Conducting the Home Visit in Child Protection

Elaine Aspinwall-Roberts is a Senior Lecturer in Adult Social Care at Liverpool John Moores University, UK. She is a qualified social worker and was previously a local authority team manager. She has worked extensively with older people, people with physical disabilities and people with learning disabilities.

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Conducting a home visit is a fundamental part of a social worker's role, but in practical terms many key issues are overlooked during social work training. This is a practical guide to conducting home visits, a task which many newly qualified social workers can feel unprepared for and which can be fraught with difficulties. Useful features of the book include:

Real case examples based on practitioners experiences

Realistic solutions to the everyday difficulties you might face

Examples of what to say

Reference to the latest guidance, including Working Together to Safeguard Children (2013) to ensure you are practicing in line with statutory requirements and expectations

Guidance and support in understanding lessons learned recent child protection SCRs

Written by an experienced social worker and expert in child protection, this book is clear, straightforward and jargon-free. It will be a useful aid to any professionals required to do home visiting. The book addresses:

What you need to do to prepare for the visit

How to get in the door

What to do when you are in the home

What you need to look out for

Practical ways to implement lessons learned from recent serious case reviews

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This book forms part of a series of pocketbooks for social workers. These compact guides are written in an accessible and to-the-point style to help the busy practitioner locate the information they need as and when they need itall bound up in A5 and under! The pocketbooks explore key practical skills involved in such areas as mental capacity, report writing and assessment.

'..this pocket book of fabulous knowledge is NOT just for social work in the child protection arena. This book has so many wonderful hints and tips surrounding home visits in general that I recommend this book as a pocket friend for anyone who, like me, is daunted by the dreaded home visit! This book is written from personal experiences and practice examples, to aid consolidation and understanding.
Helpful, thought provoking questions run throughout the book, highlighting key areas to think about before and during a home visit. Alongside these questions there are 'light bulb' reminders to ensure that key points are easy to notice.
I feel this book excels in deconstructing the situations that we all panic over, from aggressive dogs, a child answering the door or even language barriers. Additionally unlike most books, this book can be dipped in and out of, and does not need to be read from cover to cover. Conducting a home visit in child protection not only contains written information, but also contains diagrams, practice examples, transcripts, check lists and a very useful glossary! A must read for ANY social work student, Newly Qualified or Practitioner!
Natalie Heath, Social Work Student