Andy Atkins knows how easy it can be to overstep the professional boundaries in social work.
In July 2005, Atkins began a relationship with service user Anita, who had previously been under his care. According to the General Social Care Council's (GSCC) conduct committee, the relationship started "within a relatively short period" after Atkins had stopped being her designated social worker.
During the subsequent GSCC misconduct hearing in November 2007, it emerged that Atkins' career had been otherwise "exemplary" and he had not harmed or exploited Anita while working at Leeds community mental health service. Atkins received a nine-month admonishment for failing to inform his employer immediately when the relationship began. He says he simply fell in love. "I didn't choose to - it just happened," he says.
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