We are back with another live episode – this time from adult social care at Wiltshire Council. The session took place at Community Care Live 2024.

This is a really special episode where you will hear direct from an adult who not only works within Wiltshire through Wiltshire Centre for Independent Living but also uses services that Wiltshire Council provide. This session is about how service users and practitioners can work together in co-production to enable disabled people in Wiltshire to be able to live the life they want.

 In this session they talk about practical ways to enable this to happen, such as changing assessment forms, different approaches and language. They explain how working together has improved the lives of adults with disabilities. The unique innovator and pioneer approach is really working and the hope is that those who work in adult social care will benefit from listening to this session.

You will also hear the Q&A session at the end. Don’t forget this podcast episode also counts as CPD.

The workshop was hosted by Kaylie Chapman - principal social worker at Wiltshire Council's adult social care.
Taking part were:
Dan Wilkins - Head of transformation and quality assurance
Leila Dickson - Assistant team manager in the advice and contact team
Abbie-Jo Lawrence - Pioneer from Wiltshire Centre for Independent Living
Rachael Hanwell - SEND resource facilitator at Wiltshire Centre for Independent Living

This episode was presented and produced by Sharmeen Ziauddin - careers editor at Community Care.

The Social Work Community podcast is where social workers come to discuss the key issues affecting their profession. Whether you are a student or an experienced social worker - whether you are frontline or management, this podcast is for you. You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Follow us on Instagram to keep up-to-date with the latest news and join the Social Work Community for all things social work.

A collaboration between Hampshire County Council and South Central Ambulance Service is helping to improve the quality of care for adult social workers that would otherwise be transported to hospital.

Hampshire County Council works to ensure that older adults avoid unnecessary journeys to the hospital thanks to a collaboration the council has formed with the South Central Ambulance Service or SCAS.

Through the collaboration, the Social Work Line was created - a dedicated phone number that crew can use to contact a social worker directly. 

In this episode, you will hear from Matt Hutchinson, head of service for South Hampshire older adults’ team and senior social worker Maria Kneller, who talk about how this service is helping to give older adults greater independence to stay in their homes if a conveyance to hospital is not essential.

You can listen to the podcast using the player above, or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google, Spreaker or wherever you normally listen to podcasts.

Here is the transcript.

Did you know podcasts can count towards your CPD?

Learn more about Hampshire County Council and see what opportunities are available.

Other articles and learning from Hampshire:
Podcast: using new approaches to promote ‘old school’ social work for older adults

Community social work: supporting vulnerable adults to reconnect with their communities

Joint working and learning new things: social work in a transition team

From busking to horse-riding: using strengths-based practice to transform lives

The Social Work Community podcast is where social workers come to discuss the key issues affecting their profession. Whether you are a student or an experienced social worker - whether you are frontline or management, this podcast is for you. You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Follow us on Instagram to keep up-to-date with the latest news and join the Social Work Community for all things social work.

We explore how Hampshire County Council works to ensure that older adults avoid unnecessary journeys to the hospital thanks to a collaboration they have formed with the South Central Ambulance Service or SCAS.

Through the collaboration, the Social Work Line was created - a dedicated phone number that crew can use to contact a social worker directly, who is based with SCAS was formed.

In this episode, you will hear from Matt Hutchinson, head of service for South Hampshire older adults’ team and senior social worker Maria Kneller.

You can listen to the podcast using the player above, or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google, Spreaker or wherever you normally listen to podcasts.

Here is the transcript Did you know podcasts can count towards your CPD?

Learn more about Hampshire County Council and see what opportunities are available.

Other articles and learning from Hampshire:
Podcast: using new approaches to promote ‘old school’ social work for older adults

Community social work: supporting vulnerable adults to reconnect with their communities

Joint working and learning new things: social work in a transition team

From busking to horse-riding: using strengths-based practice to transform lives

Welcome to the second episode of the new mini-series, 'Ask the Experts'. In this series our panel of experts will be answering questions sent in by readers. 

