The Labour Social Work group is a campaigning membership organisation. We seek to contribute to improved wellbeing and life chances of some of the most vulnerable members of society, by strengthening the place of socialist principles within social work policy and practice and within the broader social care services.
We work towards achieving these aims through collective action in local groups and through participation in national policy debates both within and outside the Labour Party.
We stand for:
- Social work as a regulated public service profession, whose members work to meet the needs of adults and children living through stressful circumstances and in need of a range of social care services
- Social workers employed by democratically accountable public and third sector agencies, funded from taxation (complemented when appropriate by charitable donations) and observing the principles of freedom of information, and local decision making
- Social workers and social work policy makers and managers who engage the adults and children who need social work services in the decisions to be made, both about the nature of the services provided in their communities, and about the services provided to them as individuals and families
- A social work profession that works collaboratively with other professions, both to achieve a more just society and in day to day practice with communities, families and individuals
- Publicly funded qualifying and post-qualifying education and training for social workers, informed by high quality ethical research.
Proposed activities
- Actively recruit group members from: social work, social work education, parliamentarians, local councillors, trades unions, trustees of voluntary organisations,
- Establish a website, Facebook and Twitter pages and Web-based newsletter
- Publish a steady stream of articles and blogs in Labour party, ‘left-leaning’ and trade union publications, newsletters, blog pages etc
- Seek meetings with, and provide background papers for, Labour front bench team (Health, Education, MoJ, DCLG, DWP, Cabinet Office depending on the issues of to be discussed), Labour members of select committees, and Labour local councillors, with the aim of having an input into the development of Labour policies on social work and social care at national and local level
- Provide information/ support to Labour MPs, local councillors, appointees to health service trusts and school governing bodies, when particular issues come up in their constituencies/ localities for which social work expertise could be helpful
- Establish links and collaborate with Labour affiliated and member-led groups with similar aims
- Establish policy groups on particular issues (egs at the moment, inter-professional services to combat child sexual exploitation; plans to outsource statutory social service functions, including child protection; planned changes to funding and content of social work education; the impact of the cuts in legal aid)
- Support the formation of local groups to seek to influence local social work/social care policies in their areas and contribute to national debates and policy papers
Founding Members of the Labour Social Work Group
- Prof. Richard Barker
- Emma Lewell-Buck MP
- Prof Ian Butler
- David Button, Norwich Labour Party
- Jenny Carter, Norwich Labour Party
- Edmund Coleshill, Norwich Labour Party. Sewell Ward Labour City Council Candidate 2015
- Alan Cubbage
- Owen Davies
- Prof Diane Debell, Norwich Labour Party
- Prof Jonathan Dickens
- Sam Earl, Norwich Labour Party
- Anna Gupta
- Helen Jackson, Norwich Labour Party
- Rt. Hon Alan Johnson MP
- Prof Peter Marsh
- Maran McKay
- Prof. Kate Morris
- Vanessa Morton, Norwich Labour Party
- Prof Lord Kamlesh Patel of Bradford OBE
- Jackie Mitchell, Norwich Labour Party
- Prof Jonathan Scourfield
- Prof Mike Stein
- Dr Beverly Turner-Daly
- Sally Trench
- Prof Hilary Tompsett
- Prof Jane Tunstill
- Kay Warbrick, Norwich Labour Party
Labour Social Work Group 
An invitation to join
THE LABOUR SOCIAL WORK GROUP
As a newly-formed campaigning membership organization, we seek to contribute to improved wellbeing and life chances of some of the most vulnerable members of society, by strengthening the place of socialist principles within social work policy and practice and within the broader social care services. We work towards achieving these aims through collective action in local groups and through participation in national policy debates both within and outside the Labour Party.
The invitation is to
– all Social Workers and those who want to see social work remaining as an ethical and effective service for vulnerable adults and children
– AND are Labour Party members, supporters or voters
WITH THE ELECTION ONLY A FEW WEEKS AWAY GET STUCK IN AND HELP US TO HAVE AN IMPACT ON LABOUR POLICY FOR SOCIAL WORK, SOCIAL CARE, AND MEASURES TO COMBAT POVERTY AND DISADVANTAGE
Why is a Labour Social Work Group needed?
There is some evidence to back the proposition that the majority of social workers are either members or supporters of the Labour Party, or support many of its policies (and worth reminding ourselves that in 1920 Clement Attlee wrote ‘The Social Worker’, tracking the origins and predicting the future of professional social work within the welfare state.)
So we were surprised to discover that there is no Labour Social Work Group amongst the many groups and associations affiliated to or less formally linking into the Labour Party, that bring together those with shared professional interests. (The present list includes Computing for Labour, Labour Housing Group, Scientists for Labour, Socialist Educational Association, Socialist Health Association, Society of Labour Lawyers.).
A meeting of Labour Party members who are social workers, social work academics or councillors focusing on social work and social care met recently in Norwich and decided to test the waters about interest in forming a Labour Social Work Group. Support for the setting up of the group has been received from Labour Party MPs and members of the House of Lords who are social workers or spokespersons on social work issues (listed below in the list of founder members.
Labour Party Central Office has advised that rather than seeking to be an affiliated Society, (a complicated procedure) a more flexible, member-led group best suits our purposes.
What’s in a name?
We opted for ‘Social Work’ rather than ‘Social Worker’ because it is important to include members with a strong interest in/ experience of working alongside social workers (eg as local authority cabinet members, employees or trustees of voluntary organisations providing social work services)
We opted for ‘Social work’ rather than the broader ‘social care’ – because specifically social work issues can (and often have) got lost in broader social care debates.
BUT of course, a Labour Social Work Group will seek to have an input into Labour policies on social care, and other policy areas that impact on the lives of adults and children whose lives have been adversely affected by recent social policies and the shrinking of public services.
SO
• look at our mission statement and plans (not fixed in stone so we are happy to receive any suggestions for change0,
• join us as a founder member (by completing the form you will find on our website, and encourage your friends and colleagues to do the same
• follow us on Facebook and Twitter, tweet about us and write blogs for our web page
• no membership fee for at least the first year – and possibly not afterwards either, other than hoping you will volunteer some of your time/ write BLOGS/ let us know what is happening (for good or ill) to social work services in your neck of the woods.
NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO HANG BACK!
June Thoburn , Sam Earl, Clive Sellick
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