The current Covid-19 situation has caused a giant shake-up in workplaces globally. There have been many debates on how remote working has affected businesses and the self-employed and the pros and cons that working from home has procured. Does remote working have a place in Social Work?

Previous studies found that Social workers were embracing technology and attending more meetings than they would of before Lockdown and local authorities have been using a Multi-Agency working approach. Nationally, practitioners have gone above and beyond in in their use of technology, showing great creativity when it comes to contacting children. The use of Video calls and Whatsapp messages has proven very popular with older children and teens throughout the pandemic. Another encouraging aspect of remote working is organisations looking at ways to embrace the ‘new normal’ and offer support. The British Association for Social Workers has developed a new statement to aid continuous professional development with a Digital Capabilities’ Framework. 

There have of course been many pitfalls to remote working within the social work industry too. Primarily, the lack of face to face contact that social workers would usually have with parents and officials has raised huge concerns. Fair Justice is one of the biggest worries, with fears that parents may not be given the right opportunities to defend themselves during virtual hearings. Lack of phone data, technology understanding or financial pressure, has caused a number of challenges with hearings that have been held during the pandemic. 

With ‘normal’ not looking to be expected to return before next year, we will all need to learn to adapt to remote working, at least for the time being. Let’s not forget that we have been hit by an unanticipated pandemic and are very lucky that we have the standard of technology that we do today in order to continue our work. As challenging as the year has been, and with the positive and negative aspects that remote working has thrown at us, it has allowed us to look at new, innovative ways of reaching our ultimate goal of ensuring children’s safety. 

At Select Social Care, we embrace this growth and want to continue to support both our clients and candidates in every way that we can. Despite these difficult and unprecedented circumstances, we are working hard to plan ahead as best we can. Talk to your personal consultant for more information about how we can support and reassure you. Select Social Care, full steam ahead!

From the team here at Select Social Care