‘It doesn’t always feel like it – but being a social worker is a privilege’

Dear Future Social Worker,

I am so pleased that you have embarked on this journey, into this career. And let me tell you, I know it doesn’t always feel like it, but to be a social worker is a privilege.

Your day job will be to be human; to sit beside people in their most vulnerable, intimate moments, to celebrate their strengths and successes, to help them find the courage and abilities within themselves to change and grow, and to have an enduring belief in the possibility of change and human resilience. To witness it, day in, day out.

Pictured: Emma Cook

We all know it is not easy to be a human and it is certainly not easy to be a social worker. And guess what, you’re both of these things!

The landscape is always changing; sometimes the tides feel higher and harsher than ever before. But still, social workers venture into communities and they help people to sail across to a safer shore.

Let’s not forget the bonds you will make with colleagues, sharing the highs and the lows; but also, the compassion that you will harness, for the communities that you serve, but also for yourself.

Please remember to have compassion for yourself too. In this everchanging, fast-paced field, your mental health and wellbeing is a priority.

Social work, just like the human experience, is not linear. Some days will feel heavier than others and the responsibility can feel overwhelming.

But on other days, you’ll see what a difference you can make in helping someone to transform and shape their life, even in the smallest of ways. That is when you’ll have a glimpse of why you decided to become a social worker in the first place.

Yours,

Emma

Social worker and practice educator

What would you advise someone joining the profession?