Abstract
The paper assesses the positives and negatives of the group-centered social work approach, examines the impact this technique has on a variety of service users and explores the reasons for the relative demise of the approach over recent years. The paper concludes that in order for social workers to be able to meet the needs of service users, they must be equipped with a variety of methods and approaches. The paper stresses the importance of group work continuing to play an important role in this process.

From the Paper
"Of the six main social work approaches the focus of this piece will be placed on group work. In the 1970s group centred social work enjoyed an unrivalled preponderance. Group work formed an essential part, not only of social work theory but also academic and casework practice (Adams et al, 2002; p.149). However, this predominance has failed to sustain itself over the last two decades. Over this period there has been a drive towards specialisation and the increasing impact of the law on social work practice. Nonetheless, to consign group work to the annals of the past would be premature. Although the concept no longer enjoys the same elevated position among social workers and academics, it nevertheless still provides a useful theoretical and practical approach that is worthy of examination."

Tags:service, users, collective, action, interaction

Abstract
This paper assesses the ecological and life model of social work practice, the theoretical presumptions on which it is based and the manner in which proponents of such theory justify their position. Following this there is an examination of the relationship such theory has to the actual practice of social workers in their working relationships with ordinary people.

From the Paper
"There are a whole host of issues that present themselves when social workers assess whether a mentally and physically disabled person should be allowed to live relatively independently. The ecological approach to the problem could offer a wide variety of uses. Firstly, the individual is placed within the family and friends network. Secondly, ecological methods could be employed to examine the wider social forces that are at play, for example, access to education and health services."

Tags:interconnected discipline ecomaps genograms, family tree

Abstract
This paper discusses why control and protection within the wider framework of social work is necessary. The author looks at how the fine balance is struck between the necessary elements of control and protection and the individual rights of the service user. The paper relates that this is a difficult balancing act to achieve as both aspects are very important and sometimes need to be used in conjunction for effective social care to be provided.

From the Paper
"Now tagging may appear an unnecessarily harsh method to employ in a social work setting, however, in recent years it has been increasingly adopted. For example, those suffering with Alzheimer's disease are often tagged so that they can enjoy freedom of movement around the grounds of the institution in which they reside. Tony's position is put forward from the point of view of his parents and as such, we do not know what his own personal opinions are on the tagging issue."

Tags:tagging abuse, personal right, legal moral

Abstract
This paper discusses the major values and ethics of social work . It examines how basic helping and counselling skills are guided by the ethical codes and then discusses the benefits that can be attained for the service user when they are used effectively. Furthermore, the paper outlines what can occur when such codes are not adhered to in the way they should be.

From the Paper
"Moreover, unless such theoretical assumptions are placed at the centre of social work endeavour, it is difficult to envisage how the relationship between the social worker, individual service user and wider community can be successfully forged and maintained. Above all, what these values and ethics show is that the practice of social work is extremely varied and must include a wide and differing collection of factors. This is indeed the case with relationship forging but it could also include less obvious and more complex factors like the ecological social work approach (Watson and West, 2006). Here is it necessary for true harmony to be found between human beings and the wider ecological environment. Doing so is a protracted process, but there is also an inherent danger that social work values and ethics are lost when using such wide ranging criterion for the purposes of social understanding."

Tags:values, relationship, counselling

Abstract
This paper explores the attitude in the UK today, of social workers towards sexuality, noting that they are hesitant about even broaching the subject. The author discovers that, both in the United Kingdom and the United States, most of the attention for this subject has been directed at sexual abuse cases of children and vulnerable adolescents.

Outline:
Introduction
Sexuality as social construction
Marginalization
Same-sex couples and child adoption
Sexuality and the aged
Conclusions

From the Paper
"Within the areas of social work sexuality needs to be debated more openly. But it needs to be done so based on a more sophisticated understanding of sexuality's meaning and power. Before the arrival of Michel Foucault, who as a French philosopher revolutionised our understanding of sexuality, the implications of maintaining attitudes as cited above - both open and hidden - had been scarcely realized. Most of the time people took it on trust, from both popular writers and medical experts, who convincingly based their explanations on a supposedly rigorous scientific footing, that sexuality was in the main a biological construct, with clear demarcations as to what constituted man and woman as well as the purpose of both in the evolutionary scheme of things. (Wilton, 2000, p.163) But more recently, people have come to appreciate how untenable and arbitrary this division could be. This misconception has been expressed by Ann Oakley particularly well."

Tags:social-work, profession, lesbians, homosexuals

Abstract
This paper takes you step by step through the child protection procedure, examining the various legislation the social worker would be expected to know and use when working with vulnerable children. The paper also examines the processes the social worker has to go through in determining whether the children are children in need and therefore in need of support or if they are children at risk where possible removal of the children would be considered.

From the Paper
"Both children and their parents are known to social services as both Stephen and Stephanie have been accommodated into the foster care system on several previous occasions due to their parent's long standing drug dependence, which has remained unchanged. At this point in my enquiries it would be imperative of me to attain any previous reading material that had been composed in relation to this families case in order to establish background knowledge regarding their history within the system, what contacts they have had and if they are currently receiving any support from social services or other agencies whom I may have to confer with to aid my enquiries.
"

Tags:Legislation, risk, care

Abstract
The papers asks whether community services in the United Kingdom should be provided by grass roots organisations and groups within the community , or by central and local government. From the outset, the author takes the position that communities, rather than the government should be responsible for social service. To back up this position, the paper's writer briefly reviews the development of the welfare state in the UK. The paper then continues to show how, over the years, this has impacted local communities and encouraged them to take more responsibility for social services.

