Social Workers’ Communication with Children involved in Child Protection: Findings from the TLC Study Professor Viv Cree and Dr Fiona Morrison The University of Edinburgh

Structure of presentation Background: why this research? The research project: research questions, methodology, methods & phases of inquiry The data: what are our findings based on? The findings Key messages Dissemination & publications so far Initial responses and questions; wider discussion: how do we move forward from here?

Background Our current knowledge: Repeated evidence from Inquiry reports and Serious case Reviews that children are not seen and heard sufficiently Yet everyone agrees that communication with children is critically important! So why isn’t this happening, and what can we do to improve the situation for children, their parents and social workers? Some research already, but it tends to be focused on what social workers say, not what they do, with a few recent exceptions (e.g. Ferguson) Some evidence too about skills/training gaps Hence the TLC project was devised…

Research questions What are social workers observed to do when they communicate with children in a range of settings and with a range of aims (including child protection, assessing need and promoting well- being)? How do practitioners experience and understand their communication with a child? How do children experience and understand their relationship with social workers? What factors best facilitate communication between social work practitioners and children?

The research project Methodology: qualitative, ‘practice-near’ Methods: ethnographic and innovative video- based 3 phases: – Phase 1: participant observation in team rooms and observation of visits with children – Phase 2: Video-stimulated recall interviews with pairs of children and their social workers – Phase 3: Development of training materials for practitioners We are now in Phase 4, but phase 3 work continues

The data Phase 1: Three researchers were located in 8 social work teams across the UK (2 in each nation) for a period of 6 to 8 weeks each. Purposeful, pragmatic sampling; observation in offices + interviews before & after visits; 82 visits in total with 126 children/y. people Phase 2: Three researchers used video- stimulated recall with 10 children and social workers in 3 settings across the UK

Broad findings 3 kinds of evidence emerging: – About the context in which social work is practised across the UK – About the profession – how social workers are feeling about their work – About communication with children – what works and what gets in the way of good communication

More specific findings SWs make connections in a range of settings and through a range of methods Mis-match between SWs’ knowledge & understanding and what they can do in practice; structural, practice & personal factors can help and impede good communitive encounters Some children see SW as a threat, ‘the enemy’; others as a support, ‘a friend’ – parents key here SWs need opportunities to reflect, to get support, to get training – it’s a difficult, challenging job!

Mis-match between knowledge and what they can do in practice 16 year old Rachel has been admitted to hospital following a suicide attempt. Rachel is refusing to return home to where she lives with her parents. A social worker named Helen is meeting Rachel for the first time at hospital. Helen asks her how she is. Rachel says that she is feeling pretty low. She says that she has spoken to her CAMHS worker and said she doesn’t want to go home. Rachel nods and asks her the name of her worker

Mis-match between knowledge and what they can do in practice Helen asks Rachel how she feels about going home. Rachel shakes her head. *** Helen asks Rachel what would need to change at home for it to be a place she could go back to. Rachel says ‘everything’. *** Helen outlines her worries about a foster placement and how to get Rachel back home eventually. Helen says that she wouldn’t want that to be the end. Rachel says that she wouldn’t want contact with her parents. Helen says ‘okay that’s helpful, that’s helpful to know how you see this’.

Mis-match between knowledge and what they can do in practice Helen looks at me [researcher], raises her eyebrows, takes big breath and slowly blows it out. She shakes her head. […] Helen says to me that she hates situations like this. Helen says that ultimately she has to try and convince Rachel to go home. She says that she’ll need to speak to her manager and see if there are any other options but there probably aren’t. Helen says that it might be that they can find a temporary placement for ten days, which will allow them to get a bit of space, and they can work on working with the family to try and get Rachel to agree to go home, and to try to make it safer for her. She says that with social work’s involvement it should be different as the family will have to comply with the plan, but that she can understand why Rachel doesn’t trust her or believe her.

Key messages Communication between children, young people and their social workers is framed by the complex context in which it takes place Social workers need to use their skills sensitively and creatively to make spaces for communication with children and young people The relationship between children, young people and their social workers is more important than communication itself; a good relationship will forgive a poor communicative encounter

Dissemination Peer-reviewed journal articles Materials for practitioners, students and managers on our project website – still a work in progress! Feedback to all teams that participated in the study – currently ongoing This new ESRC ‘impact’ project & another based at University of Sussex: briefing papers, participation events, website, blogs, etc

Publications so far Winter, K., Cree, V.E., Ruch, G., Hallett, S., Hadfield, M., Morrison, F., ‘Effective communication between social workers and children and young people’, British Journal of Social Work (accepted) Ruch, G., Winter, K., Cree, V.E., Hallett, S., Hadfield, M., Morrison, F., ‘Making meaningful connections: insights from social pedagogy for statutory social work practice’, Child & Family Social Work (accepted) Briefing paper 1: Effective communication between social workers and children and young people Briefing paper 2: Making meaningful connections: insights from social pedagogy for statutory social work practice Website & blog: rojects/revisiting_child_protection_in_scotland

Acknowledgements With thanks to all the families and children, local authority social work managers and practitioners who supported this project and gave us access to their lives and work Thanks to our funders (ESRC) and universities And thank you for your attention!

Question for discussion What would need to happen for social workers to be supported better in their communication with children?