BASW Cymru report - March 2013

Whew!! The terrific pace of work and developments in Wales continues. The hard work of the committee and staff means we are able to punch way above our weight in terms of our influence and involvement. Although this can create pressure of expectation from all quarters, it is gratifying to see our membership continuing to rise, meaning BASW Cymru has an even stronger voice in Wales to promote social work.

Committee Activity

Further meetings of our committee sub-groups took place on 4 February via telephone conferences. This has meant that work continues to progress quickly on a number of key areas as follows:

Awards – The nomination forms have now been finalised and should now be linked to our Awards section on the Wales web page in both Welsh and English versions. Please start thinking now about who in your team and/or service should be nominated. So often, we are on the ‘back foot’ trying to defend issues. This is your chance to do something positive for your profession. Anyone wanting to make a nomination should send a completed form to wales@basw.co.uk. Please remember that these awards are open to all social workers – irrespective of whether they are BASW members or not.

Conference – Arrangements for our conference on 12 June 2013 at the Catrin Finch Centre, Glyndwr University, Wrexham, are coming together. Please see the link on the website and our notice in PSW. As previously mentioned, the conference will have a focus on Safeguarding and include perspectives from Children’s and Adults perspectives.

Membership – This sub-group continues to look at ways in which BASW Cymru can link with members on the ground. This includes further encouragement and involvement in BASW Cymru, so that members feel a sense of ownership of their professional association. The expectation is that this will lead to an even greater influence of social workers (through BASW Cymru) to those in power, as well as increasing retention and recruitment of members.

World Social Work Day Celebration – The details for our event on 20 March 2013 at the Pierhead Building in Cardiff Bay are now complete. The event will be attended by Masters degree students from Cardiff University, Assembly Members and other key people including the Deputy Minister for Children and Social Service, Gwenda Thomas AM. We are also delighted that there will be a presentation on a research project about relationship based practice. Please remember, you are all welcome to attend for this lunchtime event.

Supervision – Another small sub-group met on 2 February in Cardiff (bad planning due to a rugby international!!). We are expecting a revised and more in-depth supervision survey to be produced shortly, which will be sent to all our members in Wales. It is crucial you respond to this survey, so that it provides substantial evidence in our discussions with managers and other stakeholders. Please see the link in a forthcoming e-bulletin. If you haven’t provided a current or up-to-date email address to BASW, please contact our membership section and inform them, so you don’t miss out.

Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Bill -  BASW Cymru have now been invited to be part of the new Advisory Group that has been set up to advise AM’s on issues during the Bill’s progression through the committee stages, before it becomes law in Wales. A launch of the Group was held at The Pierhead Building on 7 February, where most of the 17 members of the group were joined with a good selection of AM’s. This is now our final chance to influence the final version. If you have any comments or concerns, please let me know on my email address below.

And finally...

It is important that you contact us about concerns relating to your practice. This can include individual concerns, poor management culture or inappropriate working conditions to meet the requirements of the Code of Practice for Social Care Workers, etc. Don’t leave things until they reach a crisis (if you can). We are always keen to hear (and act!) on issues that affect social work. A well-supported staff member or team, in a positive learning environment means that service users and their carers will get a better service.