Our experts are Dame Lorna Boreland-Kelly, Claire Barcham and Kayleigh Rose Evans, and the session is hosted by Ruth Hardy-Mullings, head of content at Community Care.

The dilema in this epsidoe is two-fold. How to keep motivated working in a child exploitation role and how to navigate out of social work with teens to either fostering or even to the adult care sector.

Listen to our experts tackle this.

Read the transcript here. 

So if you have any burning social work related career questions do drop us an email on [email protected].

The Social Work Community podcast is where social workers come to discuss the key issues affecting their profession. Whether you are a student or an experienced social worker - whether you are frontline or management, this podcast is for you. You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Follow us on Instagram to keep up-to-date with the latest news and join the Social Work Community for all things social work.

It's that time of year🎄! And to celebrate we recorded a Christmas special for The Social Work Community Podcast!

The social work sector and face of Community Care, have both changed a lot over the last 50 years. As it is Community Care's 50th birthday year it made sense to discuss all this and more with some of the longest-standing members of the Community Care team.

In this episode Sharmeen Ziauddin, careers editor, sat down with three people, who combined, have been at Community Care for over a whopping 80 years. All three were fairly resistant to the idea of recording an episode but with some sweet-talking I managed to persuade Mithran Samuel, editor of Community Care, Nicky Davies, head of partnerships and events and Natalie Valios, content editor on Inform Adults, to come to our London office one morning and have a good old natter.

Mithran started at Community Care 20 years ago as a reporter, and moved up the ranks to his current role as editor. Nicky joined in the late 80s in a sales job and has progressed to her current role. Natalie also started over 30 years ago, left Community Care for bit and then came back - because she simply could not stay away.

Listen now for this special behind the scenes episode.
Read the transcript here.

The Social Work Community podcast is where social workers come to discuss the key issues affecting their profession. Whether you are a student or an experienced social worker - whether you are frontline or management, this podcast is for you. You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Follow us on Instagram to keep up-to-date with the latest news and join the Social Work Community for all things social work.

This is a special episode which was recorded live at Community Care Live 2024.

In this thought-provoking and session, you will hear about the importance of a parent’s journey while considering their own child’s life story.

You will hear first-hand the experiences some parents have had and how practitioners can gain a better understanding of the impact positive life stories can have on both parents and children.Social worker Rachel Thomas and Pause practitioner Julia Williams, both in Wiltshire Council, narrate Laura's story to a live audience. Laura, who gave up her baby up for adoption, went through a tough time and her story shows how she was supported by professionals every step of the way.

Callum, a father, and someone who spent some of his childhood in care, talks about how is key worker, Ceri Evans, through the Dads Matter Too project, helped him overcome his personal challenges and become the dad he wanted to be.

Remember, most of our podcast episodes count as CPD.

If you want to get in touch, then you can via our Instagram, which is @thesocialworkcommunity, and if you haven’t joined the community site then you can register for free - you will be able to talk to like-minded professionals about work, your career and a lot more.

The Social Work Community podcast is where social workers come to discuss the key issues affecting their profession. Whether you are a student or an experienced social worker - whether you are frontline or management, this podcast is for you. You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Follow us on Instagram to keep up-to-date with the latest news and join the Social Work Community for all things social work.

The Anti-Racist Movement (ARM) - a collective of Black female social workers, academics and allied professionals got together for its second annual conference in London in November 2024 - it was ARM's second anniversary.

It was my first time at an ARM event and the day was filled with learning, sadness, frustration but also filled with laughter, celebration and most importantly, hope. And a lot of singing and dancing. Shantel Thomas, founder of ARM, had just celebrated winning the 2024 social justice advocate Gold award at Social Worker of the Year Awards in November.

Listen to my day at the conference where you can hear from Shantel and others as well as music featured from the amazing Tonia Soulbird, also a social worker.

By Sharmeen Ziauddin, careers editor at Community Care.



The Social Work Community podcast is where social workers come to discuss the key issues affecting their profession. Whether you are a student or an experienced social worker - whether you are frontline or management, this podcast is for you. You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Follow us on Instagram to keep up-to-date with the latest news and join the Social Work Community for all things social work.

