Download 621 - Iriss content

Suzy Braye,
Michael Preston-Shoot
Amanda Thorpe
PEPE 2008 Edinburgh


To explore the interface between law and
ethics in professional practice
Our evidence?
◦ Judicial reviews of professional decisions in human
services
◦ Research into how students learn about law and use
it in practice
◦ Social work and social services agencies as a case
example which may resonate for other professional
groups



Agencies’ and professional practitioners’
failure to observe legal and moral rules
Professional and managerial decisions that
are both unlawful and unethical
Judicial review findings
◦ R(CD & VD) v Isle of Anglesey CC [2004] 7 CCLR 589
◦ Pierce v Doncaster MBC [2007] The Times, 27 Dec
◦ R(Grogan) v Bexley NHS Care Trust [2006] EWHC 44
(Admin)

(1) Problems of pedagogy
◦ How social work students learn law
◦ How well students are prepared to manage ethical
dilemmas in practice

(2) Challenges of practice
◦ How use of law knowledge is mediated through the
agency context in which practice takes place
◦ How codes of ethics and conduct are mediated
through the same agency context

Knowledge review of law in social work
education (funded by SCIE)
◦ Systematic review of international literature
◦ Survey of UK education practice

User review of the processes and outcomes of
students’ law learning in placement (funded by
SWAP)
◦ Workshops and focus groups of key stakeholders in
social work education and practice
LAW
 Law perceived as “not
social work”
◦ difficult, alien,
hostile, oppressive
 Problematic transition
to practice contexts
◦ Loss of confidence
and currency
◦ No law-related
practice learning
objectives
ETHICS AND VALUES
 Education enhances
rather than changes
values

Competing ethical
paradigms

Application of values
under-theorised

Multiple accountability
left unresolved

Law is implicit rather than explicit in practice
◦ “No-one actually mentions law. It’s more of an assumption
that it’s there. No one actually talks about it.”
◦ “There’s a culture of not talking about knowledge that
underpins practice. It is possible to work in an agency and
not to know much about the law.”

Practitioners’ knowledge decays over time, with no
focus on law in cpd
◦ “Whilst I am an experienced practitioner, I would not have
the confidence in my knowledge to try to pass on that
information.”


Organisational culture mediates both legal
and ethical rules
Resources & procedures rule decisions
◦ “I’ve often said to social work students, when you’re
qualified you really can’t go out there and change
the world, you can only work within the
requirements and statutes that your local authority
allows you to.” “We need to teach students to
implement agency policy.”


Clashes of perspective over accountability
Weaknesses in regulatory frameworks
Lack of explicit
focus on law and
ethics in practice
Avoidance of the
anxiety-provoking
topic
Reliance on agency
policies and
procedures
Anxiety about the law
and ethics in practice
Legal and ethical
rules ignored
Professional
accountability
undermined

Enhanced visibility of law and values as
determinant of ‘right’ or ‘just’ practice
◦ ‘protect the rights ... of service users and carers’
◦ ‘meet relevant standards of practice and work in a
lawful, safe and effective way’ (GSCC Code)




Moving beyond a technical ‘legal powers and
duties’ approach to engage with the political
impact of law and its role in promoting rights
Technical proficiency balanced with critical
thinking
Ongoing professional development focus
Better understanding of accountability
Rational/
Technical
How the law/
ethical practice
relationship is
modelled
Rights/
Justice
Moral/
Ethical





Braye, S. & Preston-Shoot, M. (with Cull, L-A., Johns, R., Roche, J.)
(2005) Learning, Teaching and Assessment of Law in Social Work
Education: A Knowledge Review. London: Social Care Institute for
Excellence.
Braye, S., Preston-Shoot, M. and Thorpe, A. (2006) Social Work Law
in Practice. Southampton: Higher Education Academy SWAP.
Braye, S. and Preston-Shoot, M. (2006) Teaching, Learning and
Assessment of Law in Social Work Education: A Resource Guide.
London: Social Care Institute for Excellence.
Braye, S., Preston-Shoot, M. and Thorpe, A. (2007) ‘Beyond the
classroom: law learning in practice’. Journal of Social Work,7, 3,
323-341 .
Braye, S. and Preston-Shoot, M. (2006) ‘The role of law in welfare
reform: critical perspectives on the relationship between law and
social work practice’, International Journal of Social Welfare, 15, 1926.

Professor Suzy Braye
University of Sussex, UK
[email protected]

Professor Michael Preston-Shoot
University of Bedfordshire, UK
[email protected]

Amanda Thorpe
University of Bedfordshire, UK
[email protected]