We expect to partner with local authorities in the North East. This may include Darlington, Durham, Hartlepool, Newcastle upon Tyne and South Tyneside.
Where you’ll work
We partner with a large number of high-quality local authority partners that host participants on Approach Social Work (formerly known as the Frontline programme). Through working in these areas, participants are able to support some of the most disadvantaged children in England.
Joining us on Approach in 2027, you could be working in one of the following areas:
North East
Yorkshire and the Humber
We expect to partner with local authorities across Yorkshire and the Humber. This may include Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds, North East Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire, North Yorkshire (Knaresborough, Richmond, Scarborough), Sheffield, Wakefield and York.
North West
We expect to partner with local authorities in Greater Manchester and Merseyside. This may include, Bolton, Cheshire West and Chester, Halton, Lancashire, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, St Helens, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Warrington and Wirral.
East Midlands
We expect to partner with local authorities across the East Midlands. This may include Derbyshire, Leicester city, Northamptonshire, and Nottinghamshire.
West Midlands
We expect to partner with local authorities across the West Midlands. This may include Coventry, Sandwell, Solihull, Staffordshire, Walsall, Warwickshire, Wolverhampton and Worcestershire.
London
We expect to partner with local authorities across London. This may include Barnet, Bromley, Croydon, Havering, Hounslow, Lambeth, Merton, Richmond and Kingston, Southwark, Sutton, Tower Hamlets and Wandsworth.
East of England
We expect to partner with local authorities across the East of England. This may include Central Bedfordshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Luton and Thurrock.
South East
We expect to partner with local authorities across the South East. This may include Kent, Milton Keynes, Oxfordshire, Slough, Surrey, West Berkshire and Wokingham.
South West
We expect to partner with local authorities across the South West. This may include Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, Devon, North Somerset, Plymouth, Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire.
Please note that the locations listed above are subject to change. We don’t run the programme everywhere, and locations will close throughout the season as they reach capacity.
As the role of a social worker is one that involves visiting families in the community being able to drive at the point of application, and having access to a car by September 2027, is a requirement for all local authority placements outside of London.
We receive a high volume of applications for our programme and places fill up quickly. We therefore recommend you apply as soon as possible to ensure your best chance of securing a place in your preferred location on the programme. If you are currently learning to drive you can apply when you have passed your test for non London locations. We expect some locations to be open until December, and also reopen in February.
Things to consider before applying
We partner with local authorities across England, all offering the same high-quality training, development and support. By being flexible about where you are placed, you can help improve outcomes for children in the areas that need social workers most.
During the application process for Approach Social Work, you will be given the opportunity to tell us more about yourself and your circumstances. Your placement will then be carefully chosen with consideration of your circumstances and the needs of our local authority partners.
Due to the fast-track nature of the programme, that combines work and study, we cannot consider applicants whose commute would be longer than 45 minutes during rush hour for most of our locations. Locations that have a 60 minute commute limit will be made clear when you register. Acceptable commute limits vary by local authority, due to geography and demand for places.
The following advice will help you prepare for your placement.
Consider your preferences carefully
If you were given a placement offer for the programme, you’d be committing to work for that local authority for the full three years. Consequently, we encourage you to carefully consider your personal circumstances and whether there are options that fit with these. We have found that applicants are far more likely to complete the programme successfully when they have an appropriate support network nearby, and we therefore rarely place people in locations where they do not have an existing network.
Review car access
As the role of a social worker is one that involves visiting families in the community, being able to drive and having access to a car is a requirement for all local authority placements outside of London. You won’t be able to apply outside of London if you cannot currently drive. If you don’t currently have access to a car, consider whether this will be possible for you to obtain before the programme starts.
We recognise that some applicants will be medically exempt from driving. We work with individuals on a case-by-case basis in these circumstances to identify a suitable placement.
Plan your finances
On Approach Social Work, participants receive a bursary for the first year of the programme and a salary from their local authority in the second and third.
However, we recommend that applicants are proactive in planning ahead with their finances, as you may need access to other sources of finance during year one to top up the bursary to cover your living costs. We recommend using budgeting tools to support you in determining if it would be helpful to save, if possible, ahead of starting the programme.
Applications for Approach Social Work are open
Apply now to join our 2027 cohort. Locations close as they reach capacity, so we recommend completing your application as soon as possible.