Social Work - BA (Hons)

In this module students will be introduced to concepts of professionalism and ‘relationship’ in social work and the role of self-monitoring and reflection. They will learn about, discuss and practise a range of communication and interpersonal skills. These will include: the commencement of effective contacts with service users and colleagues; active listening and attending skills; the role of non-verbal communication; empathy; effective use of questions; paraphrasing and summarising; challenging constructively and managing conflict; the use of electronic and telephone communication; and working with people with special communication needs. Students will also explore the use of feedback in the classroom and in professional practice and supervision.

In addition the module will introduce students to the theoretical underpinnings of models of personal and professional communication. They will also be encouraged to explore and reflect on the application of social work values and will analyse the impact of inequality, power and diversity in relation to engaging with the experiences of others.

The module will begin with a general introduction to lifespan approaches and subsequently address the following areas incorporating multiple perspectives on each topic (biological/medical, cognitive, developmental, psychodynamic, social, humanistic and other prominent approaches, focusing specifically on bio-psychosocial approaches):

• Development in early childhood.

• Relationship between brain development and attachment in infancy.

• Childhood development influences on later life.

• Early socialisation.

• Cognitive development and learning in middle/later childhood.

• Social factors: education, gender roles and gender stereotypes, child abuse, and children in care.

• Theories of adolescence: identity and transitions, biological, emotional, social and cultural influences in adolescence.

• Disability and adolescence.

• Sexuality.

• Young adulthood: independence, leaving home, homelessness, mental health and prison, voluntary and forced migration.

• Adult attachments: relationships, family dynamics and parenting, sexuality, sex and gender.

• Maturity: (un)employment, poverty, domestic violence and sexual assault, mental health, people with learning disabilities and stigma.

• The concept of self and humanistic approaches.

• Ageing: body and mind, psychological, social and cultural aspects of ageing, understanding self. Social, political and socioeconomic influences.

• Retirement.

• Death and dying, grief and mourning.

• Terminal illness and physical decline.

• Dementia-type illnesses: anticipatory grief, self- and other-perception.

• Recognising diversity and difference throughout the life span, acknowledging cross-cultural differences in attachment, development and separation.

The relevance of the above topics to social work theory and practice will be discussed during lectures and seminars.

This module will introduce students to why social workers need to know the law; how laws are made and classified; natural law and positivist law and their intersection with ethics and philosophy; the sources and context of English law; and the ‘legal framework’ of English social work including legislation, quasi-legislation and social policy.

An introduction will be provided to the primary and secondary legislation and guidance and the cases that together constitute ‘the law’ relating to: children and families; youth justice; adults - including those with a learning disability, a physical disability and who are vulnerable as a consequence of age related ill health & carers; and mental health work.

Students will consider the application of legislation as it relates to social work activities, duties and decisions including Case Law, the role and nature of Courts and the legal profession, legal procedure, and the nature of evidence including forensic vs therapeutic interventions. They will be introduced to Human Rights and equality law with a particular focus on justice and the promotion of equality in the areas of “race”, gender and sexual orientation, disability and age. They will also consider safeguarding, mental capacity law, confidentiality and responsible information handling.

Students will explore definitions of social policy, need and social problems, the concept of the welfare state – including a historical overview from Social Democracy to the New Right and ‘The Third way’, and a comparison of ‘welfare types’.

They will study poverty, social need, patterns of inequality and their impact, the policy context in relation to trends in family life and family problems, the role of feminism in shaping social policy, the gendered nature of domestic violence, and policy around domestic violence from the crisis to the multi-agency approaches of the late 1990s. Key themes and perspectives in child care policy will be explored, including the tensions between the philosophies of ‘child rescue’ and ‘family support’, and New Labour and the ‘social investment’ approach.

Students will examine ethics and risk in relation to social policy, including the ethical considerations that impact on people’s lives as recipients and providers of services, and the concepts of rationing, targeting and entitlement. They will consider health inequalities and the impact of key variables of gender, ethnicity and social class on patterns of health inequality. Ageing as a social issue will be explored, and the idea of Community Care and a reliance on the community and more informal care. Students will also consider the causes of youth unemployment and policy responses, youth offending and youth justice policies, and will explore the tensions between ‘care’ and ‘control’ and public protection.

