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The changing context for social work services
Introduction
We all aspire to live in a society that is healthy, tolerant, safe, fair and inclusive. Social work services have a vital contribution to make to that through:
- supporting the most vulnerable and excluded people;
- protecting those at risk of harm from themselves or others; and
- working with others to close the opportunity gap.
Demographic, social and political trends pose challenges and opportunities that will influence the future design and society that is healthy, tolerant, safe, fair and inclusive. Social work services have a vital contribution to make to that delivery
of services. The challenges and their impact on social work services are summarised as the context for our conclusions.
Changing needs
- The population as a whole is ageing. By 2030, 25% will be over 60 and the number of people over 75 will increase by 60%.
- The number of children has halved over the last 40 years and will decrease still further, yet the number of children in need continues to grow.
- Medical advances mean that more children survive into adulthood with complex disabilities.
Changing opportunities
- Technology offers new opportunities in the design and delivery of services.
- New regulatory structures provide a new emphasis on clear and measurable standards.
- Devolution has enabled Scotland to pursue distinctive policy.
- Clear political leadership at local and national levels will be increasingly important in responding to a changing context.
Changing society
- People have more complex and fractured relationships, meaning less readily available family support.
- Society is increasingly polarised, with growing concentration of need in some communities.
- Communities themselves are changing and less cohesive and tolerant.
- We have greater cultural diversity.
- The available workforce is declining as the population shape changes.
Changing expectations
- People will increasingly expect choice and flexibility in the delivery of services that are personalised to meet their needs.
- Increasing risk aversion in society poses challenges and a tension between individual choice and protection of self and others.
Integration and social work services
The changing needs and expectations of society linked to increasing integration of service delivery pose distinctive challenges for each area of practice,
Criminal justice
- Demand continues to grow, driven by increases in serious crime, demands for action against anti-social behaviour and a fear of crime.
- Increased recognition of child sexual abuse calls for new partnerships balancing protection with rights.
- Community Justice Authorities will result in new partnership working arrangements and new challenges to develop shared understanding and language.
- Balancing effective enforcement of orders with developing a therapeutic relationship to achieve change will be a challenge for practitioners.
Community care
- The shift from institutional to home based care has meant massive change including:
- New approaches to assessment;
- New ways of delivering services;
- Opening up a diverse provider market; and
- Managing huge budgetary transfers.
- Balancing the demand for personalised services with the need to protect vulnerable adults continues to pose challenges.
- A well informed public has growing expectations and will increasingly expect to self assess and manage their own care through approaches such as Direct Payments.
- Specialisation poses a challenge in getting the right skills in the right place to support people.
- Integration with health services in particular is well advanced and will go further.
Children and families
- There are growing levels and complexity of need driven by fluid and unstable relationships and chaotic lifestyles.
- Our understanding and recognition of child abuse has grown, highlighted by tragic cases.
- Child protection is increasingly recognised as everyone's business.
- There is a renewed drive towards integration of children's services.
- Residential child care is dealing with increasing complexity of problems.
- Youth offending is high on the political agenda requiring integrated solutions.
- High pressure, demanding work has resulted in recruitment difficulties in children and families social work.
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