Journal of Children's Services: Volume 12 Issue 2-3

Children's social work at the crossroads

Personal social services for children and families in the UK: a historical review

The purpose of this paper is to chart the history of personal social services for children and families in the UK and examine the factors that have influenced it. Special…

The contemporary refocusing of children’s services in England

The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of the changes in child protection policy and practice in England over the last 30 years, in particular to critically analyse…

In defence of a university social work education

The purpose of this paper is to identify the particular characteristics and strengths of mainstream undergraduate and postgraduate university education for social workers.

Child protection in England: an emerging inequalities perspective

In the past 40 years, both health policy and educational policy in England have adopted commitments to reducing socially created inequalities. However, an inequalities perspective…

People and systems: reflections on the development of social work for children

The purpose of this paper is to explore the aspects of social work for children, primarily in England.

Supporting practice: reflections on a career in children’s social work

The purpose of this paper is to reflect on development in children’s social work over 35 years from the perspective of someone who has worked in the field as a practitioner and…

Online video supervision for statutory youth caseworkers – a pilot study

The purpose of this paper is to present a novel online video-based approach to supervision for statutory caseworkers. Caseworkers recorded a video of their meetings with their…

The future of child protection may not be in local government

The purpose of this paper is to offer a view about the future of children’s social work from the perspective of a frontline practitioner.

Outcomes in Children’s Social Care

There are often calls for more focus on outcomes in Children’s Social Care yet there is little consensus on what these outcomes should be. Key challenges include who should decide…

The end of false choices

The purpose of this paper is to expose and dispel some outdated dilemmas and straw men that have drawn attention away from debates of substance in social work. The paper presents…

Does reflective supervision have a future in English local authority child and family social work?

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the underlying assumption that social workers need reflective supervision specifically, as opposed to managerial or any other form of…

From “silo” to “network” profession – a multi-professional future for social work

The purpose of this paper is to argue that the future of social work can be situated as part of a fundamental shift towards co-located, multi-disciplinary practice and networking…

Being more human – why children’s social care should be more about people and less about paper-work

The purpose of this paper is to argue for a strengthening of the relational aspect of social work and for initiatives that involve local people and local communities.

Bringing back the social: the way forward for children’s social work?

The purpose of this paper is to argue for the need to move away from a sole focus on assessing and dealing with individualised risk factors in order to more fully engage with and…

Turning the ship around: reflections on changing a nation’s social work practice system in the interests of children and families

The purpose of this paper is to reflect on progress and lessons in improving the social work system in England in the interests of children and families.

Future proofing child protection social work

How might the profession of child protection social work be “future proofed”, i.e. remain intact and of value beyond its present existence? The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Equipping the child welfare workforce to improve the well-being of children

The purpose of this paper is to discuss ways of equipping the child welfare (CW) workforce to improve the well-being of children through graduate education and post-MSW training.