Social Services News, brought to you by IRISS

irissorg: We've just published an evidence review - Insight 13: Shaping the criminal justice system http://t.co/sha0Lfru #criminaljustice

(author unknown) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 05:40:27 PST

irissorg: We've just published an evidence review - Insight 13: Shaping the criminal justice system http://t.co/sha0Lfru #criminaljustice

Care homes urged to share good practice

(author unknown) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 01:56:00 PST

Care homes are being urged to share examples of good practice to help shape wider improvements to services.

Rap for health visitors who failed tragic toddler Declan Hainey

(author unknown) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 16:00:00 PST

TWO health visitors have been disciplined and three more ordered to undertake a “retraining programme” after a report into the death of toddler Declan Hainey criticised the part played in the tragedy by health and social care staff.

MacAskill pledge on domestic abuse

(author unknown) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 16:13:04 PST

A DEDICATED domestic abuse court has been set up in Edinburgh to speed up cases and provide more support for victims.

Why social workers need to be flexible

Andrew Holdaway — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 02:01:13 PST

This week's social life blogger explains why social work HR keeps them on their toes, and how the workforce can adapt to efficiency savings

I have worked as a personnel manager and HR director for a range of health and social care organisations for about 15 years. About four years ago I left to set up Pivotal HR, an independent provider of HR services to social care employers.

I am passionate about working in the sector because the much mooted claim, "people are our most valuable asset" is 100% true for social care.

As an HR professional, being able to see the contribution my work can make in supporting the delivery of high-quality services to vulnerable people is the most rewarding aspect of my job.

The diversity of work certainly keeps me interested and on my toes, with there being no such thing as a typical day. A day in my working life can involve interviewing with service users, analysing HR benchmarking data, designing a pay system, working on a merger, running an HR surgery and advising on a disciplinary case.

A key contribution of HR in social care is to safeguard from abuse the people who receive care and support services. This is achieved through robust recruitment and performance management systems, developed in partnership with managers, and combined with an open work culture where bad practice is readily challenged.

Social care is in the midst of significant change due to funding cuts, a move away from preventative services and a desire to link funding to future performance outcomes. In response, social care employers will need a flexible, adaptive workforce with dynamic skill sets to work in an increasingly performance-managed culture.

Social care employers are being forced to identify increasingly tough efficiency savings, while maintaining employee morale, a tough balancing act. Innovative reward, retention and development strategies are needed to attract and retain a workforce with the skills to steer social care through the tough times and out the other side.

The role of the social care workforce needs to be more highly valued by society, both in terms of recognition and funding. Do we really want to be part of a society where the support and care of vulnerable people is heading in the direction of an under-valued, minimum wage role?

One of the most rewarding aspects of my work has been supporting workers with their professional and career development.

In one of my first social care HR roles I developed a modular professional development framework, which enabled staff to work towards becoming a qualified social worker. A few years after leaving the organisation I heard that a cook in one of the hostels had just qualified as a social worker. For me, that translates social care values into employment practices.

Andrew Holdaway

Underemployment is a long-term problem – it's not just the recession

Gordon Hector — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 08:47:59 PST

I think there's something significant missing from the commentary on this week's employment statistics. That's the fact that underemployment isn't new, and isn’t just a feature of the 2008-onwards crash.

This graph is from MOPSE 2011:

It seems pretty clear. The overall total number of people who are unemployed dropped gradually from 1993 to 2004, then started rising gently, and then bumped up in 2009. What's really interesting is that across that period, the two lightest sections – part-time workers who want to go full-time, and the economically inactive wanting a job – remain roughly constant. Consistently across the period (1993 to 2011), two million or so people fit into this category.

What does this mean? Well, our current unemployment is still bad. Obviously. But it also means we have had a serious lack of jobs for a sustained period. In the long term, that is a bigger, and arguably much scarier, problem.

People with a learning disability in NHS care – deaths caused by 'institutional discrimination'

(author unknown) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 16:00:00 PST

A report said that there was continued institutional discrimination in the National Health Service against people with a learning disability. Although some positive steps had been taken, many health professionals were still failing to provide adequate care. The report highlighted the deaths of 74 people with a learning disability in NHS care over the previous 10 years that were a direct result of institutional discrimination and could have been avoided.

