Fighting Monsters

Goodbye

Fighting Monsters — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 05:15:32 GMT

For reasons that I can’t go into, I am having to close this site for a while. I want to allow people to take and copy information that they might want or need from it and will open it up over the next few days but please do bear in mind that I’ll...(read more)

Choice, Control and Obfuscation – How the Personalisation Dream is Dying

Fighting Monsters — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 06:29:29 GMT

In the bold move towards a transformation in adult social care, it feels from where I sit, that control has completely overtaken any pretence of ‘choice’ in the so-called move towards more idealised ‘person-centred’ care and support planning. I hope I...(read more)

Remembering 11th September and the aftermath

Fighting Monsters — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 06:26:55 GMT

I don’t have any grand or notable memories from 11th September 2001. I wasn’t connected to New York in any personal way but this last Friday, after work, I spent the evening by coincidence with the friend whom I spent the evening of the 11th September...(read more)

Interviews and Ideas

Fighting Monsters — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 05:58:22 GMT

Please forgive the blatant self-promotion in this post but it’s Friday and I’m feeling a like I have a bit of a cold coming so I’m less ‘perky’ than usual. Dorlee from Social Work Career Development has published an interview which she did with me and...(read more)

Why I’m wrong – A response from BASW

Fighting Monsters — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 17:33:58 GMT

I am not going to add anything to this post. After I wrote a post explaining why I left BASW, I was sent this as a response and agreed to publish it. I’ll leave the questions and comments for others and I have asked that someone from BASW respond to any...(read more)

Docking Benefits and Blaming the Poor

Fighting Monsters — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 06:16:59 GMT

I know I covered this more generally on Monday in my rant about ‘benefits’ but it’s worth coming back to with the proposals explained in the Guardian Magistrates and crown court judges could be asked to dock benefits from convicted criminals under preliminary...(read more)

RIP NHS?

Fighting Monsters — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 06:16:46 GMT

A truly national health service as conceived in the post-war years has been tottering on the brink for a number of years. As the previous Labour government sowed, so the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives will reap today as the NHS and Social Care...(read more)

Why I Quit BASW (British Association of Social Workers)

Fighting Monsters — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 05:18:10 GMT

I felt a tinge of sadness when I finally decided to quit BASW (British Association of Social Workers). I’ve been an advocate and member for a good few years and I have a great deal of respect for a lot of people who work there. I advised colleagues to...(read more)

Weekly Social Work Links 30

Fighting Monsters — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 07:52:28 GMT

As the days become more distinctly autumnal, I’m sharing some interesting links I’ve come across over the last week. As always feel free to share any other links you find that are related or interesting in the comments section. I’m always wanting to find...(read more)

Online Learning and Social Work – A proposal

Fighting Monsters — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 06:02:23 GMT

I’m on a theme at the moment so run with me. I have through various conversations that I’ve hooked into among Occupational Therapists come across this programme OT4OT (Online Technology for Occupational Therapists) connectlrmeli @ Flickr It is...(read more)

Panels

Fighting Monsters — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 05:42:46 GMT

Since I’ve been employed as a social worker one of the constants in my working week has been the presence and existence of ‘panels’ in many different forms. There was a brief stage when we were told not to refer to them as ‘panels’ but rather meetings...(read more)

Technology, Social Media and Social Services – Finding new ways to ‘help’

Fighting Monsters — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 05:39:44 GMT

I have some across lots of discussions and debates about ways of using social media and new technologies and interactions to ‘help’ social services become more effective. Most of it seems to revolve around building online directories and databases of...(read more)

Weekly Social Work Links 29

Fighting Monsters — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 07:01:59 GMT

After my absence last week, I’m back with some of the links I’ve come across that I’ve found useful over the last week (or two because I’m covering some of the posts I missed during my weekend away!) which relate in some way to social work – some more...(read more)

Perspectives, Students and Ageing

Fighting Monsters — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 06:21:48 GMT

I enjoy having students around. It helps keep me fresh and enthusiastic and to see my job through the eyes of someone coming into it rather than through the occasionally blurred eyes of someone who has been working for a while. I had a student shadowing...(read more)

