radical social work essay

Radical and Critical Social Work: Response to Human Rights and Contribution to the Evolution of the Role of Social Work (UK)

Louisa Tawny

Introduction

Radical and critical social work is an approach that stems largely from Marxist perspectives, focusing on the structural causes and solutions to social problems. In this essay, I will be briefly outlining some of the historical developments that led to the beginning of modern state welfare and social work. Following this, I will discuss radical and critical social work from the perspective of Wacquant and other theories surrounding the link between social inequality and crime and punishment. Then I will draw some comparisons between the radical and critical approaches and the strengths-based approach to social work. I will then apply the radical and critical approach to human rights developments and the role and function of social work, assessing how social work has developed in response to previous human rights abuses, while also tackling human rights violations today.

History of social work

Industrialisation saw a serious increase in social problems such as poor living and working conditions and diseases. Simultaneously, there was also a rise in social campaigns and charity organisations that tackled various matters. Some of these were: Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Prison Discipline Society, Anti-Slavery Society, and the Vice Society. The New Poor Law of 1834 was introduced by the government as a means of dealing with poverty, by both providing the poor with housing and work, while also functioning as a deterrent for people from seeking poverty aid. This was done by making the seeking of relief far less favourable than the lowest-earning work. A stigma was created surrounding ‘pauperism’, a new social class that was shamed for seeking aid. The type of financial aid available involved people entering workhouses which were communal living quarters that included manual labour by day.

The Charity Organisation Society (COS), is often viewed as being developed from the work of Thomas Chalmers, an economist and charismatic speaker who was critical of the concept of pauperism and had ideas about a more harmonious working-class community. Chalmers helped the Glasgow town council to create a volunteer-based scheme that would oversee and advise families on their welfare in each district. They did regular home visits and upon finding a family in poverty, they would assist with employment seeking and personal finances. The aim of this was to create an altruistic community and reject the oppressive concept ‘pauperism’. This family visiting scheme began to develop into social casework, consisting of organised home visits, interviews, investigations, and decisions by a case committee. The term ‘social work’ became prominent by the COS to describe this process. The COS was criticised by local newspapers as ‘penny-pinching’ and criticised by such as the Labour Party after it was founded in 1906, and the Fabian Society (1911) for being too intrusive in family life and too “inquisitorial and too slow and cumbersome in reaching decisions through its district committees” (Jones, 2011, p29). Post-1900, there was a progressive political climate where there was further state involvement in addressing social problems such as poverty, ‘the new liberalism’ stemming from the Liberal government at the time, introducing welfare systems such as old-age pensions, national insurance, and free school meals (Pierson, 2011). As well as the desire to fix the issues relating to poverty, the role of social work was also impacted by the late 1800s when the social construction of childhood began. Before this, children were considered economic assets and not considered any different from adults in the context of nurturing and protection. In 1878, The Factory Act prohibited children under the age of 10 from working in all trades and the 1880 Education Act introduced compulsory schooling for children up to the age of 10. This was the beginning of the government reforms put in place for the protection and development of children, and subsequently, the social worker’s role of protecting and promoting the welfare of children (Hendrick, 1997). The ‘Golden Age’ of state welfare was during the post-war era. The end of the Second World War in 1945 saw a need for economic recovery and welfare reforms. The Beveridge Report by William Beveridge laid out the grounds for welfare reform, identifying the social problems of ‘want’, ‘ignorance’, ‘squalor’, ‘idleness’, and ‘disease’ and the way to solve this by creating a universal and comprehensive welfare system. This saw the introduction of the National Health Service, the government-funded comprehensive health service that treats everyone based on need and not the means to pay (Harris, 2004). Radical social work became prominent in the 1970s, due to an increase in poverty, and the realisation that individualistic theories such as psychosocial development were not able to be applied. It was not useful to blame individuals for their situation which was being caused by structural rifts (Jones, 2011).