Source: Death by Indifference: 74 deaths and counting – A progress report 5 years on, Mencap

Links: Report | Summary | Mencap press release

irissorg: Report seeks to learn lessons from Declan Hainey’s death http://t.co/XDxx9xMc #socialwork #socialcare #childprotection

(author unknown) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 06:06:45 PST

irissorg: Report seeks to learn lessons from Declan Hainey’s death http://t.co/XDxx9xMc #socialwork #socialcare #childprotection

What it will mean for your organisation or team to win a Care Accolade!

vanessa.glenday@sssc.uk.com (Vanessa Glenday) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 06:30:24 PST

Blairgowrie News: Coupar Angus locals involved in “time bank”

Blairgowrie Advertiser — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 16:00:00 PST

A NEW INITIATIVE in Coupar Angus has seen local people volunteer to help each other out.

New court bid to tackle domestic abuse

(author unknown) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 05:44:11 PST

Up to 30 cases of domestic abuse could be dealt with each month at a new specialist court due to get up and running this week.

Government commits £1m to tackle underage and problem drinking

(author unknown) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 06:44:00 PST

Ten projects are set to share a newly created £1m government fund to tackle binge and underage drinking.

How care home staff can improve research into dementia

(author unknown) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:00:00 PST

Care home staff and residents need to become more involved in research if the quality of life of people with dementia is to improve, and a new toolkit shows them how they can, says Jill Manthorpe.

irissorg: Current vacancy - Research Fellow in Engagement and Knowledge Exchange http://t.co/8P2Zvq4j #socialwork #socialcare

(author unknown) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:03:05 PST

irissorg: Current vacancy - Research Fellow in Engagement and Knowledge Exchange http://t.co/8P2Zvq4j #socialwork #socialcare

The social work task – dealing with drug addicts, sex abuse and home makeovers

josephdevo — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 03:40:04 PST

The final programme in the three-part Protecting our Children series on BBC2 gave further insight into some of the difficult cases that arise so often within children and families social work.

Dealing with drugs
The optimism and determination displayed by the social worker working with the drug taking mother, supporting and developing her ability to change and become a capable (drug free) carer, shone through, as did her emotional resilience in accepting change was not going to happen quickly enough for the baby. She worked hard to support this mother, challenging management to allow time for such change to occur. The social worker’s distress was apparent when the regular contact – weekly visits – she had fought for and obtained was received negatively by the mother who saw this as a punishment and not the (unusual) opportunity it was.

Such cases remind us of the recent release of national figures which suggested a huge amount of children were waiting to be adopted, a revelation that led to significant negative media coverage. This baby could have fallen into these statistics and be seen by the public as a baby waiting to be adopted rather than a child for whom there is a clear plan for permanence with its grandmother.

Sex abuse concerns
It was good to see a male social worker (there are far more women in the profession than men) doing the very difficult job of ensuring a child’s immediate safety following suggestions from another professional that this child may have experienced sexual abuse by a resident registered sex offender, the mother’s partner.

How good to hear the plausible and, dare I say, ordinary conversation between the social worker and this offender who clearly wanted to stress his innocence in front of the cameras. And how professional and brave was the social worker in challenging his statements.

It was stressed by the social worker and his manager that the sudden removal of children in such circumstances is rare. This was a relief as there was a little anxiousness about the public perception of removing children so suddenly. Overall, this highlighted the difficulties faced by social workers undertaking urgent assessments and dealing with parents/carers who are unwilling to work with social services. The child’s safety is paramount.

A home fit for a child
The case which perhaps stood out in this third part, however, featured a co-ordinated intervention of several agencies to help a struggling mother to make changes in her flat that would ensure it was habitable for her daughter.

The co-ordination and efforts of all agencies involved resulted in a successful outcome and offered, as a finale for the series, an example of the success of so many social work interventions. A picture of her sparkling flat, complete with a subtitle reporting the daughter’s return home from her aunt’s home, was the closing frame of an excellent series.

But will the public dwell on this and celebrate a social work success – an example of what happens on a daily basis across the country – or will they be talking today in pubs, offices and shops about the “terrible drug taking mother” or the “paedophile”?

This programme offers merely a start in the process of widening or possibly changing the public perception of social work but it does provides a platform for us to build on. BASW wants to hear your opinions of the series, of the cases chosen and the future for how the public perceives your work. It is all of our responsibilities to continue to tackle negative images of social work.

Finally, a very well done to Bristol for opening its doors to the BBC, to Annie Hudson, director of Children and Young People’s Services for Bristol City Council, and to the wonderful social workers who, for all our sakes, worked with a camera crew pursuing them for over a year!

And thank you to the BBC for making these documentaries. The level of interest, on Twitter and elsewhere, has been extremely high. Let’s keep the debate going.

