A social worker's alternative New Year's Honours list

Like many social workers I have mixed views on the New Year’s Honours list, especially when there can sometimes be endless lists of people who may have worked very hard but were essentially doing their job. 

It is, however, lovely to see the mention of honours to local community groups and to people who we know have given their own time generously and selflessly to the support of others. With that in mind, I will happily celebrate those I have chosen below. I do believe strongly that we should recognise and say thank you to those family, friends and colleagues who daily go above and beyond. My only difficulty now is to remember all those who haven’t been mentioned here but hopefully will be on future occasions. Although I personally dislike the use of titles, for obvious reasons, I am only too happy to recognise and pat all the following lovely people on the back. 

The cost of living crisis is rightly featuring large in this alternative honours list, and I make no apologies for this as it strikes at the very heart of our existence. Forgive me for putting my own mother first, she really was a lovely person and I miss her still. I was especially reminded of her throughout the ongoing Post Office scandal. She would have been horrified.

Anita, my mother and sub-postmistress is my first choice. Anita was of the generation of women who worked endlessly in the kitchen, making meals, doing the housework in the days before hoovers, automatic washing machines, fridges and tumble dryers. She then had to go out to more formal work, becoming a village sub–Post Office mistress in a small village in Kent. She had never heard of strengths-based social work practise, but she was an expert in helping vulnerable families manage. Discovering that some local families ran out of their benefit money each week, she took control, keeping the benefit payments behind the counter and handing out the necessary food and goods for the family each day from their allowance. The children never went hungry again. 

Sir Michael Marmot, my second choice was, is, and always will be a tower of strength. I never tire of reading his work and research into the social determinants of health and health inequalities. As many of you will know, he is a prolific producer of blogs, research, reports and frequent Tweets on inequality in all its many forms. Although not a social worker and already well decorated, Sir Michael’s name must go forward in the annuls of social work for his sheer endeavour, persistence and courage in speaking out time and again, being highly critical of the government on what is, after all, a political issue with political solutions. 

It is appalling to read in Health Equality in England: The Marmot Review 10 Years On that people can expect to spend more of their lives in poor health, that improvements in life expectancy have not only stalled overall but actually declined for women in the poorest areas and the health gap has grown between wealthy and deprived areas – to the extent of five years in some places. Marmot’s focus on the social determinants of health must surely endear him to us, linking as it does so strongly to our social work values and principles.  

Next in line is the amazing role model Wendy Sherman, former retired deputy secretary of state of America: I nominate Wendy for services to international social work. When asked by Laura Kuenssberg, on the broadcaster’s Sunday morning BBC1 show in March 2023 about her early career in social work, she brilliantly said: “I was blessed to learn both clinical skills, as well as how to relate to people, to organise people to reach an objective… I sometimes joke that (as with Putin), the skills are the same, my caseload has just changed.” I love her confidence, her trust and pride in social work values and skills and the fact that she’s a woman in a very senior position who has never lost touch with her social work roots and origins. 

For services to refugees and asylum seekers I nominate Maggie, an outstanding social work team manager who worked tirelessly in Barking and Dagenham when I was there as director social services from 1998- 2005. Maggie made sure incoming asylum seekers, unaccompanied refugee children and families were welcome, winning the Local Government Chronicle 2003 Social Services Team of the Year award in 2003. She was, and I’m sure still is, the sort of social worker everyone and anyone would want. She was warm, always professional, deeply concerned about the human condition and never ducked any difficult situation. She had broad shoulders and was held in great regard and with great respect by both people using our services and her workforce alike. 

Next is the inimitable and, as I said to him recently, indomitable Dominic Watters. A single dad, Dominic recently qualified as a social worker and is a BASW member serving on the BASW England committee. Most of you would have heard of him and if not, I thoroughly recommend you find him. Dominic’s entrepreneurial campaign on food poverty has been brilliantly, persistently and vigorously pursued. Dominic has, without a doubt, made a significant contribution, travelling across the country to deliver expert seminars, training and campaigns to social workers and volunteers working in communities. I know he has a good and respectful alliance with Sir Michael and I’m sure they both learn from each other. They are both leaders and shakers in a world that needs both.

Continuing on the theme of poverty and speaking out, my next nominee is the giant figure in so many ways of John Pearce, current president of the Association of Directors of Childrens Services and corporate director of children and young people’s service at Durham County Council. Speaking on his appointment as president, John talked about a real focus on inequality, addressing issues across health, care and education for children. However, my main reason for picking John was his barnstorming speech at the National Children and Adults Conference in November last year. He began by quoting from The Joseph Rowntree Report that found that over one million children in the UK experienced destitution in 2022, triple the number in 2017. He went  on to say that this is the context in which we (social workers) are working and that we need to urgently address the drivers and causes of poverty head on, rather than doing what is frankly too little too late. It was a hugely challenging statement to make to a conference full of elected members of all political backgrounds and I would like to think that he both shamed and inspired us all in equal parts.

Further on austerity, I have two recommendations, both Martins and both celebrities: Martin Sheen and Martin Lewis. The actor Michael Sheen has done a lot of campaigning against poverty and donates a lot of his salary to social causes. He returned his OBE in 2020 in protest against the monarchy, but I very much hope he will accept this one.
 

In the same breath I hope that Martin Lewis, who already has a CBE, will be willing to accept another honour from the social work community. Martin deserves this award because of his humble and respectful understanding of mental health and his humility about his own experiences. In his much-watched weekly ITV programme The Martin Lewis Money Show Live, Martin talks movingly about financial hardship being an extremely emotional and difficult experience. He goes further than this, however, by actively engaging the live audience as participants, in the best traditions of co-production, he openly engages in a way that makes this everyone’s problem and so encourages solutions. He also actively encourages better use of benefits such as Attendance Allowance. A real champion, on all money matters, he was recently proposed as the next Prime Minister by a political focus group. He has my vote.

There are so many more I could mention but I believe all readers would want one further person, Shaid Naqvi, added to this alternative honour’s list. Shahid is someone who by his very nature and diligent expertise has earned the respect of the 22,000 BASW social workers who receive their PSW magazine bi-monthly and by e-bulletin.  Professional Social Work magazine is unique in professional circles, and I know it is the envy of many in the professional magazine publishing world. Being the editor over the years requires not only expert diplomacy, great courage and a passion for the truth, but an ability to shine a light on injustice, corruption, inequality and poor practise as well as making us all feel good about social work and the people we work with. I respect him for his extensive and outstanding writing abilities and hope he finds time to indulge in these more as time goes on. Shahid promises me he is not a social worker and yet he seems to have all those qualities. He is quite simply unique, and we are fortunate indeed to have him working with and for us. 

Finally, for services to the community I would like to offer our local 100 bus in Tower Hamlets, London. This friendly single decker, bright red and now electric bus is noiseless and pollution free. It is a much-loved and travelled community hub starting its inauspicious journey in Shadwell, just behind the underground station. It then winds its way through the byways of old Wapping, pausing on the village green and up along the cobbled streets, accompanied by much gossip and goodwill from the regulars towards the city. I like to think that it scuttles along as quickly as it can past Liverpool Street station onto the posher St Pauls, before turning on its heels back to the East End. The drivers are exemplary, greeting every passenger and especially appreciate the passengers who almost always shout out a loud “Thank you” as they disembark.