social work approaches

What works: youth justice

Part of the IRISS What Works: Putting Research Into Practice workshops, this podcast details a talk by Professor Fergus McNeill on the range of practices and procedures for dealing with young people involved, or at risk of being involved, in offending. The event was held on Friday, 5th February 2010.

Glasgow School of Social Work Research Seminar Series: Engage, Change and Deliver

This podcast is taken from the ''Glasgow School of Social Work Research Seminar Series" held on the 9th October, and features Alan Baird, President of the Association of Directors of Social Work and Director of Social Work, Dundee City Council talks about Changing Lives in the context of what the ADSW is doing to reinvigorate the agenda and progress on personalisation of services.

How should we define social work?

The Social Work Task Force has signalled its intent to come up with a new definition of social work to counter public misconceptions. Anabel Unity Sale reports that with the negative coverage that social work attracts, it is hardly surprising that the public is not clear about what social workers do, and that people are led to believe that professionals swoop in and steal babies from families, give older people with limited mobility a bath and then make their dinner.

Care Skillsbase website

This website provides specially designed tools to help social care workers. The tools are quick, easy to use, and do not require any specialist skills expertise. All social care staff use information and communicate in their jobs. To do this they need: speaking and listening skills; reading and writing skills; number skills. Care Skillsbase helps managers in the care sector take constructive action on communication & number skills.

Task Centred Casework

This multimedia learning object provides an introduction to the "task-centered" model of social work intervention. This model was based on the work of Sigmund Freud and the psychoanalysts. Psychoanalytic social work emphasised relationship-focused intervention with the professional adopting the role of the 'expert'.

'Social evils' and 'social problems' in Britain, 1904–2008

In a contribution to the JRF's 'social evils' series, Jose Harris examines social problems and changing perceptions of them since 1904. Social evils, such as hunger and destitution, were seen by the Victorians as unavoidable. Joseph Rowntree's more positive philosophy promoted social research and intervention to transform 'social evils' into less malign 'social problems' that could be cured. However, some of these problems have subsequently reappeared.

Social Work Inspection Agency: Performance Inspection Summary: East Ayrshire Council 2009

The Social work Inspection Agency (SWIA) is carrying out performance inspections of all local authority social work services in Scotland. This leaflet summarises some key findings of the inspection of East Ayrshire Council’s social work services, which are set out in the full report published in June 2009.