Review past events held by the Centre for Social Work Innovation and Research.
Upcoming Events:
Beyond Observation: AI for Transparency and Labor Welfare in Fisheries and Healthcare
Speaker: Dr. Hung-Hsun Chen (Associate Professor, Department of Mathematics, Fu Jen Catholic University (FJCU), Taiwan)
Where: Online (Zoom) Register here to receive the Zoom link!
When: Wed 27 August, 1-2PM
This talk explores how artificial intelligence can be applied to address real-world challenges in the domains of distant-water fisheries and healthcare labor management. Drawing on two practical case studies, the presentation highlights how AI can serve as a tool for enhancing transparency, accountability, and the protection of labor rights.
The first case examines the use of AI to support electronic observer systems in distant-water fisheries. By automatically identifying captured fish species, AI can complement human observers in monitoring fishing practices. This approach strengthens fisheries governance by improving the accuracy of catch reporting and reducing reliance on scarce human resources, while also contributing to greater transparency in global supply chains.
The second case focuses on work-hour monitoring in the healthcare sector, where long shifts and excessive workloads are persistent concerns. A mobile application records staff activity logs and location data to generate preliminary work-hour estimates. With the support of AI, these data are refined into more precise work-hour patterns and compared against self-reported schedules. This enables the detection of potential overwork, offering insights for labor regulation, institutional management, and the safeguarding of occupational health.
Together, these cases illustrate how AI can move beyond technical innovation to address questions of labor welfare, governance, and social responsibility, showing its potential as a partner in advancing both sustainable resource management and human well-being.
Past Events:
- CSWIR Poster Competition 2025
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In April, CSWIR launched a social change-inspired poster competition for Postgraduate Research (PGR) students and Early Career Researchers (ECRs) at the University of Sussex.
We accepted poster submissions from all faculties that demonstrate innovative approaches to:
- Understanding Social Problems in a Changing World
- Relationship-Based Social Justice
- Collaboration in Social Innovation
- Methodological Innovation & Decolonising Research
Our Poster Display, Voting & Prize-Giving Event took place on:
Date: Tuesday 17 June 2025
Time: 12:00-14:00PMWe displayed the posters outside the entrance to Essex House and contestants presented their work to attendees, who then voted for their favourites.
The prize announcement and awards ceremony took place afterwards, and 5 contestants were presented with awards for Research Excellence, Social Enquiry or being an Emerging Researcher, by the CSWIR co-directors, Gurminder Bhambra (Associate Dean for Research and Innovation) and Mario Novelli (Director of Research and Innovation, ESW).Congratulations to prize-winners and all those who took part!
Prize winners are as follows:
Faculty of Social Sciences Associate Dean's Award for Research Excellence:
- Sunisha Neupane (IDS)
- Haoyu You (Engineering)
School of Education and Social Work (ESW) DRKE Award for Critical Social Inquiry:
- Lorne Power (ESW)
- Diana Ramirez Sarmiento (IDS)
CSWIR Emerging Researcher Award:
- Amy Knight (ESW)
- A European dialogue on Signs of Safety with Anna Melke
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When: Friday 11 April, 12-1PM 2025
Where: Online via Zoom
In this seminar, Anna gave a presentation on her ongoing Signs of Safety research, with a specific focus on the Swedish context. This was followed by a 45-minute group discussion.
Dr Anna Melke is a researcher based in Gothenburg, Sweden. She primarily works at the Research and Development Unit of the Gothenburg Region, an association of thirteen local governments covering one million inhabitants. The unit brings together a multidisciplinary team of social science researchers and senior analysts. She is also affiliated with the Department of Social Work at the University of Gothenburg, where she organizes seminars on applied (practice-based) research. In recent years, Dr. Melke has led several research and improvement projects focusing on support for children and parents at risk, including out-of-home care. Currently, she is studying the potential impact of the Signs of Safety model in child protection investigations by comparing services that implement the model with those that do not.
- Kingston and Sussex Joint Departmental Social Work Conference 2025
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Wednesday 26 March, 10AM-1PM 2025
Co-organised by the Department of Social Work and Social Care, Kingston University London and Centre for Social Work Innovation and Research (CSWIR), Department of Social Work and Social Care, University of Sussex
Community work is a longstanding tradition within social work, encompassing the early Settlement movements, radical community organisation and activism, rural development, and urban planning and renewal. In this online conference, jointly organised by the social work departments of Kingston University and the University of Sussex, we brought together a range of UK and international speakers to discuss the relevance and resurgence of community-based practice in contemporary social work.
- Love in Motion 2025
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On Valentines Day, we hosted 'Love in Motion 2025', a collaborative event with Relational Activism, alongside East Sussex County Council and Brighton & Hove City Council Council.
Our key themes were:
💓 Relationships that heal
💓 Sustaining lifelong relationshipsThis event brought together practitioners, academics, and lived experience changemakers to explore how relationships at the heart of social work and human services can create lasting impact.
