Perceptions of social workers improving, poll finds

May 12, 2010 by Shawn Douglas
Filed under: News

The perceptions of social workers have improved this year, according to a poll commissioned by the ADSW.

Despite “negative coverage” of the deaths of toddlers Brandon Muir and Peter Connelly, Scottish perceptions of social workers are improving, says the Association of Directors of Social Work.

The ADSW, an organization that “aims to promote and protect the interests of social work”, commissioned a telephone survey through Scottish Opinion. The organization reportedly conducted a similar poll the previous year.

The surveyors found that 47 percent of people questioned rated social work as a positive. Last year only 38 percent of people polled rated social worker positively. The survey also revealed that 80 percent of those who used social work services were happy with the services received. The amount of people who were unsure about how they felt about social services also dropped 12 percent, from 43 percent last year to 31 percent this year.

Michelle Miller, the new president of the ADSW, told the Press Association: “Against a background of negative coverage of social work resulting from the tragic cases of Baby Peter and Brandon Muir, it is very encouraging that there is greater understanding of social work services. I am particularly pleased that users of our services are so positive about what we do.”

Miller cautioned that the image of social workers hasn’t completely recovered, requiring a more concerted effort from everyone in the field. “[T]here is still a lot of work to do if we are to ensure that the contribution of social work staff is fully understood,” she said.

Reports published before the death of Brandon Muir in 2008 questioned whether social worker services were doing enough for children. With only 17 percent of staff working in children’s services, questions were raised about the effectiveness of dealing with parents’ problems with drugs, alcohol and violence. Since then, greater efforts have been made to increase the amount of children’s services workers and improve training.

Miller, also the chief social worker for Edinburgh, told the BBC: “In Scotland the government and MSPs of all parties have been supportive of the role of social work, and local authorities have been instrumental in promoting the good work of social workers. We want to see this support continuing to grow.”