The module will introduce students to the three main theoretical perspectives in sociology: functionalism, symbolic interactionism & conflict theories; the role of sociological theory in social work practice; and putting theory into reflexive social work practice. Students will explore theories of power, including the distribution and production of power, how power works, and Weberian and Foucauldian theory.

The social locations of gender, ethnicity, social class, disability, sexuality and age will be examined. Students will consider formations of identity, recognising and respecting difference in relation to race and ethnicity, social divisions, social class and stratification, and ‘difference as a deficit’.

The module will also explore contemporary theories of the ‘family’, households and domestic life; themes and perspectives relating to community, and community work and social work; the sociology of childhood in relation to social work; the sociology of health and illness, and mental health and illness; crime and deviance and the dilemmas of caring and controlling; modern organisations, power, authority and the role of social work in a changing professional and policy environment; and the sociology of ‘risk’ as a unit idea in sociology and its importance in understanding the focus on risk in social work practice.

In this module students will be introduced to key aspects of the nature and contemporary context of social work, including the defining characteristics of social work, key terms in social work, and foundation concepts underpinning social work practice. Students will consider the development of social work as a profession, its socio-political location and the various roles social workers may undertake in their work and in society in general, gaining an initial awareness of the complexity and contested nature of the social work role.

Students will be introduced to the nature of problems and needs that may lead to social work support and intervention. A range of approaches to service delivery in the statutory and private and voluntary sectors will be considered and discussed.

The module will also provide a basic introduction for students to the impact of the organisational context for social work practice, aspects of teamwork, supervision, leadership and management and multi-agency working.

Throughout the module students will explore the experience and perspectives of people who use services and carers both in the taught content and through the direct involvement of experts by experience.

In this module students will be introduced to the dialogue between theory, current context, values and practice models, and they will also learn about the assessment process in social work. A number of theories, approaches and methods will be introduced to the students, including systemic, psychodynamic, person-centred, task-centred, cognitive behavioural, postmodern, constructionist, strengths-based, solution focused and narrative approaches and crisis intervention models.

Students will be encouraged to consider and evaluate the relevance and effectiveness of the theoretical approaches in practice, apply evidence from national and international research, and discuss service user perspectives. They will consider the theories and approaches in relation to principles of partnership, empowerment and anti-oppressive practice.

The module will encourage students to develop their capacities to respect and promote each person as an individual, the independence and quality of life of individuals whilst protecting them from harm, and the dignity and privacy of individuals, families, carers, groups and communities. During the module students will also examine the importance of recognising and facilitating the use of language and form of communication of each person’s choice and value, and recognising and respecting the diversity, expertise and experience of individuals, families, carers, groups and communities. They will explore how to maintain the trust and confidence of individuals, families, carers, groups and communities by communicating in an open, accurate and understandable way, and discuss strategies to challenge discrimination, disadvantage and other forms of inequality and injustice.

The module will cover the nature, historical evolution and application of social work values, the concept of professionalism and the role of codes of practice and ethics, and the moral concepts of human rights, responsibility, freedom, authority and power inherent in the practice of social workers as moral and statutory agents. Students will be introduced to the complex relationships between justice, care and control in social welfare and the practical and ethical implications of these, including social workers’ roles as statutory agents and in upholding the law. They will consider aspects of philosophical ethics relevant to the understanding and resolution of value dilemmas and conflicts in both inter-personal and professional contexts. The importance of recognising key dimensions of social difference and sources of inequality – class, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, age and disability – in delivering ethical social work practice will also be a key focus of the module.

The module ensures that each student is ‘ready for direct practice’ before they embark on their first placement in the second stage of their studies as required by the accrediting professional body. Students are required to complete all elements of this module, including attendance at University-based sessions, in order to pass the module.

The skills development activities will include both class-based and guided independent activities undertaken by students.

Class-based activities will encourage the development of skills used in communication, observation and reflection, and relating theory and practice. This will enable students to practise and further develop the skills and knowledge they are learning in other modules that form part of the ‘Readiness for Direct Practice’ assessment, in particular SO307 Communication and Interpersonal Skills and SO313 Social Work Theories, Interventions and Skills.

