Committed to caring : Student Social Worker of the Year Winner

Lara Macpherson was named Student Social Worker of the Year Award in May, by the British Association of Social Work.

The nomination was primarily for her Masters’ placement with Circle Lanarkshire, a partnership between Scottish charity Circle which provides support for families affected by substance misuse, and North and South Lanarkshire Councils.

Her practice teacher put her name forward for two specific incidents – one in which she worked with an eight-year-old who was looked after by her grandmother. Macpherson helped the girl to come to terms with the impact of her mother’s substance misuse which included unreliable parenting, interspersed with periods in prison, disappearing then reappearing and starting arguments and threatening behaviour.

Macpherson also supported a woman who was a substance misuser and had taken an overdose.

She’s clearly not one to shy away from challenging issues and demanding cases. But that’s not surprising, she says. Although she’s only 24, she has had an interest in social issues for as long as she can remember. It may be in the genes, as her mother is a social worker.

“Public health and social issues always fascinated me from quite a young age,” she says. “Going to Glasgow University to do an MA in Public Policy, I found that it also strengthened my interest as well as answering many of my questions.

“I suppose it also added more questions but I decided to widen my knowledge by doing voluntary work on different projects including adults and children with additional physical or educational needs.”

It was quite a step to take along with her studies, but volunteering in a range of settings has given her a great deal of job satisfaction. “I like a challenge,” she says, adding: “Social work can get a very negative press but I could see the difference its intervention was making in the lives of vulnerable people, and volunteering allowed me to compare theory and practice.”

Her first contact with South Lanarkshire Council was with COVEY, another voluntary organisation the council is involved with. The acronym stands for Community Volunteers Enabling Youth and the befriending project provides supportive relationships to vulnerable young people.

“I’ve done it for five years now,” explains Macpherson, “I see it as a long-term commitment.”

“You can see the young person grow and develop. When I started, the girl I befriended was nine and she is now 14, so there have been many changes and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed that input into someone else’s life.

“Stable, regular support can make a huge difference to vulnerable young people and build up their self-esteem. The girl I support is now involved with younger groups and offering them support.”

On completing her degree Macpherson went straight into her Masters at Glasgow School of Social Work, building up her experience by becoming involved with Partners in Play, which offers a wide variety of services for children with additional needs, including residential respite for children and families. She qualified in June 2009 and accepted her first post in September 2009 with South Lanarkshire Council’s Social Work Department in a local Children & Justice Team, completing her dissertation in April this year.

“My dissertation involved looking at the recent big changes in adoption legislation,” she says. “I have a particular interest in discrimination and I was looking at professional attitudes to gay and lesbian couples adopting but it was amazing to find that discrimination still goes on. I found some responses shocking.”

Being non-judgmental is important to being an effective social worker, she says. “I think you have to have those values to work in this area. The job is massively varied and I get referrals in from different agencies, such as health, education or members of the public. Sometimes families or parents will self refer, aware that they need our help.”

Macpherson has around 20 open children and families cases with the issues involved ranging from parental ill health to substance misuse. “Some people feel there is a lot of stigma about having social workers involved in your family but we work hard to break down barriers. We provide a great deal of support and can help keep families together.”

She admits there have been times and situations when she had to rely very heavily on her ability to appear calm, composed and very professional, even in intimidating and challenging situations. “We always have to be professional and very clear about what our role is, aware of boundaries, confidentiality and child protection issues.

“We work very much as a team and tend to go out in pairs when we’re dealing with child protection and if we have extreme concerns then we have to act on those, irrespective of the family’s reaction and there are times when we need to be very firm with families.

“At times there might be an extreme risk to children so we need to find alternative care arrangements. We’re very aware that these are important decisions which can have a major impact on children’s lives and don’t take them lightly.

‘Everything is documented, which is really important because not only do you have accountability but other social workers can then take over seamlessly if required. Also, when a case becomes part of the legal system, that detailed chronology of events can be vital.”

She admits to being delighted with her award, adding: “I’m thrilled to be given an award for something I enjoy so much. It doesn’t matter whether it’s youth justice, single young people or family support I’m dealing with because it’s all about trying to keep families together, getting the best outcomes, supporting positive changes and meeting the needs of children and families.

“Seeing them through something like that and succeeding, being part of them turning their lives around – well, that’s like getting an award on a day-to-day basis.”

ME AND MY JOB : Lara Macpherson, social worker

Qualifications?
I did my MA in Public Policy followed by my Masters in Social Work, but you can also do an undergraduate or postgraduate degree in social work.

Salary?
£29,500

Best part of the job?
The satisfaction of knowing you’re part of a team minimising risk to children and helping people turn their lives round.
I value the team support and training very much.

Hardest side to the job?
Witnessing first hand the impact of risk on children and knowing we have to intervene.