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Social Work alumna named as a finalist for Newly Qualified Adult Social Worker of the Year Award 2025
By: Heather Stanley
Last updated: Wednesday, 6 August 2025
2024 Social Work BA graduate, Rhiannon Williams, is a finalist for the award of Newly Qualified Adult Social Worker of the Year
Rhiannon Williams, who successfully graduated from the Social Work BA course at the University of Sussex last year, has been named as a finalist for the Newly Qualified Adult Social Worker of the Year award.
Currently employed as a social worker for Brighton & Hove City Council, Rhiannon is one of five finalists in her category.
Speaking about her finalist nomination, Rhiannon said:
“I’m truly honoured to be a finalist for Newly Qualified Adult Social Worker of the Year England. Although the award ceremony is not until October, I’m just very proud for my hard work to be recognised.
“I’m especially thankful to my university and the lecturers who supported me. I was pregnant in my first year of university and didn’t know if I would have the ability to complete the course while raising a child. Their belief in me - even when things were tough - made such a difference and I feel so grateful to have been treated with such kindness and understanding of my personal situation where I was offered flexibility around my needs as a first time mum.
“As someone with lived experience of adversity, this recognition means a lot. It’s a reminder that people like me can go on to support others and help create change. I really believe we need more voices with lived experience in social work, because that personal understanding can offer something powerful and real to the people we work with.
“I look forward to seeing some students in their placement within Brighton and Hove council, and I really encourage other social work students to ask for support when they need it. This is a role that has turned what I used to think were my weaknesses into my strengths. I wish all future social work students the best of luck in their careers.”
Winners for all 18 award categories will be announced at an award ceremony at The Midland Hotel in Manchester on Friday 17 October 2025. One individual category winner will also be crowned as ‘Overall Social Worker of the Year’, an accolade chosen exclusively by the Social Work Awards Board of Trustees.