Michael Carers UK wrote:Hello all. It's been interesting to read your posts in relation to your varying experiences of dealing with social workers. I spoke to colleagues in our Advice and Information team this afternoon and they said you would be very welcome to contact the Adviceline if you have any questions relating to social workers (e.g. what your rights are and how to make a complaint). To contact the Adviceline, please call 0808 8087777 or email
adviceline@carersuk.org (Mon-Fri 10.00-4.00).
In the next few weeks we will also be holding an 'Ask the Expert' session with one of Carers UK's advisers and so you will also have the opportunity to ask questions and make comments on this topic then.
By all means continue to post on this thread too, but please be respectful of each other's differing views and avoid inflammatory language. Your anger in relation to your experiences of the social workers you describe is fully understandable, but please try to avoid any comments that could identify individuals and avoid generalising about social workers as a whole as there may be some members who use the forum who also work as social workers.
Thanks
Michael
I welcome the opening up of this subject as it is only by understanding an issue from different perspectives that we can learn to effect change. I have been 'on the other side' and I am now sole carer for my wife who has terminal cancer.
In my opinion, for too long two main things have happened which have contributed to the undermining of delivery of service by Social Services Departments.
The first is that sometimes SWs allow themselves to be 'drawn in' and in their attempts to ameliorate a situation they try too hard and fail to maintain a professional distance. They are not and should not be the client's friend. (And let's remember who is the real client, often it is not the carer.)
The second is that anger and frustration is transferred on to the SW.
The SW, in most cases, is not the appropriate target.
If the SW is then do something effective about it.
If you want to effect change then go for the appropriate target.