| Title: |
Student perspectives on school-based social workers: A mixed-methods study |
| Authors: |
Bennett, Verity; Roberts, Louise; Lugg-Widger, Fiona; Meindl, Melissa; Pallmann, Philip; Smith, Philip; Schroeder, Elizabeth-Ann; Adara, Linda; Munnery, Kim; Meister, Lena; Ayayo, Sharon; Rawlinson, Sarah; Forrester, Donald; Petrou, Stavros; White, James; Westlake, David |
| Publisher Information: |
Emerald |
| Publication Year: |
2024 |
| Collection: |
Cardiff University: ORCA (Online Research @ Cardiff) |
| Description: |
Purpose School social work, in various forms, is well established internationally and has a growing evidence base. Yet existing research focuses on professional perspectives rather than those of students. This study aims to fill this gap by exploring secondary school student perspectives of having social workers in schools (SWIS). It was undertaken in England as part of the SWIS trial, which tested whether secondary school-based social workers could improve child safety and well-being, identify issues more quickly and reduce the need for statutory services. Design/methodology/approach A mixed-methods approach comprised a survey (n = 1,998 students) and interviews (n = 27 students). Surveys included questions on awareness, understanding, interaction with and attitudes towards the school-based social workers. Interviews involved a Q-sort activity followed by semi-structured questions on general attitudes and experiences. The Q-sort characterised prominent perspectives and how many students subscribed to them. Findings Students were broadly positive about having a social worker in their school in the survey and interviews. Two prominent perspectives on SWIS were identified. The first (n = 17) was defined by students feeling positively overall and strongly agreeing that they trusted the social worker. The second (n = 4) was mixed in sentiment, defined by some anxiety about working with the social worker. In interviews, students relayed that social workers were easily accessible, offered emotional support and acted as a bridge between school and home. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to quantify student perspectives on having social workers at school and evidence attitudes and experiences about school-based social work as practiced during the SWIS trial. |
| Document Type: |
article in journal/newspaper |
| File Description: |
application/pdf |
| Language: |
English |
| Relation: |
https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/171972/3/JCS-04-2023-0021-File001.pdf; Bennett, Verity https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A2143993C.html orcid:0000-0002-9311-4124 orcid:0000-0002-9311-4124, Roberts, Louise https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A113591B.html orcid:0000-0002-6154-3549 orcid:0000-0002-6154-3549, Lugg-Widger, Fiona https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A0960398.html orcid:0000-0003-0029-9703 orcid:0000-0003-0029-9703, Meindl, Melissa https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A24070379.html orcid:0000-0002-1231-0175 orcid:0000-0002-1231-0175, Pallmann, Philip https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A2341958V.html orcid:0000-0001-8274-9696 orcid:0000-0001-8274-9696, Smith, Philip https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A1861656P.html orcid:0000-0002-3491-4519 orcid:0000-0002-3491-4519, Schroeder, Elizabeth-Ann, Adara, Linda https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A2260439J.html orcid:0000-0002-0015-3942 orcid:0000-0002-0015-3942, Munnery, Kim https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A21885274.html, Meister, Lena https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A2458870Q.html, Ayayo, Sharon, Rawlinson, Sarah https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A24695278.html, Forrester, Donald https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A2224322Z.html orcid:0000-0002-2293-5718 orcid:0000-0002-2293-5718, Petrou, Stavros, White, James https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A131567C.html orcid:0000-0001-8371-8453 orcid:0000-0001-8371-8453 and Westlake, David https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A2398492J.html orcid:0000-0001-7507-3413 orcid:0000-0001-7507-3413 2024. Student perspectives on school-based social workers: A mixed-methods study. Journal of Children's Services 19 (3) , pp. 189-221. 10.1108/JCS-04-2023-0021 https://doi.org/10.1108/JCS-04-2023-0021 file https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/171972/3/JCS-04-2023-0021-File001.pdf |
| DOI: |
10.1108/JCS-04-2023-0021 |
| Availability: |
https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/171972/; https://doi.org/10.1108/JCS-04-2023-0021 |
| Rights: |
cc_by_nc_4_0 |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.106EB93B |
| Database: |
BASE |