Social Work here in the UK

I have put off discussing my work in my blog simply because it's too early, really, to form an opinion. I can share some of my experiences and impressions thus far. So, here goes.

As with any new job, there's all the unsettling feelings of being new, not knowing your way around, trying to find out how things are done in the office, names of all your coworkers and what they do, who different resource people are, learning about your cases and meeting all of them. Like in NY, there's learning a new computerized record-keeping system. I learned one called Swift. In 2 months, I will forget all that I learned and start learning a new one, because the county is transitioning to a new system.

There are similarities that I noticed immediately. More time is spent doing case recording and filling out forms than is spent face-to-face with clients. Human nature is the same on both sides of the pond. The same client struggles exist here as in the US. The same responses to intervention exist in both places. As in the US, there is a lack of support services, such as counseling for children, to name but one. On a number of occasions I have joked with my fellow recruit from NY that we could easily start our own practice to provide a range of services. There certainly is a need for attachment work, trauma work and general counseling for children and families.

Now, to the social care system differences. I spent a week at a local university learning about legislation that governs Social Care with children and Child Protection. I spent another 3 days in classes provided by the county, learning the things that are specific to this county. Services are set up very differently here. The philosophy is very different. On one hand, there is very little pressure to terminate parent's right so a child can be adopted, unlike the ASFA inspired perspective in the US. England does not seem to think that adoption is a great option for children much beyond the early years. Children can remain in care for a very long time if parent's are unable to provide for them. Babies are considered the optimal adoptee. It appears unheard of at this point that a teen would be adopted here. There is no time limit during which a parent has to "get it together" in order for their children to be returned. Services for the family with the child still in the home are much the same as the services provided after placement, if that is what occurs. While social workers are vigilant about watching for signs of abuse with children, the process to protect them by moving them out of the home is more complicated. Only the police can remove a child from a home. Legal criteria must be met in order for more intensive steps to be taken. There are strict legal guidelines for removing a child, and a social worker cannot do this alone. Initially, I was concerned about the process being too slow, but I have withheld judgment until I have more experience and opportunities to see it in action.

My days have not really been typical thus far, so it's hard to describe a typical day. Anyone who works in child protection and similar areas knows that you seldom have a typical day anyway. Crises arise, appointments get changed, meetings pop up and paperwork is a constant. But, there is activity in the office on most mornings, consulting with colleagues about cases, getting ad hoc supervision, answering phone calls and emails, writing up case recordings, care plans, reports, tracking down needed assessments from outside providers, arranging family visits, home visits, training. Toward the end of the day, the social workers are in the field, seeing the children, checking on families. There are many unannounced visits due to the nature of the cases, as well as scheduled ones. Caseloads run up to 20 on my team. Statutory visits are once every 6 weeks, but often there are more contacts that that. Social workers can delegate visits and family sessions to senior support workers. In England, it is only recently that Social Workers have to become "qualified". Those workers who do not have the qualification lost their title. However, a social worker can become qualified with a Bachelor's degree in social work. Seldom does a social worker get a Master's degree here.
Social workers do not do counseling, at least not the social workers who work in social care. Social Workers working in the Health field may do that, but from what I have gathered, counseling is primarily the domain of psychologists. There is no "clinical social work" credential.
There has been a shortage of social workers in England, which is why counties have been recruiting from overseas. Many of the social workers in our office are "agency" workers. That means they are not permanent employees of the county. They are similar to temporary workers. They can stay as long as they want. They make more money, but get no benefits. The turnover rate for social workers in jobs is much higher here than in the US, from my experience. The loss this creates for clients, especially children, is acknowledged, but accepted as "how things are". This surprised me.
So, that's a little bit about the work. There is a learning curve, just as there way back home. The work is complex. The culture, different. I'm thinking it will take two years to feel a sense of competency here, which isn't bad. I figured about the same for similar work in the US.

One thing I must mention, because it's so important, is how wonderful the English social workers and support staff have been. Humor and food abound in the office, just like at home. People are generous with their help with casework, answering your questions or with offering to fetch you a cup of tea! Everyone is friendly. Everyone laughs easily. It's great. I couldn't ask for better coworkers. While I miss my friends from my work in the States, I have great people to work with here. Everyone has fun with the differences in our cultures. It's all very open. They are interested in us and we in them. The staff is quite international in its makeup, so they are accustomed to interacting with a diverse group. It's warm and friendly. People work to maintain high ethical standards and I admire that. I have to say, most of the time I feel very much at home.