Reflecting on practice: perspectives on social work assessment in families where there is parental mental ill-health

Abstract

Concerns about the adequacy of social work assessment in thearea of child care have been highlighted by research and inspection. Inparticular, social workers' use of relevant knowledge in the assessment processis unclear. A move towards 'proceduralisation' in assessment has been notedwithin the profession. The meaning of this development for professionalpractice has been questioned. Child care and mental health are often viewed asdiscrete specialisms within social services. Practitioners grappling with the day-to-day experiences of families know that, whatever the organisationalstructure, life is rarely that clear-cut. With the emphasis on one aspect ofthe overlap between child care and mental health — the impact on children ofparental mental ill-health — the practitioner-research aimed to understandassessment more fully by exploring factors of influence for social workersundertaking initial assessments in families with parental mental ill-health andclients' experience of the process. Social workers' use of formal knowledge andthe place of informal client knowledge were particular aspects of the widerexploration.

The research strategy emphasised qualitative techniques,in-depth interviews being the main method of data collection. In order not tooverlook issues of practice wisdom, prior to finalising the topics to bediscussed in the individual interviews, social worker group interviews wereconducted within participating settings (Area Team, Child Guidance and AdultPsychiatry). As well as interviews with assessing social workers, parents whosefamily situations had been assessed were interviewed where possible. A total of58 interviews were undertaken. The following additional data were collected:basic information about the families and details of the written assessments(from case records); information about the social workers' training, experienceand interests (self-completion questionnaire); and formal departmental policy,procedures and practice guidance of pertinence to the task of assessment.

Findings are grouped as follows: (1) the areaof overlap (as viewed by parents and social workers) and social workers'knowledge base; (2) the assessment process, notably the influences of casecharacteristics, organisational context and social workers as 'managed'professionals; and (3) social worker-client communication and the client'sexperience. The place of knowledge within the assessment process is exploredwithin the context of further consideration of the nature of professionalknowledge. What informed, and the influences on, assessing social workers isdiscussed, particularly the dominance of organisational considerations and therelative lack of focus on issues of professional concern. Social workers needto develop clearer understandings of the assessment task and its context fromthe point of view of practice. A redressing of the balance betweenorganisational/managerial and professional/practice concerns is called for. Therole of clients within the initial assessment process is examined. Thehonouring of different ways of knowing, working in partnership with clients andempowerment are issues that coalesce in the context of current understandingsof the assessment task. Such matters of practice and professionalism demandreflective practitioners.

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