Life as a social worker in Hertfordshire after Baby P

NEARLY five years after the death of Baby P, people are queuing up to become social workers in Hertfordshire.

The scandal plunged social workers into the limelight and attracted unprecedented media coverage of the profession.

Today it seems everyone has views about social workers, which leads to stereotypes that can hinder their work.

But scores of people have not been put off social work as a career, with about 200 applications made from across the country to join Hertfordshire County Council’s Academy at the latest opportunity.

Just 15 newly qualified social workers were selected from this bulging bag of applications and started on the programme last month.

The academy was launched in 2009 – in the middle of the economic crisis and two years after Baby Peter Connelly died aged 17 months in north London after being neglected by his mother Tracey, who ignored the actions of her violent partner Steven Barker and his brother Jason Owen.

Baby Peter suffered more than 50 injuries despite being on the at-risk register and receiving 60 visits from social workers, police and health professionals in an eight-month period.

Manager of the academy Tricia Day suggested social workers had to an extent been made the scapegoats in the Baby Peter case.

She said: “When something goes wrong, people immediately blame social workers. It’s not nice to have a media image that isn’t glowing, but I think the quality of social work nowadays is streets above what it was decades ago.

“I think we all recognise that social work is difficult. If you do things wrong that is the end of your career.

“We’re seeing a much higher calibre of people applying. It’s a popular profession. There is a growing pride in childcare social work.”

Liam Way, who completed the academy programme in July, added: “The only time you see social workers in the media is when they fail. The media portrayal needs to change. I think one of the biggest challenges is the stereotype.

“Social workers across the country are not seen as positive for families.

“Immediately parents’ anxieties are raised when we make the first call to them or arrive at their doorstep so the first thing is reassurance. You have to battle against the stereotypes.”

Since 2009, 130 social workers have started their careers through Hertfordshire’s academy, which allows trainees time to develop essential skills over their first year in the role before taking on a full caseload.

Mr Way, who joined the academy straight after graduating with a social work degree, explained: “During my training my caseload was increased gradually allowing me time to reflect and think about what I was learning. Essential feedback from managers helped me to develop and progress in a way that provided me with the skills and knowledge to safeguard children and be an effective social worker. I am now working with a full caseload and have learned so much from my academy training.

“When I first started at the academy, it was all quite daunting. I didn’t have frontline experience. Our caseloads were gradually increased to a full 15.

“I’m 24, don’t have my own children and I look quite young as well. Some families think ‘who are you to tell me’ but I’m here to work with them. Being criticised is a daily part of our jobs.”

Ms Day admitted that social workers starting out in their early 20s can encounter problems as a result of their age, but that is part of the reason why recruits are kept away from the frontline for the first six months.

She continued: “The difficulty for very young people is they have limited life experiences. You’d be facing situations that you’ve never experienced in your life. If you’ve had a nice, happy upbringing, how on earth do you know what to do when a 13-year-old sees her mum beaten up?

“Part of the work we need to do is building up resilience because it is emotionally very difficult. You need to have the academic learning, but you need to be able to apply it because if someone turned up on your doorstep and started reciting theory at you then all you’d want to do is stab them in the eye with the nearest fork.

“It’s really important that we work in partnership with parents and don’t scare the pants off them.”

There is no doubt that social work is a difficult profession – these individuals can have to make judgements that are the difference between whether a child remains living with their family or not.”

These tough decisions are being made while nationally there are claims that the care system is at breaking point, with a survey finding that 88 per cent of social workers fear that cuts are putting vulnerable children’s lives at risk.

The British Association of Social Workers issued a warning earlier this month about the “dire” state of the profession after finding that more than three-quarters of those it polled were concerned about unmanageable caseloads.

Ms Day said: “We’ve all had Government cuts and we’ve got more to come but in Hertfordshire we’ve still kept that investment. We are really working hard to make a difference to young people and children.

“I think any social worker can recognise that we are exceptionally busy, but in Hertfordshire we have a controlled caseload. We don’t have social workers with 60 cases. We have recognised there is a limit.

“It sounds awful to call them cases – they are children. The importance of getting something right in somebody’s life is immeasurable.”

Mr Way, who lives in East Herts, added: “Things are pressured but we come together as a team in peak times. I have a manageable caseload.

“It’s really important to be out there with families in their homes. There is an image of social workers being at their desk and being bureaucratic. Paperwork can be an issue, but we are out there.

“Being a social worker is difficult and very challenging, but it’s a rewarding job and we do make a difference.”

The council’s new chief executive John Wood, who takes up the reins tomorrow, has backed the work the academy is doing to train social workers, whose role is particularly crucial in an economic downturn.

Welcoming the latest group of recruits, Mr Wood said: “Even through difficult economic times, there has always been an absolute commitment from this authority to investing in the academy to allow you to do the critical job of protecting and nurturing vulnerable families and children in Hertfordshire.

“I am sure the communities of Hertfordshire are going to benefit from the work you go on to do.”

Ms Day, who has been in the profession for 22 years, added: “The recession is now increasing poverty and with that comes stress in families so parents aren’t as able to give children attention.

“I think it was a very brave decision to set up the academy in the recession. It was a hell of a commitment from the council.”