Evaluation of five social work practice (SWP) pilots started up in England between December 2009 and May 2010. These independent organisations were commissioned by local authorities to provide services for looked after children and care leavers.
The pilots were introduced to discover whether smaller social work-led organisations independent of local authorities could improve the morale and retention of social workers and bring decision making closer to front-line practice.
These changes were expected to deliver increased consistency and stability of care for looked after children and care leavers. The pilots have differed substantially in their organisational forms and their origins and in the numbers and profiles of looked after children and young people they support (the Cohort).