Radical and critical social work approach

In contrast with Durkheim — who expressed the view that crime and its punishment acts as a positive function to reinforce the collective morality in society — there are the views of Foucault, Garland, and Wacquant, which are more critical of the ways states implement punishment and deal with crime. According to Foucault (1979), prison is a point of analysis for the dynamics of power and bureaucracy in modern society. It is a method of power that is muchly hidden and creates “docile bodies” (Driver, 1984, pp427) by manipulating the time, space and bodies of criminals in prisons. Foucault emphasises the relationship created between power and bodies in the penal system (Driver, 1984). Garland (2001) argues that the labeling of criminals is a method of ‘othering’, as those convicted of a crime are often marginalised members of society such as the urban poor and ethnic minorities. Not only are offenders given an image of others, but their crime has sacrificed their liberty. Wacquant’s (2009) view is similar and is that penal action towards dealing with crime has replaced welfare as a method of controlling and regulating the poor and therefore is not a reaction to crime rates but is instead a reaction to financial and racial inequality. The rise of neoliberalism sought to create “hyper-individualism” (Wilson, 2018, p7) in which community aid and obligation to others would end. Two models of neoliberalism were identified by Wacquant (2012): The economic model which applied the marketisation to all areas of public and private life. This materialised as state assets being privatised. During Thatcher’s government, this model was applied to housing, public utilities such as education, welfare, and parts of the NHS, amongst other things. The other model was the decentralisation of power, the value placed on self-governing, and a drastic change in the relationship between individuals and the state. This also led to growth in the penal system, seen by Wacquant (2012) as a means of cutting welfare spending. This expansion of crime provisions continued into the Blair government in 1997. Stigmas became attached to marginalised areas such as ‘ghettos’, meaning communities within urban areas that are dominated by economically deprived ethnic minorities, which is seen as a form of racial segregation. The stigma that became attached to the ‘underclass’ also contributed to this othering and un-deservingness of deprived communities and corroding social ties. This has had an impact on social work as it is focused mostly on these areas. Wacquant (2012) emphasises that this shift is not only about cultural attitudes but serves to establish dominance of the principles and agents of neoliberalism. Jones (2010) argues that Wacquant relies too heavily on bureaucracy as an analytical device. Wacquant is commonly criticised for the application of the US system to other democratic states. However, it can be seen in both the US and UK that the increase of neoliberalism has seen an expansion of the penal system and equally, an increase in both poverty and crime. Wacquant’s work can be criticised for ignoring the areas of resistance and gender — the principle of the argument being that gender politics is pushed aside in the analysis, focusing solely on the experience of men, which is vastly different from that of women in this context. This can be evidenced by looking at the statistics that prisons hold more men than women, however, women can be argued to suffer more under the lack of social welfare, due to factors such as being more likely to be responsible for childcare (Measor, 2013., Cummins, 2016). Linking these ideas to the role of social work, the impact that the penal system has is that it maintains poverty rates due to convicts finding it more difficult to find jobs when released from prison. There is also likely to be a role for social workers needed for the rehabilitation of convicts. An additional conclusion to this is that these coercive practices by the state need to be recognised by social workers and not taken at face value. Radical social work requires social workers to think critically about the way the state acts and recognise the background and struggles faced by marginalised groups of people (Cummins, 2016, 2020).

To compare radical and critical social work with other approaches, I will be drawing in the strengths-based social work approach. The strengths-based approach aims at utilising people’s strengths, such as their abilities, resources, social networks, knowledge, and skills, to improve their wellbeing and opportunities. The most obvious difference between this approach and radical social work is that the strengths-based approach has its focus on the individual, instead of the larger social structures. It is a more common and classical approach to social work, as it has roots in classical theory such as Maslow’s theory of self-actualisation (1943) and Roger’s theory of fully functioning person (1961). One of the aims of the strengths-based approach is empowerment, which holds the most similarity to the radical and critical approach, as the latter approach looks at how the structure dis-empowers people through oppression, one of the root causes of the social problems. The strengths-based approach is an important and effective approach to social work, however, it cannot be used on its own it does not solve the issue that the social structure is designed in a way that it thrives off of inequality (Coady and Lehmann, 2016).

Human rights and the social work role

The precariat is the term used for individuals in positions relating to the reduction of employment rights, such as flexible working, living wages, and hour contracts is linked with the changes in public service provisions during the neoliberal government. This development of the precariat has impacted the role of social work due to social workers having to respond to the agenda of risk management, in the areas of child protection, mental health, and adult social work. Social workers have a constant battle to act in the interest of morality and this can mean they are acting in contrast with the government provisions that are contributing to the structural issues, and they feel their professional autonomy is restricted by bureaucracy. The theories of radical social work that outline the links between welfare and inequality with crime and punishment, are extremely important to help social workers understand this link, rather than considering them to be isolated issues (Cummins, 2016). It is important that social workers are aware of the structural causes of poverty and are not simply responding to people’s needs as they appear on the surface. In the UK, as well as neoliberalism being prominent in the 1980s onwards, there have also been government developments in the enforcement of human rights and anti-oppressive practice, and it has become within the role of social workers to uphold and enforce anti-oppressive practice. Throughout the 20th century, certain rights have appeared to come in waves, the first being civil and political rights, such as freedom of speech and freedom from torture. The second was socio-economic rights such as education and healthcare. The third set is rights regarding human relations, the natural world, and solidarity. These will have had an impact on the role of social workers as social work as a progressive role both influences and follows positive social change. This also shows how what is considered an issue of importance changes over time. For example, race politics may not have been a widely discussed issue and important within social work in 1900 as it has been in the last 50 years (The Race Relations Act of 1965), and environmental politics and the lgbtq+ politics were not as importantly discussed 20 years ago as they are today — for example, homosexuality was regarded as a mental illness until 1994 and lgbtq+ empowerment is largely implemented in social work today (Miles, 2011). There are constant and drastic changes in the collective perception of morality. Examples of this within the social work profession can be seen. As recent as the 1970s, doctors and social workers were complicit in the coerced separation of children from unwed mothers in Australia, according to a memoir by Noble (2020). There is an area of critical social work devoted to looking at the past misconduct within the profession, through the lens of remorse. An extremely important part of the profession is to be able to recognise and learn from the mistakes of the past, to improve (Healy, 2012).

