Department For Education
The childrens social work workforce census is an annual statutory census for all local authorities. You must complete statutory censuses by law unless theres a good reason not to.
The census covers the year from 1 October to 30 September.
It collects data on all children and family social worker staff employed during the census year. This includes staff:
- who were employed on or before 30 September
- who left employment during the census year
- who were employed through an agency on or before 30 September
Local authorities should issue privacy notices to all members of staff. Privacy notices tell staff members about the details of the census and their rights under the Data Protection Act.
Important dates
2023 to 2024 census dates:
- the census opens on Tuesday 1 October 2024
- return census submissions by Thursday 31 October 2024
- the database closure date is Friday 29 November 2024
Submit your data
Youll need to:
- register and log in with DfE Sign-in
- use COLLECT to submit your data
You should contact your school or local authority approver if:
- you want to request a DfE Sign-in username or password so you can access COLLECT
- childrens social work workforce census is not on the list of collections you can see in COLLECT
Get help using DfE Sign-in
If you do not know who your approver is, you should use the DfE Sign-in request form.
If youve forgotten your password, use DfE Sign-in to reset it. You will need to click Start now and then the Ive forgotten my password link.
Note that well only be able to change the status of your data submission to authorised once youve cleared all errors in the data in COLLECT.
Census documents
The following guidance documents will help you complete the census:
- census guide
- census business and technical specification for 2023 to 2024
- COLLECT reports specifications
- COLLECT guides
If you need help submitting data
For complex questions, you can use the service request form. We aim to answer your question within 5 working days.
Feedback
You can use the feedback form if you have any comments about our data collection service, including COLLECT and the service desk.