Doing Child-Protection Social Work with Parents: What Are the Barriers in Practice?

Abstract

For many social workers, participatory practice may seem an unachievable goal, particularly in the field of child protection. In this paper, we discuss a significant programme of change in one London local authority, as part of which we undertook 110 observations of practice and provided more than 80 follow-up coaching sessions for workers. Through these observations, we saw many examples of key participatory practice skills such as empathy, collaboration and involvement in decision-making. We also saw many examples of reducing autonomy and excluding parents from decision-making. Often, we found the same worker would adopt a participatory approach with one family and a non-participatory approach with another. Through coaching sessions, we explored how and why workers used different approaches and discussed the barriers to adopting a more consistently participatory approach. These discussions led us to reflect on fundamental questions relating to the purpose of child protection social work, how social workers can best help families and what the limits might be of participation in situations of high risk. We argue that truly participatory child protection social work requires not simply better training or different tools but an innovation in the value-base of Children's Services.

Socio-Educational Support Deficits in the Emancipation of Protected Youth in Spain

“…When making decisions, it is important not to forget that it is your own life. It is essential, on the path of good practice, not only to defend changes in the protection system but also in the professionals’ beliefs about the people they accompany (Wilkins & Whittaker, 2018 ). The professionals must believe in the potential of youth participation and attempt to overcome the obstacles to participation.…”

The Children of Looked After Children

“…Ferguson concluded that where workers were able to communicate and engage positively with families, there was potential for 'deep and meaningful' relationships as well as therapeutic change. Similarly, Wilkins and Whittaker ( 2018 ) observed both directive and authoritarian approaches with families, as well as relationship-based and participatory ways of working. Interestingly, the authors noted variation in practice across workers but also in individuals' interactions with diff erent families.…”

Evaluating the Quality of Social Work Supervision in UK Children’s Services: Comparing Self-Report and Independent Observations

“…The primary aims of the project were to improve the quality of social work practice, to improve the experiences of children and families, and to reduce the need for children to enter public care. As part of this project, social workers were routinely observed in practice and supervision and were offered follow-up mentoring and feedback sessions (Wilkins and Whittaker 2017 ). We coded observations of practice using an established skills framework (Whittaker et al 2016 ).…”