People with lived experience and carer expectations of social workers and students on placement

Expectations of a social worker

Knowledge

  • A sound grasp of the agency role
  • Be open and honest what they/the agency can achieve
  • A developing awareness of impairment
  • A developed understanding of confidentiality

Personality and skills

  • Approachability 
  • The ability to listen, empathise, understand the issue/problems and take appropriate action
  • A willingness to enlarge their knowledge of different cultures/religions
  • A non-judgemental approach
  • An ability to gain the trust and confidence of people with lived experience and carers in developing a respectful relationship
  • An appropriate dress sense
  • The skill to value people with lived experience and carers
  • Developed respectful listening skills

Approach

  • The ability to ‘follow through’ on commitments and agreed actions
  • An ability to recognise a lack of knowledge and seek information from other sources
  • An ability to engage with people with lived experience in meeting their needs
  • A polite, non-oppressive and professional manner
  • A willingness to devote enough time to an interview as defined by the people with lived experience ie determining the people with lived experience agenda in partnership
  • The ability to be available and accessible
  • The politeness to arrive on time for appointments
  • A genuine interest in the people with lived experiences' and carers' concerns
  • An ability to challenge appropriately and positively
  • The ability to be open and honest and not falsely raise expectations

Developing your approach

When asked 'How can social workers empower people with lived experience?' the following suggestions were made. This may give you an insight into how your approach when working with people with lived experience could be developed.

  • Listen to me
  • Not keeping people waiting
  • Never be patronising
  • Never use belittling comments
  • Help the person with lived experience to feel valued
  • Provide continuity of care
  • Do not use jargon
  • Not allowing long and embarrassing silences in sessions
  • Not imposing own beliefs on a client
  • Never minimising a client’s feelings
  • Use positive body language
  • Use appropriate empathy
  • Attend to equal opportunity issues
  • Keeping confidences
  • Creating trust
  • Provide choices
  • Recognise harmful differences in the personalities of the person with lived experience/carer and social worker
  • Handling sessions appropriately by negotiating the session rules
  • Never use destructive labelling
  • Have a real say in creating care plans and exploring solutions
  • Create 'hope'
  • Acknowledge that I have a right to 'self-determination'