Learning to lead: developing and nurturing future leaders through social work education and newly qualified practice

This conference presentation and workshop explores how leadership is promoted, developed, and nurtured in social work education and newly qualified practice. As the landscape and context of social work in Scotland continues to change at pace, social work education plays a crucial role in ensuring students are not only ready to practice, but ready to lead. This session explores how leadership is developed and supported through social work education and into the first year of practice. In doing so, we examine the leadership journey for social work students today, including how this could be enhanced, and how it intersects with the Newly Qualified Social Work (NQSW) Supported year, through the perspectives of those involved in the pilot.