Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Social Workers Registration Act 2003

Preliminary

3: Purpose

You could also call this:

"This law helps keep people safe by making sure social workers are good at their job and follow the rules."

Illustration for Social Workers Registration Act 2003

The purpose of this Act is to protect the public by making sure social workers are competent to do their job and accountable for their actions. You can think of competent as being skilled and knowledgeable enough to do the job properly. This Act also creates a framework for social workers to register in New Zealand and determines what they are allowed to do in their job.

This Act establishes a board to register social workers and gives it certain powers, and it also sets up a tribunal to discipline social workers if they do not follow the rules.

The Act aims to make social workers more professional in their work, which means they will be better at their job and provide good services to people who need them.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM189921.

Topics:
Government and voting > Government departmentsHealth and wellbeing > Healthcare servicesHealth and wellbeing > Mental healthWork and jobs > Job licenses
Previous

2: Commencement, or

"When the Social Workers Registration Act 2003 starts to apply in New Zealand"

Next

4: Interpretation, or

"What special words mean in the Social Workers Registration Act 2003"

Part 1Preliminary

3Purpose

  1. The purpose of this Act is—

  2. to protect the safety of members of the public, by prescribing or providing for mechanisms to ensure that social workers are—
    1. competent to practise; and
      1. accountable for the way in which they practise; and
      2. for the purposes of paragraph (a), to create a framework for the registration of social workers in New Zealand and determine their scopes of practice, and—
        1. establish a board to register social workers, and provide for its powers; and
          1. establish a tribunal to exercise the disciplinary powers over social workers conferred by this Act; and
            1. to enhance the professionalism of social workers.

              Notes
              • Section 3(b): amended, on , by section 4(1) of the Social Workers Registration Legislation Act 2019 (2019 No 3).
              • Section 3(b)(ii): amended, on , by section 4 of the Social Workers Registration Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 17).
              • Section 3(c): repealed, on , by section 4(2) of the Social Workers Registration Legislation Act 2019 (2019 No 3).