A SOCIAL worker will face a misconduct hearing after being accused of producing fake documents in order to fiddle her student loan claim.

Amber Okonji will appear before the Health and Care Professions Tribunal Service's conduct and competence committee next week where she faces being struck from the register.

Ms Okonji, who was a registered social worker employed by Essex County Council for approximately three years, is alleged to have allowed an unauthorised user to access her laptop which contained sensitive information relating to service users across the county.

The allegations say this was a breach of professional confidentiality on her behalf.

She is also accused of using the same laptop to produce counterfeit documents or allowing someone else to use the computer to produce them.

These fake documents were then supposedly submitted to the Student Loans Company to support her student finance application.

Between February 2015 and February 2016, Ms Okonji is said to have received roughly 12 payments from the Student Loans Company which she was not entitled to.

She did not raise any queries with the company despite knowing she was not due the cash.

The allegations state her actions were dishonest and therefore amount to misconduct on her behalf.

A spokesman for Essex County Council said: "We are aware of the Health and Care Professions Tribunal Service hearing and satisfied that concerns were thoroughly investigated and appropriate internal procedures were followed at the time regarding staff misconduct.”

Ms Okonji was dismissed from her role at Essex County Council in 2017 following County Hall's own internal investigations.

The misconduct hearing will take place at Health and Care Professions Tribunal Service in London on Tuesday (23 April).

A panel of experts will decide whether or not her actions amount to misconduct.

If they decide they do, she could be suspended, cautioned or struck off the register.