Welcome to our new mini-series : ‘Ask The Experts’ where we put your career questions to three social work experts. 

In this episode, hear from Dame Lorna Boreland-Kelly, Claire Barcham and Kayleigh Rose Evans respond to a question we received asking how to tailor a job application to get the best results and secure that new role.

This episode is hosted by Ruth Hardy-Mullings, head of content at Community Care. If you have a question you’d like our experts to answer or if you felt the advice has helped you secure your next social work role, we want to hear from you.

Send us an email at: [email protected] You can follow all the Ask The Expert questions and responses on: www.thesocialworkcommunity.com

Read past questions from social workers with a career question and read the responses here.

The Social Work Community podcast is where social workers come to discuss the key issues affecting their profession. Whether you are a student or an experienced social worker - whether you are frontline or management, this podcast is for you. You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Follow us on Instagram to keep up-to-date with the latest news and join the Social Work Community for all things social work.

Two social workers share their experience of returning to social work from maternity leave and highlight how Essex County Council has supported their transition.

How much support did you have when you returned to social work after becoming a first-time parent?

In three episodes of the Social Work Community Podcast, social workers at Essex County Council discuss the various ways the local authority supports its workforce and promotes their wellbeing.

In this episode, Amy, a team manager in a Care Quality Commission service improvement team in adult services, and Brooke, who works in a family support and protection team in children’s services, share their experiences.

Both first-time mothers highlight that being a parent is no barrier to career progression at the local authority and show how supportive management structures have helped them achieve a work-life balance.

Access the transcript here.

About the podcast
The Social Work Community Podcast explores the issues that matter to social work practitioners in their working lives.

You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Our first season was nominated in this year’s British Association of Social Workers (BASW) Social Work Journalism Awards.

So sign up to the Social Work Community to be among the first to catch each episode and to connect with fellow practitioners in a safe space.

Otherwise, check out the Social Work Community Podcast on the following:

• Spotify
• Apple Podcasts
• Spreaker
• Audible (Amazon)

Click ‘follow’ or ‘subscribe’ on your podcast app so you know when a new episode is published.And don’t forget to follow us on Instagram.

The Social Work Community podcast is where social workers come to discuss the key issues affecting their profession. Whether you are a student or an experienced social worker - whether you are frontline or management, this podcast is for you. You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Follow us on Instagram to keep up-to-date with the latest news and join the Social Work Community for all things social work.

Podcast: locum v perm – what works for you?We ask two social workers from each side of the agency-permanent divide what has driven their career choices and if they would ever change their minds.

In this episode of the Social Work Community Podcast, senior careers editor Kirsty Ayakwah asks two social workers (Le'Siran Edwards and Kayleigh Rose Evans) from either side of the divide about what has driven their career choices.

Le’Siran has 25 years' experience working with children and families, and over a decade in children’s social work. She has spent the last 10 years building up her coaching service, Social Work Coaching Hub, and stepped away from locum work last year to focus on it full time. She also runs her own podcast, called Dear Social Worker Pod.

Kayleigh has spent her career working in permanent roles. Alongside her social work practice, Kayleigh works as an independent trainer and also shares reflections on social work through her YouTube channel, @KayleighRoseEvans.

Since this podcast was produced, there have been changes to rules curbing English councils’ use of agency social workers in children’s services. You can read more about the changes here. 

Read a transcript here

About the podcast

The Social Work Community Podcast explores the issues that matter to social work practitioners in their working lives.Kirsty and fellow host, careers editor Sharmeen Ziauddin, interview experienced and inspiring guests, including frontline social workers who speak from the heart about their jobs, the sector and society.Our first season went down a storm and was nominated in this year’s British Association of Social Workers (BASW) Social Work Journalism Awards.

The Social Work Community podcast is where social workers come to discuss the key issues affecting their profession. Whether you are a student or an experienced social worker - whether you are frontline or management, this podcast is for you. You will hear direct from social workers in your community about their successes and their challenges.

Follow us on Instagram to keep up-to-date with the latest news and join the Social Work Community for all things social work.