National Delegate Conference 16-19 June 2008

Standing up for Social Work - Scotland presents manifesto

UNISON Scotland previewed its Social Work Manifesto at a Local Government fringe meeting on Sunday.

Called 'Helping People Change Their Lives', the joint manifesto with BASW Scotland, welcomes much of 'Changing Lives', and it basically calls for support for the people who deliver services.

John Stevenson, speaking for our Scottish Social Work Issues Group, told the meeting about the range of issues in the manifesto.

• Workload management to prevent overloading
  
  
• cuts in bureaucracy
  
  
• proper staffing levels backed up by standards that can be part of the inspection process and hold employers to account for under-staffing.
  
  
• Accountability of employers - as well as employees - to codes of practice - which can actually be enforced.
  
  
• No-blame culture - whistle blowing not enough - strong union and professional organisation needed to support.
  
  
• Social Care Leaders - career progression while still being able to practice an without having to leave practice and go into management
  
  
• Universal service as envisaged at the time of the 1968 Social Work (Scotland) - as opposed to social control.
  
  
• Community action, early intervention, building community capacity and challenging poverty and exclusion - social work is a human rights profession.
  
  
• And of course - making the case for the resources to do the job.

The next step is to engage government in the debate around the agenda we are setting. Sean Fox from Haringey and Jim Board from Doncaster told the fringe meeting of crisis in social work in England, huge caseloads, a disgraceful Sun campaign that vilified social workers and an IT system that was not fit for purpose.

In a question and answer session, John Stevenson called for more social workers to become active as stewards. “Others will campaign with us but UNISON is the union representing tens of thousands of social workers - we need to make that the voice of social work”, said John

And that is what happened the next day when the Local Government Conference backed a comprehensive plan for UNISON to take a key role in publicising the difficult working conditions for many social care staff.

But, crucially, UNISON will also highlight all the excellent work done by its members every day to protect children and other vulnerable people. UNISON is standing up for social work - and social workers have started to find their voice.

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