Hemming and Haigh – The Journey of an Injunction

Fighting Monsters — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 05:37:52 GMT

A curious news story broke on Monday. Curious because it is rare that the Family Court make public judgements. As the Yorkshire Post reports Victoria Haigh “caused” the girl, now aged seven, to repeat the untrue child sex abuse claims she had “manufactured...(read more)

Social Work and the March to Neoliberalism (or Personalisation gone bad)

Fighting Monsters — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 05:53:30 GMT

I caught this article a few days ago on the Huffington Post by a Social Work academic, trying to explain away another aspect of the riots and cashing in on his status no doubt as an ‘authority’. I don’t have much time for the body of the article. He starts...(read more)

Fixing the Broken not Healing the Wounded – a wrong-footed Government response

Fighting Monsters — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 06:04:15 GMT

Our wise leader, David Cameron, clearly being an iconic Philosopher King, spent many days studying the possibly causes for the devastating riots in London and across England. He concluded after much intellectually rigorous pursuit, that the causes of...(read more)

Weekly Social Work Links 28

Fighting Monsters — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 07:14:14 GMT

I’ve not been able to put together a ‘proper’ piece for this week but wanted to share just a few links I’ve come across. Apart, of course, from my interview on the Jessica Kingsley blog with the author of ‘Social Work Under Pressure’ there has been a...(read more)

Social Work Under Pressure – A Review

Fighting Monsters — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 07:53:11 GMT

Jessica Kingsley Publishers sent m e a review copy of ‘Social Work Under Pressure – How to Overcome Stress, Fatigue and Burnout’ by Kate van Heugten I interviewed the author and the interview is available on the Jessica Kingsley Blog here . I know I’m...(read more)

Blame the Poor – A Riot Rhetoric

Fighting Monsters — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 05:58:59 GMT

I apologise for keeping on one track in my posts this week but I am preoccupied by events of the last week. I’m not the same person I was a week ago. Some of the pillars that I held on both tangible and intangible have gone now, never to be replaced....(read more)

Communities

Fighting Monsters — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 05:55:01 GMT

One word that has come up a lot in the last few days are discussions about communities. Whether is it ‘affected communities’, or ‘community leaders’ or ‘rebuilding communities’ and it has made me wonder about what the meaning of the word is. whizchickonabun...(read more)

London – Some thoughts and hopes

Fighting Monsters — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 05:58:13 GMT

I didn’t sleep much last night. Or the night before. Or the night before that. My city is burning. There is a tangible fear in the air. I’m not above it because I feel it and I see it. I don’t want to listen to politicians being parachuted in (when they...(read more)

Riots, Poverty and Assumptions

Fighting Monsters — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 05:51:52 GMT

It would be remiss of me not to mention the rioting that took place in London over the weekend. I work and live in some of the poorer areas of the city and felt, indeed, still feel desperately saddened by some of the pictures and reportage coming from...(read more)

Weekly Social Work Links 27

Fighting Monsters — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 06:20:46 GMT

A slightly truncated version this week because the last week has been a little distracting and we have a foster child who is likely to appear at any moment! So please add any other links or sites you’ve seen that have been useful in the comments section...(read more)

Commissioning

Fighting Monsters — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 05:43:33 GMT

Yesterday, I caught up with a friend of mine whom I hadn’t seen for a few months. She works in commissioning. She didn’t work in commissioning when we first met but her career trajectory has taken a few odd side steps and there she is. We talked about...(read more)

Rankings and Musings

Fighting Monsters — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 06:14:55 GMT

Quick post today as I have a few things on the go. So, Wikio sent me their top 20 UK Health Blogs and again, I’ve made the list. Thanks to everyone for your support and do check out the other sites there – there are some real gems and it’s a pleasure...(read more)

What does a Mental Health Social Worker do?

