Ms Aine McGuirk:

Social work requires very emotionally resilient people. I mean people who are able to experience the worst because the lives some of our children have are very traumatic. A social worker in this sector must experience that, yet go home to his or her own children or family. That is why I say that social work is not for everybody.

In terms of additional courses, Institute of Technology Sligo has provided a course this year and hopes to get accreditation from CORU, and Maynooth University will provide a course from next September. One should remember that social work was the first of the allied health or social care professions to be regulated. Social care is a regulated profession and a protected title. The courses that qualify people to use the protected title must fulfil CORU's remit for what constitutes a good course. We have heard and know that CORU are not happy with the courses in England where social workers are being qualified to work in a child welfare sector only. Social work, typically, is a broad qualification. One does not qualify a lawyer just to work in family law. One qualifies people to be a lawyer and then they will get experience and specialise in an area, which is the same with doctors and everybody so it is important to keep that.