Social Worker Sharing

  As I am sure you are aware it is pride month and I was having an interesting conversation the other day about how we bring up topics such as sexual orientation, pronouns, gender identity and sexuality with the people we support. As I have mentioned in previous blogs the cases I work on in my team are predominantly older people and I think some people feel uncomfortable asking the people we support these types of questions. As part of our work we update the system with equality monitoring information and one of the questions asked is about sexual orientation. I have seen people complete this part of the questionnaire without actually checking that the information they are inputting is correct. I believe that what happens on a lot of occasions are people get a history from the person who talks about their marriage and an assumption is made about their sexual orientation. Just because someone ends up married to someone of the opposite sex this does not necessarily mean that the...

Paperwork and record taking is definitely up there as one of the worst parts of the job. I think this comes from the fact that a lot of us get into this type of work to support people, help and be there for them. Record taking and paperwork don't make us feel like that is what we are doing. It can feel a lot of the time like it is a task to complete so we can get back to the “real” work. Don't get me wrong some days I definitely feel this way too but more recently I have thought more about it both following training courses but also just generally in my day to day work. The notes that we take serve a purpose. They let people know what is currently happening on the case. They record who has taken responsibility for particular tasks. It notes down the outcome of a meeting or assessment. It also covers our backs if something happens down the line. Good note taking makes sure that we can evidence exactly what was said or done in case it is needed. One thing that was said to ...

Values and Ethics are vital in Social Work practice and something that you not only complete modules about when studying but they also run through your practice every day. I know that there are a lot of situations where people's personal lives change dramatically through completing their Social Work degree and a lot of this comes down to values. The easiest way I can describe what completing your Social Work degree does is breaks you down and then builds you up piece by piece. It brings your values to the forefront of your mind and you reflect A LOT on how this looks to you. It also impacts your relationships because you find yourself noticing where your values do not line up. You find yourself speaking up more and people who know you best don't necessarily know how to take it. You would presume that the majority of people who come into Social Work hold similar beliefs on the major issues. Which on the whole in my experience they do, however there are so many other situat...

  I always find it interesting when I am speaking to colleagues who are either students or new to Social Work. There are so many aspects of Social Work that you don't realise are a thing until you attend certain training courses or get a particular case. I was having a discussion regarding the various type of Mental Capacity Assessments that are carried out and although this is something we complete on a semi regular basis in our team we generally complete them for either place of residence or finances but there are a lot of situations where they are also done. One example of this is whether someone has the capacity to consent to marriage which is something that we do not see often, whereas for Social Workers in other teams this may be something they come across a lot more often. There are so many different teams in a council that will all deal with completely different situations even though we cover the same geographical area because our client group is different. As I hav...

I am ready to be back in my own team now which tells me that the role I have chosen is definitely the one for me. I went on a duty visit this week with a colleague and it reminded me why I love what I do. I am hoping I will be back in my team soon enough that I can take it on. The family member present at the visit when we explained we were on duty that day not allocated to it asked whether someone else in our team who was allocated it would be as good as us. They would as I work in a good team but it is always nice to know that someone feels you are doing things well. I feel like I am back in my stride now which is crazy to say when I have been back from maternity leave 7 months and I am only just feeling this way but that is how it feels. Everything has been different since I came back between going part time, having to continue with my studies before I finished my ASYE and then later on being on secondment from my own team to the other project I have been working on. I have tho...

As I explained in a previous blog I am currently working on a project separate from my team. I have really enjoyed this but it has feel a step away from Social Work even though I am completing Care Act Assessments as I would be in my normal job and asking the same questions. I think because there has been a time crunch on the project it has meant that I have been getting the information quicker and then getting everything processed. Which has been the best for the people in the situation but has meant there has been less opportunity to relationship build. I have enjoyed working on this project up to now and it is coming to the end of the process and I am looking forward to going back to my own team. I have found that when visiting people for the odd cases I am still holding in my own team I have really enjoyed the opportunity to relationship build and support people in a more holistic way as opposed to working through a process to be completed as soon as possible. It has made me...

This is a weird one for me to write because I finish my ASYE tomorrow and this blog started from writing about my experiences as a NQSW which has been a part of my identity for a long time but presuming everything tomorrow goes well (fingers crossed) then I won't be that anymore. I will officially be a Level 2 Social Worker. I feel a mix of emotions with this. I feel relieved because the paperwork is all done and handed in but I also feel a bit I don't know if sad is the right word. I started over 2 years ago because of maternity leave in the middle, I have done it both full time and part time. Before I was a parent and after so it has been a bit part of my life and although I am staying in my team so nothing changes day to day it is starting to feel different. I feel the imposter syndrome I had more so when I started my ASYE rearing its ugly head again. I started that fresh out of university and that feels an entire lifetime ago. The people I started with have long sinc...