Organisations, staff support and the dynamics and quality of social work practice: A qualitative longitudinal study of child protection work

尽管有社会工作者和其他机构的参与，但经常披露的情况是，专业人员认为面临严重风险的受虐待儿童已经死亡，年轻人长期遭受性剥削，这是我们时代最有争议和最紧迫的社会问题之一。最近一段时间，儿童的名字，如“婴儿彼得”康诺利，丹尼尔佩尔卡，哈姆扎汗和地方，如罗奇代尔和罗瑟勒姆，已成为代名词的不良做法和丑闻，在儿童保护。到目前为止，对儿童保护失败的最流行的解释是，社会工作受到“乐观主义规则”的约束，社会工作者认为社会工作者对事件做出了最好的解释，避免挑战父母，并失去了对儿童的关注（考文垂LCSB，2013）。这些挑战和悲剧总是发生在社会工作者多年来所知道的案件中，值得注意的是，很少有人研究为什么在日常实践中发生这种保护儿童的失败，什么是（乐观？）本研究的目的是研究长期以来社会工作者与儿童和家庭之间面对面的实践接触中发生的情况，（为期15个月）并探讨不同的组织架构，办公室设计和员工督导对工作性质和质素的影响。它将产生关于组织实践、工作人员监督以及社会工作者如何与父母建立关系并帮助他们改变或不改变之间关系的原始数据和理论见解;以及一些儿童如何在日常工作中变得“隐形”的动态，因为它在真实的时间中展开，而其他人则得到有效的合作并保持安全。一系列的方法将在一个整体的定性纵向研究设计。参与者将观察社会工作者的办公室日常工作、家访计划、步行和乘车探访家庭、他们在家中和其他地方与父母和儿童的互动，以及社会工作者随后接受管理人员监督的经历。观察和录音的社会工作者服务用户接触（在知情同意已给予）和社会工作者和家庭成员的采访后，他们的经验将提供的基础上，从业者的思想和生活经验，实践和组织支持的批判性分析的调查。将使用办公室的照片和视频图尔斯参观（同时保持参与者和地点的匿名性），以更深入地了解人们生活经历中通常“看不见”的方面以及影响工作的气氛和环境。将制定一个工作人员监督和与父母和儿童有效合作的实践框架，其中包括：（1）如何随着时间的推移与父母（包括那些抵制的父母）接触和合作，并产生积极的变化;（2）如何以及在哪里最好地进行评估和与儿童的长期工作;（3）如何支持工作人员保持以儿童为中心。“乐观主义规则”将通过理论进行批判性探索，这些理论将对实践的理解超越了单纯关注态度和纯粹认知方面的“思维”，专注于生活经验，感官和情感以及实践者的思维如何被他们的身体和思想所塑造（Ingold，2011）。研究小组成员以前就儿童保护作为一种具体的移动的做法（Ferguson，2011年）和社会工作者的复原力、自我利用和监督（Davys和Beddoe，2010年）所开展的理论工作将得到检验和完善，以产生进一步的原创理论见解和对做法的理解。

The frequent disclosures that abused children who were known by professionals to be at serious risk have died and young people have experienced protracted sexual exploitation despite the involvement of social workers and other agencies is one of the most controversial and pressing social issues of our time. In recent times the names of children such as 'Baby Peter' Connolly, Daniel Pelka, Hamza Khan and places such as Rochdale and Rotherham, have become synonymous with poor practice and scandal in child protection. By far the most popular explanation for why child protection failures occur is that social work is governed by a 'rule of optimism', where it is argued social workers put the best interpretation on events, avoid challenging parents and lose focus on the children (Coventry LCSB, 2013). These challenges and tragedies have invariably occurred in cases that were known to social workers for long periods of years and it is remarkable that little research has been carried out into why such failures to protect children occur in everyday practice, what the (optimistic?) outlook of practitioners is and the nature and quality of social work practice in long-term child protection work and what influences it. The aim of this study is to research what occurs in face to face practice encounters between social workers and children and families over the longer term (a period of 15 months) and examine the influence of different organizational structures and office designs and staff supervision on the nature and quality of the work. It will produce original data and theoretical insights on the relationship between organisational practices, staff supervision and how social workers relate to parents and help them to change, or not; and the dynamics of how some children become 'invisible' in every day work as it unfolds in real time, while others are worked with effectively and kept safe. A range of methods will be used within an overall qualitative longitudinal research design. Participant observation will be undertaken of social workers' office routines, planning for home visits, journeys by foot and in the car to see families, their interactions with parents and children in their homes and elsewhere, and social workers' subsequent experiences of being supervised by managers. Observations and audio-recordings of the social worker-service user encounters (where informed consent has been given) and interviews with social workers and family members afterwards about their experiences will provide the basis for investigation of practitioners' thinking and lived experience, critical analysis of practice and organisational supports. Photographs and video tours of offices will be used (while maintaining the anonymity of participants and places) to achieve even greater depth in accessing the usually 'invisible' dimensions of people's lived experiences and the atmospheres and environments that influence the work. A practice framework for staff supervision and effective work with parents and children will be produced that incorporates: (1) how to engage and work with parents over time, including those who are resistant, and effect positive change; (2) how and where best to conduct assessments and long-term work with children; and (3) how to support staff to stay child-centred. The 'rule of optimism' will be critically explored through theories that take understandings of practice beyond a simplistic focus on attitudes and 'thinking' purely in terms of the cognitive, to focus on lived experiences, the senses and emotions and how practitioners' thinking is shaped by their bodies as well as minds (Ingold, 2011). Theoretical work previously developed by research team members on child protection as an embodied mobile practice (Ferguson 2011) and social workers' resilience, use of self and supervision (Davys and Beddoe, 2010) will be tested out and refined to produce further original theoretical insights and understandings of practice.