As a group, we explored love as a radical tool for transformation – because relationships are not just the means; they are the end.
Thank you to our co-organisers Tim Fisher and Kar-Man (pictured below)!
And a huge thank you to all who came and contributed their experiences of love in social care.
- Why the Affirmation Model is Important for Social Work Practice with Dr Colin Cameron (Northumbria University)
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Date: Friday 25 October 2024
Time: 1-2:30pm
Location: Chichester 3 3R241 / Zoom
Colin Cameron has been active in the disabled people's movement since 1992 in various roles in disability arts, inclusive living and collective advocacy organisations. He has had quite a few things published, including 'Controversial Issues in a Disabling Society' (2003, with John Swain and Sally French), 'Disability Studies: A Student's Guide' (2014), and 'The Routledge Handbook of Service User Involvement' (2020, with Hugh McLaughlin, Peter Beresford, Helen Casey and Joe Duffy). He is the vocalist in a punk band called Filth and has had his Stuckist nose-picking paintings exhibited at The Royal Academy. His first degree was in social administration from Brighton Polytechnic in 1986.
“In this presentation I shall explore the view, asserted by the Union of the Physically Impaired Against Segregation almost 50 years ago, that disability is a form of social oppression, and ask why much social work practice seems to have had difficulty with this understanding. I shall consider the disability definition in the 2010 Equality Act and why this establishes in law a way of looking and thinking which makes it difficult to think about disability other than as unfortunate individual limitation. I shall outline the affirmation model, an idea that has emerged from the creative practice of the disability arts movement, which offers a way of understanding disability rooted in ideas of pride and respect, and conclude by reflecting on the affirmation model in the light of a number of statements made by disabled people, drawing out its implications for anti-oppressive social work practice.”
Dr Cameron is currently based at the Department of Social Work, Education and Community Well Being, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
You can watch his presentation here: Why the Affirmation Model is Important for Social Work Practice.
- Bridging Disciplines: Data-Driven Methodologies for Education and Social Work Research in Disaster Perception Studies with Dr Chia-Lee Yang
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Date: Tue 9 July 2024
Time: 2:00 - 3:00 PM
Location: CIE Room, Essex House
This research seminar explored the integration of data-driven methodologies in education and social work research, focusing on disaster perception studies. Techniques such as big data mining, MCDM, and machine learning were discussed to understand public responses to crises like COVID-19 and environmental pollution. Emphasizing vulnerable populations, the session demonstrated the enhancement of social interventions and educational programs. Dr. Yang presented case studies on text mining for bibliometric analysis, social media analysis for public perception of environmental issues, and big data analytics for vaccine hesitancy.
- Ethical Action in Challenging Times with Kimberly Strom
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Date: Wed 26 June 2024
Time: 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
Location: Arts A04
During this session, we engage in dialogue about ethical action, the pressures of wanting to do “the right thing”, and how we can act with moral courage.
- Vets, Pets, and Social Workers: Creating Veterinary Social Work in the UK with Rebecca Stephens
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Date: Tue 25 June 2024
Time: 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Location: Zoom
This session introduced the group to Veterinary Social Work and the four core areas of practice that supports human-animal relationships.
- AMBIT/Mentalisation Seminar with Gema Hadridge and Carly Stockton (Brighton & Hove Adolescent Service)
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Date: Thurs 6 June 2024
Time: 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
Location: Zoom
AMBIT is an open source approach and the Brighton & Hove Adolescent Service is focusing on becoming an AMBIT influenced service, with interest in extending this approach more widely. The Adolescent Service is made up of various teams - a Social Work team, RU-OK, Youth Justice Service, Functional Family Therapy and Extended Adolescent Service.
This interactive seminar introduced participants to AMBIT and how it can be used in social work practice across the life course to strengthen the support to vulnerable populations to promote improved outcomes. Participants also had the opportunity in the session to inform efforts to embed AMBIT locally.
Recording to follow soon!
- 'Belonging: Tiger Bay Boxing Club' Film Screening, with documentary participants and Anna Gupta (Co-Power)
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Date: Mon 3 June 2024
Time: 4:30 - 6:00 PM
Location: Pevensey I 1A6
After a project overview from Anna Gupta, we watched 'Belonging: Tiger Bay Boxing Club'. Afterwards, we asked founder of the boxing coach, Wasem Said, the director and producer, Florence Ayisi and two of the club's boxers about their experience of making the documentary. It was a privilege to also hear from the participants about their passion for their sport and how this links to feelings of community for them.
- Thinking Through Family: Narratives of Care Experienced
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Date: Thursday 14 December 2023
Time: 4:30-6pm
Venue: Woodland 3, The Student Centre, University of SussexCIRCY and CSWIR celebrated the launch of Professor Janet Boddy’s new book: ‘Thinking Through Family: Narratives of Care Experienced Lives’.
Discussants: Rosie Canning (University of Southampton) and Professor Ros Edwards (University of Southampton).