pieces from the fallout on welfare reform. The government has decided that you are
W
just not quite busy enough. So how about dealing with some more homeless people, homeless because their housing benefi t has been reduced below the level of the rent they have to pay and they can’t fi nd somewhere else to live? Just to challenge your skills a little more, how about trying to fi nd an accessible property for a disabled person who has been made homeless or for a family with a disabled child? The reform of disability living allowance (DLA) and the squeeze on disabled people until the pips squeak should also give you
here would we be without social workers? The government needs you! Someone has got to pick up the
The reform of DLA and the
squeeze on disabled people until the pips squeak should also give you some food for thought
some food for thought. Disabled people will be coming to you asking how they can possibly meet the extra costs of disability now that they no longer receive any fi nancial assistance. Then of course there is the
employment support allowance (ESA). Get your answers prepared well in advance for the client with cancer you are supporting who tells you that their ESA has been stopped because they have been claiming for a year, their partner is working and they have
the temerity not to have got better yet. Recessions are good for social workers,
they always give you plenty to do. It’s just a pity there are not more of you to do it.
Sue Bott is director of development, Disability Rights UK
Social workers offer their practice highlights of the month Kelly Hierons
Sam Parker older adults social worker
I am so pleased that the care and
support that older people receive in hospital is now at the forefront of the government’s agenda to be improved. Ensuring older people receive dignity and respect is so important.
community social worker
I was delighted when I met up
with a young mother and baby as they celebrated the news they were moving into their own fl at. Their journey from a pre-birth child protection plan, through mother-and-baby foster care to diligent and increasingly independent parent and thriving one-year-old was a professional joy.
Winston Morson child protection social worker
I’ve been encouraged by
the positive response to social work careers in recent weeks. From the response to BBC 2’s ‘Protecting our Children’ documentary, to my recent presentation to engaged volunteers about professional pathways, there are signs that social work is recognised as a skilled as well as a worthy role.