From the Paper
"Community based action is one of the most pivotal levers in accurately assessing and combating the problems faced in a particular geographic region. Indeed, many point to the breakdown in community fabrics as the prime factor behind the general lack of social cohesion and harmony in modern Britain. This view contends that the lack of social provision and support not only drastically limits the possibilities of community members, but also plays a significant role in social breakdown and anti social activities.
"Therefore, at the outset we can be sure that the provision of social services to communities lies at the heart of any socially based problem solving initiative. However, the manner in which these services should be provided and by whom, is a question that has caused consternation among authorities in social policy (Fitzpatrick, 2001). Above all, the central question is whether community services should be provided by grass roots organisations and groups within the actual community itself, or by central and local government. Such is the ultimate concern of this piece."

Tags:political, development, voluntary, management, nation

Abstract
Punishment was once an integral part of the school life of the children. This paper discusses how corporal punishments was given to the students who were found engaged in any wrong deed. The purpose of punishing the students in the school was to tell that the wrong doing would eventually bring pain and agony. The writer explores the development that with the passage of time, it is now realized that these punishments are no good for the students as they have more negative impacts than positive. The short and long term effects are discussed in this paper, examining whether adults who were beaten as children in schools became more aggressive parents. It shows how these punishments not only harm the students physically but are also great threat to their mental health. It examines how people including parents and the young generation (children and teenagers) are now voicing against the abuse of the corporal punishment.

Introduction
Statement of Problem
Overview of the Study
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989
and Discipline
The Legal Effects of the UN Convention
General Aims and Obligations
Discipline
Schools and Corporal Punishment
Discipline at School
Responsibility for Discipline
Disciplinary Measures at School
The Legal Basis of a Teachers Authority
Home-School Agreements
Constraints on disciplinary Action
Detention
Safer Schools
The Physical Punishment of Children in the U.K
Child Protection
The Children Act 1989 and Child Protection
The Human Rights Act 1998 and Child Protection
Suggested Reforms and Conclusion
The Need For Change
Bibliography
Cases and Statute

From the Paper
"It was the perspective of people a few years ago; that only way to punish someone who did a sinister deed was to use corporal punishment. This is meant to enforce pain to someone who has done wrong by hitting them, beating them, strapping them or even whipping them. These are only a few examples of corporal punishment. Why do we have punishment, How do we benefit from it and how do we abuse it? The most obvious reason for corporal punishment is to castigate one for doing something wrong by means of physical abuse expecting the individual to learn from his or her mistake. But we must ask ourselves this question. Is the person benefiting from this or is he or she not only being physically abused but also mentally. In some cases corporal punishment psychologically affects ones mind on a long-term basis that will stain their memory for a very long period of time."

Tags:corporal, education, abuse, physical, violent

Abstract
This paper attempts to explain the role of the family in the development of social welfare. Although the examples used to illustrate the points made are from the nineteenth century, it is not just a simple historical narrative. A social constructionist approach is used in order to analyze why and how certain types of family came to be a focus of concern and intervention in this period. It examinees the influence of the middle class philanthropists, together with the Chartists and the Utilitarians, in shaping the contemporary welfare state.

From the Paper
"Although the family in general was the focus of these philanthropic and state interventions, it was the woman in particular who was singled out as the cause of the working class condition. In a report published in 1842, Edwin Chadwick claimed, "The improvidence of which we are speaking is to be traced in very many instances to extreme ignorance on the part of the wives of these people." (Edwin Chadwick, 1842, Report on the Sanitary Condition of the Laboring Population of Great Britain, 1965 edn, p.205, quoted in Mooney, 1998, p.64). Paradoxically, the Evangelists saw the woman as the savior of society. As John (1980) noted, the reaffirmation of the value of matriarchal control within the home was deemed essential to the process of social reform."

Tags:class, education, labour, law, patriarchy, poor, private

Abstract
In this article, the writer notes that counselling is a critical part of the social worker's professional weaponry not least because it forms a core skill used to communicate and build relationships among those involved in care. The writer points out that of course, it is possible for the social worker to utilize his or her own personal experiences as a guide which would have accumulated, as any citizen would, through the process of socialization. But the kind of people a normal citizen would commonly have dealings with would necessarily be selective - it would merely encompass a relatively narrow circle of family, relatives and friends from similar social and ethnic backgrounds. The writer maintains that what sets professional social workers apart is that they are forced to confront a diversity of people from all walks of life who bring with them their own sets of distinctive problems, beliefs and cultures, for which even the most experienced individual might be ill-equipped.

From the Paper
"At its most basic, counselling takes into serious consideration verbal and non-verbal speech as well as listening skills. Impressions that clients take away from even the most fleeting of encounters matter: if the speed at which counselling is provided is either too fast or too slow; if the nature of conversation is formal or informal; if the tone of voice, pitch and loudness differ - all this can lead to divergent experiences that leave a more indelible mark rather than the contents of what is said. Equally important would be the skill to listen, providing reassurances to the speaker to express themselves freely and openly. Resisting the temptation to interrupt, avoid misunderstanding, using body language, choosing the right environment in which to talk would be some key skills, while non-verbal skills, such as gestures, facial expressions, eye contact, orientation, touch and proximity to the speaker are important ways in which social workers can engage in fruitful communication."

Tags:socialization, social, worker, relationships