Sue Kent, BASW England professional officer

What do you think – have your say here by logging-in to MyBASW

Around 19 PhD studentships available for social care and social work

vanessa.glenday@sssc.uk.com (Vanessa Glenday) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 03:38:34 PST

alzscot: Launch of landmark 'Informed about Dementia' DVD for all health and social services staff - http://t.co/HlluzLqP

(author unknown) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:13:41 PST

alzscot: Launch of landmark 'Informed about Dementia' DVD for all health and social services staff - http://t.co/HlluzLqP

alzscot: Training in Dementia Care http://t.co/59IUP5bR

(author unknown) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 04:00:27 PST

alzscot: Training in Dementia Care http://t.co/59IUP5bR

Payback projects to receive Â£500k

(author unknown) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 16:00:00 PST

Seventeen projects to regenerate communities and ensure offenders repay debt to society.

Attachment disorder: The families struggling to stay in control

Dina Behrman — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 06:07:15 PST

Families of violent and disruptive children with attachment disorder are finding that support for the condition is in short supply

On a good day, Amy Robson's 14-year-old stepson James is just like any other teenage boy – he'll happily regale you with the latest footie scores or challenge you to a game on the PlayStation at his home in Cumbria. But on a bad day, the same teenager has been known to threaten classmates, attack teachers and even defecate in the classroom.

Two years ago James was diagnosed with attachment disorder, something that occurs when the attachment between a child and a care-giver is not formed during early childhood.

It was brought on by his chaotic start in life, when he lived in a violent household with an alcoholic mother. James was eight by the time his father was granted custody of him. Subsequently, James displayed worrying behaviour including refusing to change his underwear for several weeks and threatening to kill himself.

"We hit a crisis point [last year] as we just weren't getting any help," Robson says. "Finding treatment and support was difficult. Just getting a diagnosis was a huge task. Eventually a Camhs [child and adolescent mental health services] worker diagnosed him with attachment disorder but after a long journey with the social worker, funding was cut and that was the end of that. No more help."

Help could soon be at hand, following the award of a government grant to a group of child psychiatrists from Hull York Medical School to carry out a systematic review to determine which interventions are most effective among parents of children with attachment problems. Barry Wright, consultant child psychiatrist and honorary senior lecturer at Hull York Medical School, is leading the review, which will publish its findings in 2014. He says swift diagnosis and early intervention are vital: "Like a lot of these things, the more support you can put in early, the more dividends that pays. "

Studies have shown that children displaying attachment problems in early life usually go on to have behaviour problems. "A lot of young people we see who do commit crime on a regular basis often come from troubled backgrounds and often you can see quite clearly there are attachment problems going on there," says Wright.

Hayley Morgan is concerned that her 13-year-old adopted son Jon will go to prison. Jon has been expelled from two schools and involved with the police several times after physically attacking Morgan and her husband. Last year social workers placed him in a care home, for the safety of himself and his family.

"Jon has got worse since he's been in care. He's learning things that perhaps he wouldn't have learnt if he hadn't been there," says Morgan. "I am worried he will end up inside. It's like living with two kids because sometimes he's the nicest boy. But he's on his last warning with the police. He wants help, but where do we go for help?"

When Morgan, from Bristol, adopted Jon and 14-year-old Steve 10 years ago, she says she was given a parenting course in preparation for adoption, but the issue of attachment was never brought up.

"When he was just four, Jon used to do some very strange things, like saying he wanted to kill himself and throwing himself off the top of the stairs. Jon is very happy-go-lucky, he's very chatty and active. But his behaviour got a lot worse over the years," she says. "At one time he pulled a knife on his brother. He would see the red mist but then he would break down and cry and say, 'Mum, I don't know what to do about this anger.'"

In December, Morgan was finally offered a council-funded course to learn about attachment issues. But she says it failed to teach her strategies to cope. She was sent on a self-defence course to deal with the violent behaviour, but Jon won't be allowed home until social workers believe he won't be a danger to himself and others.

Despite cuts to many Camhs services, the government insists that the mental health and psychological wellbeing of children is high on its agenda. In October, care services minister Paul Burstow announced a £32m investment in psychological therapies for children and young people with mental health problems, including attachment disorder.

Burstow said: "We're breaking new ground with this investment in children's mental health. We're working with young people and staff to start to change the way mental health is delivered by the NHS. Half of those with mental health problems first experience symptoms by the age of 14, and three-quarters before their mid-20s. This pioneering work will focus on early and effective treatment."

But Morgan says: "When I was talking to people at the children's home where Jon is, they said: 'We're getting them too late.'"

Robson adds: "We are petrified about the future. If we could wish for something it would be for some really good therapy that would melt away his [James's] anger. We hold out so much hope – on a good day he can be a great kid to be around."

• Some names have been changed

Dina Behrman