Social work and social care

Contexts of Social Work

Module code: L5088
Level 4
15 credits in autumn semester
Teaching method: Seminar
Assessment modes: Coursework

This module will help students to locate the contemporary UK social work profession within relevant historical and global contexts. Students will learn through a variety of means that include lectures and workshops, but also through group and individual research and investigation tasks. Through the set tasks, students will gain an increased appreciation of the realities of contemporary social work practice and the factors influencing the development of the profession.

Key policy changes will be highlighted and the political, contested and controversial aspects fo the social work role will be introduced in order to form a firm basis for modules that follow later in the degree. This module complements Introduction to Professional Learning and Development where the focus is upon the process of learning for social work rather than just the content. Active participation by service users and carer and practitioners alongside programme faculty will provide students with a range of perspectives and different forms of knowledge.

Module learning outcomes

• Understand the range of roles and tasks involved in social work practice through an appreciation of the range of settings in which social work takes place within contemporary British society. 
• Explain how social policy affects the development of social work practice  
• Demonstrate initial understanding of local and global challenges social work faces in the contemporary context 
• Describe some of the variations in how social work is practiced in other parts of the world through the lens of anti-discriminatory and anti-racist practice