Social workers advised to keep social life offline this Christmas

BASW is advising social workers not to blur professional boundaries during the festive season and to think about the consequences for their own privacy and safety.

The call comes ahead of the Association’s launch of a policy to encourage responsible and positive use of social media by members, due in the New Year.

In line with BASW’s Code of Ethics, the Association believes that social workers have an obligation not to post any information online that may compromise their professional status.

The new policy aims to support social workers with ethical dilemmas when using social media. BASW Fran McDonnell, who has co-authored the policy, explains: “Social workers need to be vigilant to keep their own identity safe and that of friends and families. Social workers need to consider the implication and risks of putting personal information on sites such as work, contact details and photos of work colleagues and family members and should not do so if they think their privacy and safety will be compromised.”

The Professional Integrity section of the BASW’s code of ethics states that “Social workers have a responsibility to respect and uphold the values and principles of the profession and act in a reliable, honest and trustworthy manner”.

Supporting BASW’s call, social worker and blogger Andrew Ellery said: “As professionals we need to be aware of our responsibilities and project a professional image. We should be aware that those we work with, in various sectors and services, will be naturally intrigued by our online presence.

“There is a need to be friendly and personable with others, but there is an equal need to be mindful of relevant codes of conduct. We should protect ourselves by regulating our own online conduct, to prevent questions being raised over fitness to practice”.

The Association will be launching the policy in January. It recognises the opportunities and challenges social media presents for social workers in their practice and the possible risks both for social workers and service users.