Professionals in social work jobs in Surrey are set to have their workload assessed by officials to ensure they are not being overburdened.

Speaking to BBC News, Surrey County Council cabinet member for children and families Mary Angell hailed the job that social workers do, noting the difficult circumstances they often encounter.

The 'health checks', as the assessments are known, will be carried out alongside workers union Unite and are set to explore people's workload, training and supervision levels among issues.

Councillor Angell told the news agency: "We're the first council in the country to do these health checks with the help of the union and this reflects the importance we attach to taking good care of our social workers."

The government has recommended that every local authority in the country carry out this type of review following the Baby Peter incident, with Surrey County Council opting to look at 300 roles as part of the project.

Last week, Steve Liddicott, interim social care manager and associate to Tribal Plc, described on PublicNet how important accurate case recording is for social workers.

He suggested all employees in the profession would benefit from having electronic systems on which to store data, but stressed the importance of it being purpose-built for the sector.