Social Service Workforce Strengthening

A strong social service workforce is critical to meeting the needs of children without adequate family care. From government policy-makers, local administrators, researchers and social workers, to educators, community workers and care providers, social service actors play a key role in protecting girls and boys and promoting their care.

The development of a skilled and well-supported social service workforce is particularly important as countries move toward reforming their care systems and work to reduce reliance on residential care, strengthen families, prevent separation and promote family and community-based alternative care options. This is a challenging undertaking that requires social service actors from national to community level who are competent and willing to make changes to the way they deliver care, and are able to establish and manage a new range of preventive and responsive care services to children and families.

Strengthening the social service workforce in any country is complex. It involves creating supportive legislation and policies; developing recruitment, selection, employment, supervision, support and registration procedures; establishing education and training programmes; improving working conditions, ensuring licensing and practice standards; recognizing the status of care professionals; and raising awareness to change mindsets on care.

All of this requires working with a wide range of actors involved in supporting children and families. Substantial allocation (or redirection) of financial resources is also required, to ensure that sufficient numbers of skilled social service workers are available to work directly with children and their families at the community level, as well as at a higher administrative level to oversee care services and regulations.

This section contains documentation of social service workforce development within the context of national care reform and child protection system strengthening, including guidance, lessons learned and training tools.

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“Getting Everyone on the Same Page”: Child Welfare Workers’ Collaboration Challenges on Cases Involving Intimate Partner Violence

Lisa Langenderfer-Magruder, Lucas Alven, Dina J. Wilke, Carmella Spinelli - Journal of Family Violence, 15 Sep 2018

The present study explores child welfare workers’ perspectives on collaboration challenges specific to child welfare cases that also involve intimate partner violence (IPV).

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Professional self-efficacy for responding to child abuse presentations

Jennifer Anne Fraser, Tara Flemington, Diep Thi Ngoc Doan, Van Minh Tu Hoang, Binh Thi Le Doan, Tuan Manh Ha - Journal of Children's Services, 13 Sep 2018

The purpose of this paper is to validate measures of professional self-efficacy for detecting and responding to child abuse and neglect presentations, and then evaluate a clinical training programme for health professionals in a tertiary-level hospital in Vietnam.

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Executive Summary: Promoting and Protecting the Rights of Children: A Formative Evaluation of UNICEF’S Child Protection Programme in Cambodia (Khmer Language)

UNICEF Cambodia, 01 Sep 2018

The objective of this evaluation was to provide evidence that can help strengthen performance and accountability with UNICEF’s work with the Royal Government of Cambodia and the myriad other authorities and organizations involved in child protection.

Promoting and Protecting the Rights of Children: A Formative Evaluation of UNICEF’S Child Protection Programme in Cambodia Volume 1

Professor Dame Carolyn Hamilton, Kara Apland, Elizabeth Yarrow & Dr Anna Mackin, with support provided by Soksan Tem & Phally Keo, on behalf of Coram International - UNICEF Cambodia, 01 Sep 2018

Volume 2: Promoting and Protecting the Rights of Children: A Formative Evaluation of UNICEF’S Child Protection Programme in Cambodia

Professor Dame Carolyn Hamilton, Kara Apland, Elizabeth Yarrow & Dr Anna Mackin, with support provided by Soksan Tem & Phally Keo, on behalf of Coram International - UNICEF Cambodia, 01 Sep 2018

This second volume of Promoting and Protecting the Rights of Children: A Formative Evaluation of UNICEF’s Child Protection Programme in Cambodia includes the annexes referred to in the first volume.

‘Rosie’ a child protection simulation to assess neglect & work with complex cases in the UK

Professor Jane Reeves, Vanisha Jassall & Professor David Shemmings - Centre for Child Protection, University of Kent, 30 Aug 2018

This presentation can be used concurrently with Kent University's simulation course, it presents a case study that allows students to engage in the complex topic of child neglect.

Examining fostering readiness in treatment parents

Amy Strickler, Jennifer R. Mihalo, Karen L. Celedonia, Michael S. Kaelin - Child & Family Social Work, 27 Jul 2018

This study aimed to examine the longitudinal changes treatment parents experience throughout preservice training and after a youth is placed in their home.

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The Impact of Organizational Structure and Funding Sources on the Work and Health of Employed Caregivers in Children’s Homes in Ghana

Ernest Darkwah, Marguerite Daniel, Maxwell Asumeng - Occupational Health Science, 25 Jul 2018

This study explored how organizational structure (dormitory vs family unit) and funding sources (government vs private) influence the work and health of individuals employed as caregivers in children’s homes in Ghana.

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What does empathy sound like in social work communication? A mixed‐methods study of empathy in child protection social work practice

Amy Lynch, Fiona Newlands, Donald Forrester - Child & Family Social Work, 12 Jul 2018

This study contributes to the development of understanding of empathy as a social work skill through a mixed‐methods analysis of 110 audio recordings of meetings in a child protection service between workers and parents, applying a coding framework for analysis.

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Conceptualisations of Family and Social Work Family Practice in Chile, Mexico and Norway

Ingunn Studsrød, Ingunn T. Ellingsen, Carolina Muñoz Guzmán and Sandra E. Mancinas Espinoza - Social Policy and Society, 06 Jul 2018

This article presents findings from a cross-national study exploring how social workers in child welfare conceptualise ‘family’, and how they relate to ‘family’ in their practice.

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