Social work news

Vicky Ford addresses the Association of Directors of Children's Services ADCS annual conference...

Specialist social workers explain how they support women and girls affected by the practiceWhen social worker Sam Khalid not her real name first began working with women affected by female genital mutilation FGM she found there wasn't much awareness of the brutal practice in the UK She was in her first year at university in on a placement with a Women's Aid team The service I was placed in was just starting its FGM unit...

New government recruitment campaign will raise the image and profile of the sectorThis year we are celebrating the th anniversary of our amazing NHS but we must not forget that adult social care is also marking years The National Assistance Act that created many of the core elements of the modern social care system came into effect on the same day as the NHS act In the NHS's birthday month we have heard many stories...

Young refugees face unspeakable trauma to get here But a cross-charity initiative is helping them to rebuild their livesIt is hard to be an adult when you feel like you haven't had the chance to be a child This simple statement has stayed with me over the last months of working with young refugees and asylum seekers Among them a -year-old boy forced to sleep in a railway station for months and another who witnessed...

Report highlights risk of rising inequality against women worldwideThe world economy faces a looming care crisis risking further division between men and women across the planet according to a UN report calling for governments and companies worldwide to spend at least an extra tn tn on care by Making the case for spending on support for children old people and the neediest in society to double by the end of the next decade the UN's...

Assessing what the health service needs is essential before giving it more money to meet demandFour key things were missing from Theresa May's announcement of extra money for the NHS There was no admission that there is an NHS crisis that needs tackling Or that money is needed now for both the the health service and social care Without this emergency cash injection there will be insufficient time and resource to make the necessary preparations...

Winning Britain's Got Talent has given me a platform -- and it's great to see other care users having a say about their livesThis is what used to happen to people like me who use care and support services important folk made big decisions behind closed doors Then if we were lucky they would invite us to consult to see if their plans were any good They'd send out a long complicated report and give...

Researchers are testing motion-sensitive technology to see if it could detect and prevent falls -- and reduce hospital admissions Former hod carrier George Foster describes himself as technophobic But when he was given the chance to have Xbox technology driven by artificial intelligence installed in the sitting room of his Salford home to monitor his every movement he saw the chance to ensure his continued independence The -year-old -- who is prone to what he...

Delayed discharges are increasing in mental health but this scandal will not be addressed by the forthcoming green paperAnyone who has spent time on an acute mental health ward will know what challenging places they can be for both patients and staff Vulnerable people with serious mental health problems too often receive poor care in an environment that is unsafe and far from therapeutic You would not want to your loved one to be somewhere...

More than of people say they would not like to begin a career in social care survey findsMinisters have been warned of a dangerous shortfall of care workers as a new survey reveals barely one in five people would consider a career in the sector Almost seven in people think a care career is undervalued by society -- and more than two in think care work is not valued by the government the survey suggests...