Learning activities within modules and skills development days will also address the importance of professional behaviour and boundaries, awareness of values and diversity in social work, an initial awareness of risk and safeguarding, the role of professional supervision, and the importance of emotional resilience in social work.

Students will also develop their awareness of the perspectives of service users and carers, and will gain understanding of the context of social work and how social work is organised and practised in a range of settings. Students will have contact with practitioners and service users and carers within class sessions and through visiting social care settings. Each student will also undertake a two-day shadowing placement with a final year student and practice educator in a social work setting. During this they will observe and discuss examples of social work practice and meet service users and/or carers.

Students will develop their self-awareness and skills of reflection on their learning and experiences through individual activities and class discussions. They will be guided to identify their individual learning needs and monitor and reflect on their own progress.

This module will outline the principles underpinning the assessment of children in need (including children with disabilities) and their families. The legal and policy framework within which social work in children’s services operates will be addressed, including its core principles such as working in partnership with parents. The relationship between child protection and family support; outcomes, best practice and early intervention will be examined.

Working with Children in Care as another core area of practice will be outlined, including fostering and adoption issues and aftercare.

Key messages from research and theory in relation to interventions and outcomes, along with key messages from Inquiry reports, serious case reviews and government commissioned reports will form part of the curriculum. Here, multi-disciplinary and multi-agency working will feature as a core theme.

The identification of child abuse and assessment of significant harm, including the assessment of risk, thresholds, child protection investigations, changing practice and policy trends and the different ways in which children might be subject to neglect and abuse will be examined. Here, procedural intervention in child protection and safeguarding work; developing critical analysis and professional judgement will be discussed in depth.

This module provides an exploration of contemporary family life with a focus on diversity and emerging sociological trends in relation to family. The legal and policy framework of both adults and children’s services across the spectrum is examined. The key issue of multi and interagency working at both a policy and practice level is addressed. In particular, cross service divisions and tensions, particularly in the interface between adult and child services are explored in depth.

A core knowledge of some key issues and their effect on families – namely: disability, mental health, caring, alcohol & substance misuse, illness, learning disability, loss are discussed. The issues in engaging with a variety of family members and partnership working in complex situations along with the multiple perspectives of service users are examined. Throughout the module, key messages from research around best practice in assessment and intervention will be utilised.

Students will attend placement for a total of 70 days (420 hours) and carry out direct work with service-users in a social work or social care environment. They will develop skills, knowledge and values through experiential learning. They will be supervised by either an on-site or off-site practice educator.

By the end of the first placement students should demonstrate effective use of knowledge, skills and commitment to core values in Social Work in a given setting in predominantly less complex situations, with supervision and support. They will have demonstrated capacity to work with people and situations where there may not be simple clear-cut solutions

This module is an integral part of the practice learning and is designed to sit alongside the Practice Placement module. It offers an opportunity for students to demonstrate their learning in academic form. The two assignments incorporated in the module enable to the student to demonstrate their competence in both short term and longer term pieces of practice carried out over the course of the placement. The student will have the opportunity to apply relevant theoretical learning to their own practice and demonstrate reflection and critical thinking

The students will also attend for 5 full days (25 hours total) of skills development. These days will expand and consolidate both the skills development days undertaken prior to placement and the practice learning opportunities.

The overall aim of the module is to equip students with the knowledge and understanding required for them to function effectively as social workers in the context of adult social care settings. This might include working with older people, people with a physical or learning disability, or people from all of these groups. The module will enable them to appreciate the impact of injustice, social inequalities and oppressive social relations on the lives of adult service users. It should enable them to critically analyse and evaluate key concepts such as ‘care’ and ‘risk’ in adult services, and demonstrate the knowledge necessary for them to design and implement effective social work interventions with service users

The module equips students with knowledge of the main types, indicators and patterns of incidence of abuse affecting adult service users, including discriminatory abuse. This includes guidance on how they can plan appropriate strategies for protecting vulnerable adults whilst remaining aware of the potential for defensive practice in adopting a ‘risk-minimising’ approach. Through group work and seminar discussions, student will demonstrate their capacity for effective and appropriate communication with others.

