New UK-wide social work student ‘hub’ launched
Published by Professional Social Work magazine 11 June 2020
A new online ‘hub’ for social work students across the UK to connect and support each other has been launched.
The Student Social Work Hub aims to provide a place of “hope” for students to feel part of a community and be heard. Its creation comes at a time of massive disruption to studies caused by COVID-19.
The team behind it, all of whom are students and members of the British Association of Social Workers, want the website to become a supportive space for sharing ideas, experiences, blogs, articles, webinars, academic writing, poems and other art as well as advice on self-care.
Emma Grady, chair of BASW’s student and newly qualified social workers group and part of the launch team, said: “We are a group of seven students from across the UK who met online via Twitter.
“We often shared interests in similar areas of research or asked the same questions – until one day we asked why there wasn’t a place where we could be connected? So we decided to create an online community for social work students to share their hopes, fears and interests.”
The hub’s ‘mission vision’ is to:
- Instill hope in the collective body of students who are the future of social work
- Show our followers that they are listened to, feel part of a community and give everyone a voice who may not necessarily have the opportunity to be heard
- Give students a platform/create an online community where they can find out more about the wide world of social work
- Provide a safe and positive environment for students to learn and share
As well as discussions on the academic aspects of social work and practice, the website aims to “promote self-care and ensure that we maintain a relaxed outlook to student life”.
The launch team are from universities across the UK and have a range of backgrounds. They are: Becky Salter, University of South Wales; Emma Brookes, Wrexham Glyndwr University in Wales; Dave Rossiter, Gloucestershire University; Kelly Centro, Nottingham Trent University; Fee Steane, Nottingham Trent University; Kristine Bloomfield - University of East Anglia and Emma Grady, Edge Hill University in Lancashire.
Visit the hub at www.thestudentsocialworkhub.wordpress.com
Email studentsocialworkers@outlook.com
Twitter @SWbohemians
This article is published by Professional Social work magazine which provides a platform for a range of perspectives across the social work sector. It does not necessarily reflect the views of the British Association of Social Workers.