SASW celebrates relationships in month long social media campaign

SASW is to celebrate relationships in social work throughout September in a month long social media campaign. 

The campaign - "Relationships Matter" - will feature a series of mini-podcast interviews with winners and nominees from the SASW Awards, 6 months on. Interviewees will share what they feel is the key to building relationships with clients in the context of increased caseloads and bureaucracy, and give an insight into what they believe are the rewards and challenges of being a social worker.  

Amongst those sharing their views are Katie Matthews and the young person who nominated her for an award, Simone Smith. Simone grew up in care and met Katie after facing homelessness following the birth of her little girl. She said, "I always thought that social work were bad people who were going to take my child away.. it wasn't until I came to the weekly drop-ins and met Katie and the rest of the team that I realised they are here to help." 

Jo McFarlane, an Ambassador for SASW and former psychiatric patient will also share her views on the importance of relationships from the perspective of a person with lived experience. Jo credits the mental health social worker - Heather - who supported her for over a decade with "saving her life". 

Twitter and Facebook followers are encouraged to join in the conversation using the hashtag #RelationshipsMatter.