Call for councils to open doors to the media to prove that social work is not all about tragedy

Ahead of the first episode of ‘Protecting Our Children’ on BBC2 on Monday, BASW urged local authorities to follow Bristol City Council’s example in allowing cameras to follow their social workers as they strive to safeguard vulnerable young people.

BASW wrote to Annie Hudson, Director of Children and Young People’s Services, commending her on her brave decision to open the doors of her department to the media, a decision the Association believes can help raise public awareness of the unrecognised, life-changing work social workers undertake every day.

Commenting ahead of the programme’s screening, Sue Kent, BASW Professional Officer, said:

“I want to thank Bristol City Council for supporting the BBC in giving a true reflection of the immensely difficult job faced by social workers on a daily basis.

“The first episode does a good job of highlighting particular issues in the profession, such as the importance of team work, as well as the need for ongoing support for practitioners – for example, in providing planned supervision for newly qualified social workers.

“BASW has been campaigning for better media coverage which truly reflects the role of the social work profession. Too often we only see a negative presentation of the difficult job social workers do. We do question why other local authorities cannot take a leaf from Bristol’s book and allow the media to see a true picture of social work.”