What is the IASW?

The Irish Association of Social Workers was founded in 1971. It is the national organisation of professional social workers in the Republic of Ireland. The IASW is an active member of the International Federation of Social Workers, which represents professional social work associations from over 55 different countries with more than 350,000 social workers in all parts of the world.

What does the IASW do?

The Objectives of the Association are: 

1. To improve the standards and quality of social work.
2. To provide support to social workers in the practice of their profession.

To represent the views of social workers on matters of social policy and practice at local, national and international level.

1. To develop a sense of pride amongst social workers about the value of their profession.
2. To be advocates for the interests of social work clients at national level.
3. To promote awareness of the contribution of social work to society.

How does the IASW operate?

As a voluntary professional body (i.e. the only paid position is that of the Office Administrator), all this achieved through the members of the Association. All the components of the IASW, from Special Interest Groups to the Presidency, operate on the time given by various members. It is up to the members of the Association to participate in order to make it effective.

How does the Association do its work?

By means of an elected Executive, the Council, the President and the Special Interest Groups (SIG’s).

- Executive is elected every year by the Membership at the AGM. Executive members oversee operational tasks on behalf of the Association such as Membership, Treasury, Conferences and Seminars, Policy Development, Journal and INFO Publication, Communications and International Affairs.

- Council holds ultimate responsibility for the policies of the Association and meets 4 times a year to discuss the affairs of the Association.

- The President is also elected every year by the Membership and chairs Executive and Council. The President is also involved in many of the duties of Executive.

- The Special Interest Groups are smaller groups within the Association that meet to discuss issues in a common area of work (e.g. Adult Mental Health) or in a geographical region (e.g. Southern Branch). These groups identify priority issues that the Association need to address – e.g. a media issue, a training need and feed this back to Executive and/or Council. Positions in relation to the policy of the Association need to be motioned at the AGM and adopted by the Members. It is crucial that members involve themselves in a Special Interest Group to identify the pressing issues with their peers that the Association can respond to or focus on.

The crucial difference is that the IASW is an association that only represents the interests of Social Workers. It is the forum for Social Workers to speak about the profession and as a profession that is distinct from the Industrial Relations focus of a Union. 

Why should I become a member?

One of the best reasons to join the IASW is to ensure your voice is heard in relation to Social Work issues – whether it relates to Social Work in the media, policy issues, or current practice. This enables the Association to represent the views of Social Workers and promote the role of Social Work in society. The Association has been very successful in recent years in providing media responses to Social Work Issues, as well as issuing Press Releases on issues pertinent to the membership and advocating on behalf of our client groups. The Association has been quoted in national media and asked to appear on current affairs TV and news programmes on a number of occasions.

Another strong reason to join is to avail of low cost training through CPD seminars and conferences. There has been a number of training events held by the Association which now carry CPD points in line with the Association’s CPD Policy. Members of the Association receive a CPD manual to document their professional development; with the imminent arrival of Registration CPD will be necessary for all Social Workers wishing to practice. This is in keeping with the Association’s aim to improve the quality and standard of Social Work. The publication of the “Irish Social Worker” Journal also channels the learning of Social Workers in Ireland to the Membership.

The Association also provides support for Social Workers, primarily by facilitating those in similar areas of work/regions to come together as Special interest Groups, but also at CPD events and the AGM. Admin support is also offered through the office, with information on the latest activities of the Association going out through INFO, as well as additional emails about job vacancies and external training events. Membership also carries 10% discount through a group health insurance scheme with VHI, and a 10% reduction on BASWA Publications.

The Association also offers Legal Protection Cover, as our members are increasingly concerned by potential ethical conflicts related to requests from their employers and what is deemed good Social Work practice, and in addition to this, the full implementation of Registration of Professionals under the HSPCA will mean that Social Workers can be subject to "Fitness to Practice" proceedings if a complaint is made against them. The Legal Protection package offered would cover Legal Defence, Dishonesty/Violence, Disciplinary Hearings, and would also provide help lines to members covering Legal Advice, Domestic Assistance and Counselling (a copy of the policy is available from the office).

 ** See the “Join Us'”section on the website for more information on membership benefits, downloadable membership application forms, and membership fee structures **

How Many Social Workers in Ireland are currently members?

 There are currently over 850 members of the IASW. The past two years has seen a significant growth in membership and the Association has gained a lot of ground as the voice of Social Workers in Ireland because of this. The strength of the Association lies in both numbers and the quality of participation of its members – the more input the Association has, the louder and clearer the voice of Social Work becomes.