What is the significance and role of counselling skills in current social work practice? A recent course in these skills on my journey to retrain as a counsellor has left me pondering the question.
Counselling and social work are often thought of as synonymous, perhaps due to the many overlapping roles in social work – advocate, assessor, agent of control, adviser, mentor. Many social workers enter the profession believing it more aligned with counselling than perhaps it is. I am sure, when asked at interview “why do you want to become a social worker?”, I uttered those ubiquitous words “I want to help people”.
My social care career began with using counselling skills on a mental health helpline. Through this training I learned to listen, be present and non-judgmental. My focus was solely on the person at the end of the phone. I then trained as a social worker, yet after almost two decades in the job I realised my attention had shifted to policies, procedures, assessment deadlines and time-managed practice (with fluctuating risk-averse political agendas thrown in along the way).
Taking the time and space to retrain in counselling has led me to reflect on how counselling skills are used in social work, and question whether we are using them at all in the current climate.
The differences of emphasis feels most apparent with assessment work. I now ask myself if, as a social worker, I replaced listening with analysing, acceptance with judgment, and person-centred practice with meeting organisational targets, instead of balancing all the above.
As a counsellor in training I listen, reflect and paraphrase, helping the client to make their own decisions. As a social worker I questioned, extracted information and analysed, to inform a decision about how this information affects someone’s life – with the addition of an ever-pervasive safeguarding mindset which, at best, baffles my counselling colleagues.
But if counselling and social work are frequently thought of as synonymous, where are the similarities? These, I believe, are to be found in our abilities to develop and sustain relationships with people, often in times of extreme need, distress or upheaval in their lives. We are part of someone’s life, whether through choice or compulsion, and seek to make a difference. Building relationships is therefore at the heart of both counselling and social work, requiring common skills in empathy, listening and acceptance.
There are also similarities with reflective practice. Counselling has helped me to be more aware of my own feelings and behaviours, especially my reactions and responses to those of others. As social workers we are encouraged to reflect and explore our feelings, particularly when we need to take action and make a judgment or a life-changing decision, such as to protect a child.
If we are aware of our emotions, thoughts, responses and behaviours we can better empathise with those whose lives we pass through. As a social worker I had many roles in my day-to-day practice (not forgetting tea maker, chauffeur and IT expert – turn it off and on again!), but as a counsellor I have only one role: to be present and listen.
Both counselling and social work are founded on a combination of values, ethics and boundaries. We must recognise a person’s self-worth and capacity for change, and help them to achieve this with dignity and respect.
So amid the political agendas, organisational constraints and assessment deadlines, counselling skills are significant in social work practice. They help us with self-awareness, enable us to look after ourselves and remind us to value the reason we became a social worker in the first place: “To help people”.
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