In this module, a critical understanding of different models of disability including individual/medical and social models and an awareness of ageism and how ‘old age’ is socially constructed will be discussed. The concepts of personalisation and person-centred practice and how these relate to processes of self-directed support and individual budgets as ways of delivering services will be outlined. Terms such as ‘learning disability’, ‘physical disability’ and forms of chronic illness with awareness of key diagnostic and descriptive categories/labels, their potentially problematic nature and their action in mobilising particular service responses will be examined.

The practical and emotional support needs of carers and the complexity of the social work role in relation to them, including understanding of the contested nature of the concepts of ‘care’ and ‘caring’ will be explored. The key procedures involved in safeguarding/adult protection and the role of the social worker in this context including awareness of the importance of balancing rights with risk in decision-making in working with ‘vulnerable adults’ will be covered as a core area in this field. Knowledge of the main legal and professional responsibilities of a qualified social worker, including the key legislative systems and guidance they are expected to use, and awareness of the changing role of social work in adult services

The overall aim of this module is to equip students with the knowledge required for them to respond and intervene appropriately in their work with individuals who are experiencing mental distress and their families. It will enable students to function effectively in contemporary service settings including mental health services.

The module curriculum comprises a basic introduction to the key definitions, the professional roles and tasks, the medical model of mental health and the broad diagnostic categories in psychiatry, as well as a detailed account of social models of mental distress. The module provides students with a critical introduction to key concepts including stigma and labelling theory, and problematic concepts such as ‘care’ and ‘risk’. Using case study material, the module emphasises the importance of understanding diversity in experiences of mental distress, particularly in terms of the social location of individuals (including ‘race’, social class, gender and age) and the impact of disadvantage and discrimination. The module introduces students to different models of care in mental health services and also provides specialist input on mental health law.

The aim of this module is to assist students work professionally with a variety of service users in complex situations in a range of settings. The module is designed to equip students with the practical skills and knowledge for professional practice. This will prepare them for theoretically informed practice to enable clear and reasoned justifications for social work interventions.

Systemic theory will provide an overall framework for the module, enabling the consideration of the complex and interconnected nature of social and personal issues for individuals, families, and communities. The module will provide an outline of key principles and practice in methods of intervention such as solution focused therapy, motivational interviewing, family therapy techniques, group work skills and other approaches. Methods of intervention with individuals, families, groups and communities will be explored.

Ethical issues and anti-oppressive practice will be considered throughout the module, and there will be a particular focus on the challenges of empowering service users. Students will be encouraged to reflect on and critically evaluate a variety of methods based on best practice and research evidence. Critical thinking, analysis and professional judgement are vital capacities to develop for professional practice, as well as self-awareness and openness to examining assumptions and emotions.

This module will engage students’ understanding of the legal, social and political context for multi agency working with an emphasis on current national initiatives and the rationale for them. Students will critically analyse the professional and practical barriers to partnership working and how these might be minimised. Models for team work in social care and their relevance to multi disciplinary settings will be outlined. Exploration of systems theory and psychodynamic models as explanatory frameworks will also be a feature. Examples of multi disciplinary teams in practice – i.e. Sure Start, Youth Offending, Mental Health etc. will enable students to apply these theoretical frameworks effectively.

The module will include a focus on skills in multi–disciplinary working, including negotiating across professional boundaries and addressing issues of power and inequality. The module will explain the links between national initiatives to improved services and outcomes for users.

The overall aim of the module is to equip students to become ‘critical consumers’ of research as practitioners by providing them with the knowledge and understanding necessary to evaluate research appropriately and apply findings appropriately in practice.

The module provides an introduction to a range of qualitative and quantitative research methods including different types of interview (narrative, biographical, in-depth, semi-structured, structured) ethnography, focus groups, surveys and questionnaires, experimental and quasi-experimental research, randomised controlled trials, documentary and textual analysis, systematic reviews and meta-analysis, and approaches that involves mixing methods.

The module also includes brief introductions to the techniques involved in analysing both qualitative and quantitative data. It also includes consideration of ethical issues relating to research.

Each week students are provided with research articles that are compulsory reading for discussion in seminars. Each reading provides an example of each method and its potential for addressing research questions relevant for social work practice.