Social Work in Practice

Written by experienced practitioners and academics, this is a core text about the practice of residential child care. It takes as its starting point the fact that residential child care involves workers and children sharing a common lifespace, in which the quality of interpersonal relationships is key. Each chapter highlights relevant policy guidance and is developed around a practice scenario, discussing key knowledge skills and values relating to its theme. This highly practical book should, therefore, be of value to a range of students at different academic levels, from VQ to Masters, and to practitioners and managers in residential child care. The book draws on ideas from child and youth care and social pedagogic traditions and will appeal to a worldwide audience and provides a valuable addition to the emerging literature around social pedagogy.

Practice research partnerships in social work can make a significant difference to social work service delivery. This comprehensive, accessibly written resource, is designed to help students and practitioners to actively engage with research through their frontline work. Through clear practice scenarios, critical questions and examples from research the text guides researchers, students, educators, practice managers, funders and practitioners to creatively explore partnerships in creating, contributing, consuming, commissioning or critiquing evidence in and for social work practice. The text encourages collaborative practice by demonstrating the transformative nature of knowledge networks to 'make a difference' in social work practice. An essential text for students undertaking professional training at all levels as well as meeting the needs of qualified staff for continued professional development.

In the field of learning difficulties there has been a revolution in professional understanding and user aspirations towards delivery of services. Institutional models no longer prevail; language, attitudes and practices have been transformed. Full of up-to-date case studies, practice examples and points for reflection, this exciting textbook explores how to embed this culture shift into mainstream services. It explores theoretical frameworks for working with people with learning difficulties and examines the role of services and the social worker, drawing on person-centred, community-centred and family involvement perspectives. Essential reading for anyone studying social work or nursing people with learning difficulties.

Social workers and other social care professionals regularly face the challenges of working with people with alcohol and other drug problems. Yet many receive little, if any, training for working with these issues. As substance use and its social impact on communities and families rises up the political agenda, this book offers a timely support for social workers and other social care staff working in this area. Supporting people with alcohol and drug problems addresses the current gap in social work and social care education. It provides a combination of research evidence, policy frameworks, and practical hints and tips for good social work practice. Based around practice examples supplied by social workers from both adults' and children's social care, it combines knowledge with action. It also provides an important introduction to the evidence base on assessment, intervention and partnership working with specialist substance use colleagues. This book is for all those working in children's and adults' social work and social care settings who are working with people who use, or have problems with, alcohol and other drugs.

Based on original research, this book offers students an insight into the nature and challenges of writing in social work practice, enabling them to improve their writing skills. It explores the ways in which both students and qualified social workers can be more effective in their writing through an awareness of the purpose, context and audience. It makes explicit the connections and differences between learning to write in university and communicating through writing in practice and explores the impact that new technologies have on academic and professional writing. Drawing on both research and examples from practice, Effective writing for social work is a valuable tool for students, educators, practitioners and managers to critically examine ways in which writing could better support best practice in social work.

This book examines how religion and related beliefs have varied impacts on the needs and perceptions of practitioners, service users, and the support networks available to them. The authors argue that social workers need to understand these phenomena, so that they can become more confident in challenging discriminatory and oppressive practices. The centrality of religion and associated beliefs in the lives of many is emphasized, as are their potentially liberating (and potentially negative) impacts. In line with the Social Work in Practice series style, the book allows readers to explore issues in depth. It focuses on knowledge transmission, and the encouragement of critical reflection on practice. Each chapter is built around 'real-life' case scenarios using a problem-based learning approach. This book is the first to deal with social work and religion so comprehensively and will therefore be essential reading not only for social work students, but also for practitioners in a range of areas, social work academics and researchers in the UK and beyond.

Social work in the community offers practice guidance to students, practice assessors and practitioners within a political, theoretical, methodological and ethical framework. The book is written from an experiential learning perspective, encouraging the reader not only to understand the ideas and methods but to test them out in their own practice, which additionally provides an element of problem-based learning. The book is written within the framework of the practice curriculum for the social work degree, including the National Occupational Standards and an extended statement of values for practice. This will enable students to use the book to make sense of their practice in relation to the knowledge, skills and values of social work practice in its community context.

Social work in the UK has recently undergone its biggest change for 30 years. As new regulatory bodies are working to consolidate social work's professional status, a new training programme, now at degree level, expects increased in-practice learning. Yet until now, students have struggled to find resources to underpin their learning. This major text addresses the new agenda and explores what social work is in the 21st Century. Structured around the framework of the National Occupational Standards for social work - and using terminology and concepts contained within them - the book examines how social work can make a difference in the lives of individuals, families and communities and argues that to really make a difference it is necessary to think outside the box. The book provides all social work students with an introductory social work textbook for the 21st century with the main chapters following the six National Occupational Standards for social work. Each chapter uses a problem-based learning approach, beginning with a 'real-life' case scenario from social work practice and drawing on messages from theory and research. It includes a range of student friendly features including glossaries, summaries, questions, exercises, further reading and links to other resources and is written by leading authors in their field and evaluated in detail by a distinguished editorial panel. Demonstrating social work's potential to be transformative, this book provides the perfect introductory text for a new generation of social workers.

Practitioners must be able to listen, talk, communicate and engage with children and young people if they are going to make a real difference to their lives. The key principles of collaborative, relational, child-centred working underpin all the ideas in this bestselling, practice-focused textbook. Using an innovative 'Knowing, Being, Doing' model, it features reflective exercises, practice examples, vignettes, cutting-edge research findings and theoretical perspectives. This new edition includes: • Updated references to policy, legislation, professional requirements, practice tools and research, including around unaccompanied young refugees and asylum seekers, and child sexual exploitation; • New learning from ethnographic and observational research of social workers' direct practice with children; • Added focus on the context for practice, including the role of supervision and organisational containment in developing practitioners' emotional capabilities. With detailed coverage of key skills, this book will equip students and practitioners with the critical thinking and tools needed for effective practice in order to promote the welfare, protection and rights of children and young people.

This topical book engages with a wide range of issues related to social work practice with people who have sexually offended. It addresses the emotional impacts of 'facing the sex offender', the importance of values and ethics in practice, and reviews popular and academic understandings of sex offenders and sex crimes. Its accessible style and use of practice based learning exercises will help readers to reflect on theory, practice and developing emotional resilience.