 44 of the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001(2), in so far as that register relates to social workers(3); and

(b) the register maintained by the Northern Ireland Social Care Council under section 3 of the Health and Personal Social Services Act (Northern Ireland) 2001(4), in so far as that register relates to social workers(5).

Stephen Ladyman

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State,

Department of Health

5th March 2005

Signed on behalf of the National Assembly for Wales under section 66(1) of the Government of Wales Act 1998(6)

John Marek

Deputy Presiding Officer, National Assembly for Wales

1st March 2005

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations, which relate to England and Wales, are made under section 61(2)(b) of the Care Standards Act 2000 (“the 2000 Act”) and prescribe the registers of social workers maintained under provisions of Scottish and Northern Irish legislation which correspond to the registers maintained by the General Social Care Council and the Care Council for Wales respectively under the 2000 Act.

The purpose of prescribing these registers is to ensure that an individual registered in either of them will not be guilty of an offence under section 61 of the 2000 Act if he takes or uses the title “social worker” while working in such a capacity in either England or Wales.

(1)

2000 c. 14. The powers are exercisable by the appropriate Minister, who is defined in section 121(1), in relation to England and Wales, as the Secretary of State and the National Assembly for Wales acting jointly. “Prescribed” and “regulations” are defined in section 121(1) of the Act.

(2)

asp 8. The Scottish Social Services Council was established by section 43 of the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001 (“the 2001 Act”).

(3)

See: section 77 of the 2001 Act for the definition of “social worker”.

(4)

2001 c. 3. The Northern Ireland Social Care Council was established by section 1 of the Health and Personal Social Services Act (Northern Ireland) 2001 (“the Northern Ireland Act”).

(5)

See: section 2(2)(a) and (4) of the Northern Ireland Act for the definition of “social worker”.

(6)

1998 c. 38.