On behalf of the CCCU Social Work team, I am delighted to welcome you to our social work community. We are excited to support you as you begin your journey towards becoming qualified social workers. You are joining a vibrant and supportive community here at CCCU and will become part of a wider network of social work professionals at the local, national, and international level. We look forward to warmly welcoming you during Welcome Week and to meeting you in person very soon.

Lauren Martins
Course Director

Your Teaching Timetable

Teaching for your course will begin w.c 21 September 2026.

To help you plan your first few weeks, you can view an overview of the teaching activities for your course.

View your first semester teaching timetable.

On a mobile device, click the arrow next to “Search” at the top right of the page to view your timetable.

If your course is taught in groups, the overview will show activities for all groups. You will only need to attend sessions for your allocated group.

Once teaching begins, your individual timetable and group allocation will be available in MyTimetable provided you have completed online registration and created your computing account.

Your Semester 1 Modules

Social Work in Context & Practice 1

 Collaborative Working and Social Work Values

Key dates

Academic Calendar: Semesters with Professional Learning Block

View key dates for this Academic Calendar for 2026-27 including when teaching starts and finishes and when you break for holidays.

Welcome

Your Welcome Week is an essential introduction to your course and the wider University, helping you to feel confident and prepared for your studies from the very start. It is very important that you attend, as this week will help orientate you to university life and Level 4 study.

Please make sure to check your Course Welcome Week timetable for all the activities you are required to attend as part of your course induction. During this week, you will have the opportunity to get to know your cohort, meet the teaching team, experts by experience and practitioners, and be introduced to your Personal Academic Tutor.

We also encourage you to explore the Student Events Hub, where you will find a range of fun activities, including the Students’ Union Welcome Fair, to help you make friends and make the most of your CCCU student experience.

Students are expected to engage fully with all scheduled academic, practice and professional learning activities associated with the course. Attendance and engagement will be monitored in line with University policies.

Getting started

Occupational Health & DBS Clearance 

Please ensure that you engage with all Occupational Health, DBS and the declaration of suitability form required by the Admissions Team.

Failure to complete this by the time you register on the course may result in you not being able to proceed with your studies.

Occupational Health

Students need to obtain Occupational Health clearance to ensure they are fit to practice.

You will be prompted via your ‘MyRecord’ to complete a clearance check and directed to an online health questionnaire.

You are not required to attend an Occupational Health vaccination appointment as a Social Work student.

For enquiries about your occupational health clearance please email cccustudents@ohworks.co.uk or phone 01227 286288. 

Support & Wellbeing

We are proud to be an inclusive University that supports a diverse community of students. Please note that if you have a disability or would like to learn more about the support that we can offer to students, please visit the Disability and Mental Health website.

Pre-Course Task

  1. What has led you to study social work? What are you bringing to this next phase of your life/career in terms of prior experiences, values, strengths, learning needs, hopes and concerns?

  1. What do you think being a professional’ might mean for you? Can you think of a prominent person in social work you have heard about in your research and in your reading? Who is this person, what are they known for and what makes them prominent in social work or for you?

Additional Activities

We recommend that you take some time to familiarise yourself with the Learning Skills Hub in preparation for the course. You may find it helpful to work through modules on time management, introduction to referencing, academic integrity and plagiarism, generative AI guidance, and language skills.

Engaging with these resources ahead of your studies will help you build a strong foundation for your academic work.

Your Must Do Tasks

There are some key tasks you'll need to complete to make sure you are ready to become a CCCU student. 

Some of these can't be completed until you have been invited to register but your Occupational Health and DBS check can be completed prior to this. You will be prompted via My Record to complete these so make sure you are checking your personal email regularly for this. Please complete these checks as soon as possible 

Registration invitations are sent towards the end of August. We'll send yours to the email address you used when you applied, so please check this inbox regularly to make sure you don't miss any important information.

Pre-course reading

​​We would encourage you to review the course structure and module options via your course page before you arrive.

​You might find it useful to read the following resources before starting your course:

  • ​Being familiar with Social Work England’s Professional Standards and BASW’s Professional Capabilities Framework for social work will support your learning.

 

​​Additional suggestions:

  • ​Adams, R. (2010) The Short Guide to Social Work. Bristol: The Policy Press. 

  • ​Baptiste, A. J. (2024), Looked After, A Childhood in Care. Hachette: Hodder and Stoughton

  • ​Barrington, F. (2015) Known to Social Services. East Longmeadow: Faraxa Publishing. 

  • ​Doel, M. (2023) Social Work: The Basics. 2nd edn. Oxon: Routledge. 

  • ​Hilton, S. (2015) More Human: Designing a World Where People Come First. London: Penguin Random House. 

  • ​Howe, D. and Hill, D. (2024) A brief introduction to social work theory. London: Bloomsbury 

  • ​Jones, O. (2011) Chavs: The demonization of the Working Class. London: Verso. 

  • ​Pierre, R. (2024), Free Loaves on Fridays: The Care System As Told By People Who Actually Get It. London: Unbound

  • ​Pierson, J. (2010) Tackling Social Exclusion. 2nd edn. Abingdon: Routledge. 

  • ​Reid, W. and Maclean (eds) (2021). Outlanders: Hidden Narratives from Social Workers of Colour. Newry: Kirwin Maclean Associates

  • ​Sissay, L. (2019) My Name is Why, Edinburgh: Canongate Books 

​We also recommend listening to Podcasts such as:

​British Association of Social Workers (BASW), (2025), Let’s Talk Social Work

​Fisher, T. and Devine, R. (2025), Relational Activism in Social Work

International student success programme

International students: don't miss out! Make sure you register for our international student success programme which provides practical advice on preparing to live and study in the UK.

Contact details

Have a question?

Speak to our friendly team for support.