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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State of the Social Service Workforce in South Asia

UNICEF South Asia and Global Social Service Workforce Alliance, 2018

This report from UNICEF South Asia and Global Social Service Workforce Alliance provides information on the current status of the social service workforce in the eight countries in South Asia.

New Directions in Children’s Welfare

Sharon Pinkney, 2018

This book makes a distinctive contribution to reflections on what child-centred practice means in the complex area of child welfare.

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Prepare for Leaving Care Training Manual

SOS Children’s Villages International, 2018

This Training Manual seeks to raise awareness of the content of the Prepare for Leaving Care: Practice Guidance, build knowledge and skills to support young people through the process of leaving care and help trainees to understand and develop some of the tools which are helpful in the leaving care process.

The role of the social worker in adoption – ethics and human rights: An Enquiry

Professor Brid Featherstone, Professor Anna Gupta, Sue Mills - BASW, 2018

This report presents the findings of a UK national Enquiry into the role of the social worker in adoption with a focus on ethics and human rights.

Rwanda Violence Against Children and Youth Survey: Findings from a National Survey, 2015-2016

Rwanda Ministry of Health (MOH), 2018

This report presents findings from the national Violence Against Children Survey (VACS), administered in Rwanda from 2015-2016, and lays out recommendations for addressing and preventing violence against children based on those findings.

Talleres de Autocuido para servidores públicos en atención a la emergencia del volcán de fuego

Maria Angelina Oliva, 2018

Este informe se detalla la propuesta metodológica para otorgar espacios seguros para que los servidores públicos que han atendido a los damnificados por una tragedia en Guatemala puedan descargarse emocionalmente y poner en práctica técnicas de autocuido.

In and beyond the care setting: relationships between young people and care workers

Vicki Welch, Nadine Fowler, Ewan Ross, Richard Withington, Kenny McGhee - CELCIS, 2018

This review seeks to identify and summarise findings from literature about the nature of relationships that develop between older children and young people, and those caring for them within and beyond residential and fostering settings.

Discussion Paper: Children in out-of-home care: What do medical students learn about them?

Katherine Thornton - Focus on Health Professional Education, 2018

This small pilot study to explores what is currently taught to future doctors about children in out-of-home care (OOHC) and found that there is no formal teaching about these children in the University of Melbourne Doctor of Medicine course.

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Five Steps to a Stronger Child Welfare Workforce

Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2018

This publication outlines five clear steps that child welfare agency leaders in the United States can take to build and maintain a strong, stable frontline workforce.

Implicit Racial Bias 101: Exploring Implicit Bias in Child Protection

Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) and the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity, 2018

This online course on implicit bias was developed by the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) and the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity to aid practitioners in understanding and addressing racial bias in the US child protection system.

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