Social Work with Foundation Year

Social work is a profession built on a commitment to human dignity, social justice, and the right of people to live free from harm and oppression. Social workers support individuals and families facing some of the most difficult circumstances in human life: poverty, abuse, neglect, mental illness, disability, domestic violence, and the many forms of social exclusion that prevent people from living well. The role requires empathy, resilience, rigorous professional knowledge, and the capacity to act with both care and authority in complex, often high-pressure situations.

At Keele University, this four-year full-time BA includes a foundation year that gives students who need it the academic grounding to succeed in the main degree. The programme prepares you to become an autonomous professional social worker, capable of supporting diverse groups of people of all ages and of promoting human rights and social justice in practice. You will learn how to assess needs, develop and implement support plans, navigate legal frameworks, and work effectively within the multi-agency systems that characterise modern social care.

Keele's strong connections with practice partners give you access to well-supported placements in social work settings, which are a fundamental part of professional formation for any social worker. The typical entry tariff is 72 UCAS points.

Graduates who meet the requirements for registration with Social Work England are qualified to work as professional social workers in children's services, adult social care, mental health, substance misuse, youth justice, and hospital social work. Social work offers genuine variety, the constant challenge of complex human situations, and the reward of making a direct and sometimes transformative difference to people's lives. Many social workers also develop specialist expertise through postgraduate study or continuing professional development, moving into advanced practice, management, or academic teaching and research.