Fighting Monsters — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 06:36:36 GMT

I think there’s a lot of misunderstandings about what I actually do at work. What do social workers who are in mental health services do? What do social workers who work in adult services do? I hope by reading, some people get to learn a little of my...(read more)

Life as a Social Work Student 4 – The Half Way Point

Fighting Monsters — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 06:04:12 GMT

This is a guest post from the student who has contributed since before her course started. She first wrote here about her pre-course shadowing experiences, her initial impressions after a few months on the course, the start of her first placement and...(read more)

Fear and Loathing in the Public Sector – Or Why I despise Oliver Letwin

Fighting Monsters — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 06:13:32 GMT

Yesterday I read this article about Oliver Letwin, who, according to the Guardian article ..warned that it was only through “some real discipline and some fear” of job losses that excellence would be achieved in the public sector. Letwin added...(read more)

Weekly Social Work Links 26

Fighting Monsters — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 05:38:57 GMT

After my somewhat truncated break, I’m back (not that I ever went away but that’s another story for another day!). Nectarine at Going Mental has to deal with too many consent forms. It’s an interesting take on the invasive nature of forms. The Modern...(read more)

Castlebeck and CQC – Brief Thoughts

Fighting Monsters — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 06:04:55 GMT

I don’t have time for a long post today, just a few brief thoughts that came to me as I considered the unsurprisingly critical report on Castlebeck by the CQC. Of course it’s easy to be wise after the event but it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth when...(read more)

Sadness, Sympathy and Self

Fighting Monsters — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 05:38:36 GMT

Sometimes, some days feel filled with sadness. I had one of those days this week. I don’t like to use the word ‘hardened’ but to put it this way, in over 10 years of frontline social work practice in some of the most deprived areas of the country and...(read more)

Why Deaf Awareness?

Fighting Monsters — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 05:28:55 GMT

This is a guest post by Suzie Jones – @suziejones2010 . Many thanks to her – cb Why deaf awareness? When you think about the people you meet and talk to in your everyday life, I wonder if it crosses your mind that one in every six has a hearing loss?...(read more)

Break

Fighting Monsters — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 06:30:09 GMT

In the absence of a summer holiday, I am taking a break from the blog for about a week of so because I have a few more projects I’m working on that I need to devote a bit of concentrated time on! There will be some guest posts and some posts I’ve been...(read more)

Selling the NHS – The Beginning

Fighting Monsters — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 05:53:32 GMT

Yesterday, while most of the media, fixated self-referentially on the Murdoch hearings and Cameron was flying back into the country, Lansley began to dismantle the National Health Service. As The Guardian reports In the first wave, beginning in April...(read more)

Light Touch Inspections, Winterbourne View and the CQC

Fighting Monsters — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 06:39:02 GMT

There was a report on the Community Care website on Friday that the CQC were ‘calling time’ on their so-called light touch inspection ‘regime’ thereby rolling out potentially to annual inspections for adult services and care homes. As the article emphasises...(read more)

Weekly Social Work Links 25

Fighting Monsters — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 06:41:04 GMT

A day late this week (although my original intention which might not have been very clearly stated) was always that it would be a ‘weekend’ project rather than a specifically Saturday project! This was a fairly emotionally trying week for me at work with...(read more)

A Lament for Lost Genericism in Social Work

Fighting Monsters — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 06:04:26 GMT

It was reported over the week that the Government is to appoint a Chief Social Worker. This is apparently a response to recommendations in the Munro Report and pressure from BASW (British Association of Social Workers). I have previously mentioned by...(read more)

Age Discrimination and Language – or why I don’t like ‘The Elderly’.

Fighting Monsters — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 06:03:31 GMT

What is age besides a classification? When do we become old? What language is used in relation to people who reach certain points in their life cycle. Does a child become an adult at 18? Legally perhaps but in a sense these are rough brush strokes which...(read more)

Goodbye Southern Cross, Hello Open Public Services

Fighting Monsters — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 06:05:50 GMT

So Southern Cross – the largest private care home provider in the UK will be closed. What of the 31,000 residents who live in their properties? Well, the government has given us its assurance that they will be ok so that’s alright then. Or not. m kasahara...(read more)