The Health and Social Care Act 2012 (Consequential Provision—Social Workers) Order 2012

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order makes amendments in subordinate legislation consequential on the abolition on 1st October 2012 of the General Social Care Council (“the GSCC”), and, before that, the transfer of its register on 1st August 2012 to the Health and Care Professions Council (“the HCPC”), as the Health Professions Council will be known from that date. The Act which provides for this is the Health and Social Care Act 2012, under which this Order is made. That Act itself deals with the change of name of the Health Professions Council, by providing that in future any reference to it by that name in any instrument or document is to be read as a reference to the Health and Care Professions Council (paragraph 53(1) of Schedule 15 to the Act). That Act also re-named the main instrument under which the Health Professions Council operates: it is currently called the Health Professions Order 2001 but from 1st August it is to be known as the Health and Social Work Professions Order 2001.

The GSCC is the regulatory body for social workers. Its register of social workers is transferred to the HCPC under a related Order, the General Social Care Council (Transfer of Register and Abolition–Transitional and Saving Provision) Order of Council 2012.

Articles 2 to 10 of this Order amend instruments relating to the HCPC (as it will become known) to reflect the change of name of the Health Professions Order 2001, to make provision for that part of the HCPC’s register (Part 16) which will relate to social workers, to substitute “registrant” for “health professional” in those instruments, and generally to accommodate social workers within the regulatory framework of the HCPC.

Part 1 of the Schedule to this Order makes amendments in subordinate legislation to reflect the change of name of the Health Professions Order 2001.

Part 2 of the Schedule makes amendments in subordinate legislation which are consequential on the transfer of the GSCC’s register to the HCPC and on the abolition of the GSCC. In one case (at paragraph 84 of the Schedule) it is necessary also to preserve the effect of the former wording in relation to courses approved by the GSCC before 1st August 2012.

An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as the Order itself has no impact on the private sector or civil society organisations. A full impact assessment has been produced in relation to the provisions of the Health and Social Care Act 2012, and a copy is available at http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsLegislation/DH_123583.