People matter

I was asked to speak at the Community Care Live event this week about the challenges of implementing the new leaving care guidance, and I decided to use the opportunity to share a view that people matter. In other words, that legislation and policy are important but it’s the individual workers who will put these policies into practice and make them a reality.

And I think it’s clear that to make any difference we need a workforce – especially social workers – who are confident about who they are and what they do. Particularly in these times when it may be even more important to challenge decisions and speak out on behalf of young people leaving care.

‘But what about the newly qualified workers who are too frightened for their jobs to challenge?’ asked an experienced worker who felt that questioning or challenging might be too much for some social workers. 

This left me feeling concerned and a little angry to think that the profession, which I still identify with, might no longer feel that it’s part of their role to be critical of decisions which are not in a young person’s best interests.

Surely that’s why people go into social work? And surely confident managers are able to respond to a challenge? Who else will speak out if the social worker won’t? Or am I just out of touch and being unrealistic…