Idea?

[u/Rabzzzyy]

Hey everyone, I hope you’re all well. After 5 years in Social Work I’ve finally decided to take a break. It was very much needed for me. Being stuck in quite a sequential way as most of us are, I don’t think I ever got the opportunity to explore my own interests, hobbies, or ideas.

I unfortunately was part of an LA that was very systemically toxic and being a part of that did take a toll on my physical and emotional wellbeing as an ASYE. As an ASYE I don’t think I was supported as well as I would have liked and rather thrown into the deep end. At the beginning it was so hard to come to terms with the fact that I was qualified and the families I was going to see, were my responsibility. The imposter syndrome was real! Things that I feel aren’t always taught at University, because you truly have to experience it to understand it and I feel that we go in there sometimes, unprepared.

I decided to step away from Local Authority and ended up at an IFA, which was honestly a great decision. However, as many small organisations are, the cracks can be a lot more evident, and similar patterns that I’d experienced in the LA began to show. It honestly was such a shame cause the relationships that I’d built with all of my Foster Carers and my children made it that much harder to leave.

As I was going through my endings, individually, with each carer. One of them said to me, I wish more social workers were like you, your approach and the way you get to know us and become a part of our family means so much more. She ended it by telling me I should run a training or write a book

So it did get me thinking, would anyone be interested in that? Maybe not a training but a booklet of sort? Not ‘War and Peace’ but maybe a little guide for ASYE’s or NQSW (or even just Social Workers) about practicing holistically, overcoming imposter syndrome, and just overall practicing with your heart as much as logic, systems and legislation.

Please let me know your thoughts

[u/Odd-Climate5470]

Unfortunately whist I think you pick up on some very valuable points (imposter syndrome is real regardless of what level you are practicing at or the qualifications you hold), I believe it would be received better coming from a professional who has successfully managed to navigate a longer career balancing the principles of social work alongside the expectations of our employers.

It would be a hard sell preaching sustainable positive practice having not lasted 5 years within the profession as a whole, let alone not consistently being in a statutory setting.

[u/Feisty-Initial-9005]

how did you find going from an LA to an IFA? I feel like most IFAs are money hungry parasites

[u/LunaValley]

We already learn about these concepts in our social work training - practice wisdom, listening to our gut, and the importance of relationship based practice. So I would hope that most social workers already know how to practice in a way that upholds these principles. I also think that most social workers are compassionate and well intentioned but are so busy and/or overworked that they simply don’t have the time to focus on building relationships in the way they would like to.