I recently spent time at the Royal College of Nursing’s (RCN) headquarters. Walking down a corridor, I was struck by the fact that the awards received each year were proudly displayed on the walls.
I couldn’t help but wonder at the disparity between the RCN’s pride and social work’s self-perception. We often shy away from ownership of our professional identity. The introduction of Social Work Awards by the Northern Ireland Social Care Council reflects progress, but nominations remain low compared with other professions.
Social workers apparently lack the confidence to openly celebrate their work. Several years ago, after being nominated for an award, I was warned by a non-social work manager to “be careful of raising your head above the parapet”, so I backed out. Why are we so predisposed to undervaluing our work?
During my training nearly two decades ago, I recall feeling worried that the impending “professionalisation” of social work would be detrimental to our service.
These debates continue, yet today I am committed to professionalism. I have thrived through engaging in professional development, facilitated by mentorship from experienced social workers. My peers and I have been able to take ownership of our professional identities, developing professional resilience while enhancing the skills we have to offer service users and supporting colleagues and those we supervise as practice teachers.
I am proud to oversee the protocols now in place for the training of undergraduates, and Northern Ireland boasts some of the most robust assessment processes in the UK. However, a recent article reported that the average length of time social workers remained in the profession was less than eight years.
Could the reportedly low membership of the British Association of Social Workers (BASW) be related to this? Its membership reflects low numbers of younger social workers and students. Northern Ireland has a particularly low membership rate – it’s possible that the integration of health and social care over 40 years ago has resulted in social workers being removed from their professional community more often.
Essential medical services and their funding have historically been ring-fenced – and rightly so. Yet social care, the poor cousin, continues to experience cuts as “softer” services silently slip from sight. I have observed the insidious withdrawal of funding from social work over the past 10 years.
Conversely, over the same period, I have come to better value my profession and the work I do. Being able to facilitate change and empower people is a privilege and has modest but often moving rewards. When I took up my first qualified post nearly 20 years ago, one of my social work colleagues advised me that she told people she worked “in admin” when asked about her job in the local city council. Just 10 years ago in a health and social care trust in Northern Ireland, another colleague admitted that she didn’t disclose her social work status to friends and non-social work acquaintances.
Frustratingly, I continue to hear social workers diminish their role. So it is no surprise to me that social workers do not flock to join the BASW and its regional partners in the UK. As a professional community, we are still partly conflicted by our own professional identities.
Yet our community still has opportunities to share ideas, address professional frustrations and lobby for change. Social work students, newly qualified social workers and seasoned practitioners are able to come together to create a stronger voice and cultivate a positive professional culture. Change is taking place, with lobbying by BASW and its regional partners, and a shift in our interface with the media.
The British Medical Association, the RCN and other professional organisations are achieving change and asserting their position in the ongoing debate around funding cuts and austerity measures. This did not happen by chance.
There is no doubt that if social workers come together we can assert ourselves professionally in a similar fashion. The resilience to weather the uncertainties of our practice can only be strengthened through membership of our professional body.
- Adele Boyd is a member of BASW and committee member of the Northern Ireland Association of Social Workers
The Social Life Blog is written by people who work in or use social care services. If you’d like to write an article for the series, email socialcare@theguardian.com with your ideas.
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