World Social Work Day: Mural unveiled among events to celebrate social workers
Fiona Simpson
Tuesday, March 16, 2021
A mural celebrating the role of social workers in Portsmouth has been unveiled in the city to celebrate World Social Work Day.
The mural is situated at Portsmouth’s Charles Dickens Centre - an activity centre for children.
It was created by local artists My Dog Sighs and Fark who spent time talking to care leavers, social workers and those who use the centre at a virtual event to establish what social work means to them.
Themes of “togetherness” and “overcoming adversity” were picked out as inspiration for the mural.
The tribute to both adult and children’s social workers was unveiled on 16 March to mark World Social Work Day.
It comes as part of a campaign by Portsmouth Council’s children's social care, adults social care and learning and development departments to showcase the input of social workers.
Sarah Daly, deputy director for children and families at Portsmouth City Council said: "This has been a real team effort all around. World Social Work Day is an opportunity for social workers and others in the sector to celebrate the work they do. We are really proud of our workforce across adult and children's social care.
"The theme of togetherness resonates with colleagues and partner organisations across Portsmouth as we continue to support local residents when they need us most. The mural is a visual representation of social solidarity and the need for communities to work together to improve outcomes for all."
Care leaver and apprentice social worker, Elliot, added: "I believe that World Social Work Day is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate social workers and their achievements. I feel it is also a time for reflection, to look back and realise the true impact they make on young peoples’ lives."
Portsmouth is encouraging people to share their own messages of support to celebrate World Social Work Day using the hashtag #WSWDPortsmouth on social media.
More information on World Social Work Day can be found on the Portsmouth City Council website here: www.portsmouth.gov.uk/wswd.
Meanwhile, CLIC Sargent, the UK’s leading cancer charity for children and young people, is looking back on how its social workers have adapted over the past year and how they are looking forward to building on what they have learnt on World Social Work Day.
Lynn Charlton, associate director of services at CLIC Sargent, said: “Going forward, the charity is keen to build on what we have learnt in the past year. We are looking to create a new social care model with support offered through both local delivery as well as via our digital channels. This will enable families to receive tailored support appropriate to their needs. When families first get in touch via our digital channels, the level of support will be considered based on those initial conversations and our team of social workers will be able to target their support based on the requirements of each individual family.”
The British Association of Social Workers (BASW) has also announced that 10,000 people took part in its first Social Work Week which encompassed 73 online events, including workshops, panel discussions, films and wellbeing sessions with the theme This is Social Work between 8 and 12 March.