Human rights activism has been globally prominent in social work and movements throughout the 20th century, such as during the civil rights movement, anti-apartheid in South Africa, and campaigns for indigenous people’s rights. Western social work has a particular emphasis on legalism-based human rights, understanding of human rights is based on civil and political rights, as outlined in the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), and the Equality and Human Rights Commission of the United Kingdom (EHRC), which defines human rights as “not just abstract concepts — they are defined and protected by law” (Martinez Herrero and Nicholls, 2017, p77). The contrast between legalistic human rights and radical and critical social work is that radical and critical social work of course implements human rights legislation, but also looks at human rights with a critical view on the state and system, and how human rights abuses are covered up by the veil of racial prejudice, economic inequality, and criminality. A considerably basic example of how criminality is used to cover up human rights violations is that prisoners serving sentences of over 12 months are not entitled to voting rights. Pairing this with the radical theories of crime and social inequality, that those serving prison sentences are largely from ethnic minorities and economically deprived backgrounds, the law surrounding prisoner voting rights can be seen as a way to silence the political voice of marginalised groups and to strip them of a fundamental human right (Williams et al, 2012). This is important for the role of social work, as it is important for social workers to be critical of how the state and law cover up human rights violations.

Social work is argued to have developed the way it has, partially as a result of the past human rights atrocities both inside and outside the profession. Provisions and legislation have been put in place over time, such as the BASW, the professional capabilities framework, the Human Rights Act 1998, and the Equality Act 2010 to name a few. These have been written to ensure social workers, along with other care professions, are following a certain standard to promote fairness and prevent discrimination (Harms-Smith et al, 2019). Radical and critical social work is not only a framework for enforcing human rights and fairness, it is a response to past misconduct and encourages the positive development for the present and future. However, there is a debate on whether it is necessary to refer to radical social work as ‘radical’. The term ‘radical’ has connotations that consider it to be ‘extremist’ or an extreme contrast from the norm. If radical social work is designed to enforce basic rights and fairness, it is not radical, but simply just social work. There have been various names radical social work has been referred to as: namely ‘structural’ social work, and ‘critical’ social work. The linking of social work and the word ‘radical’ comes from its Marxist approaches which to many of the general population still are considered radical (Gray and Webb, 2013).

The overall takeaway from this evaluation is that historical evidence such as the early developments of the welfare state in the UK, and in crime and punishment in the UK and US and other democratic states, there is a large amount of structural influence on inequality. As well as this, there are constant developments in the standards of human rights, as seen by previous ways in which human rights have been violated. Human rights developments have been instigated by social workers, as well as used to improve social work practice through frameworks such as BASW, and human rights legislation.

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Written by Louisa Tawny

Student Social Worker (MA). Anti-Oppression Activist.

Text to speech

• Care Review Watch
• Conference 2023

What does a Radical Model of Theory and Practice have to offer Social Work Practitioners in Contemporary Social Work with Adults?

By using Spitzer’s (1975) analysis of ‘social junk’ and ‘social dynamite’, I will identify the issues arising in today’s context for service users who are perceived to fall into these two groups. It is important to note that there are a multitude of complexities exposed to individuals that can be argued to occupy many different service user groups, however for the purpose of this essay I aim to particularly focus on disabled adults and adults with drug and alcohol dependency. By providing examples of the ways in which issues such as: benefit and resource cuts, privatisation and the pathologising and criminalisation of behaviour has on these service user groups I will be able to appropriately apply solutions from the perspective of radical social work both in theory and practice form. I will then summarise the points made throughout this article and collate the reasons as to why and how a radical social work can support social workers and service users in today’s context.

The 1960s and 70s saw a rise in interest in the social consequences of capitalism (Howe, 2009). Radical social work was developed in an attempt to alleviate the consequences imposed onto individuals in a dominant capitalist society (Leonard, 1975). Spitzer (1975) provides a Marxist analysis of capitalism, identifying that it defines two service user groups: social junk, those that are classified as dependent and a drain on society’s resources, thus needing care, and social dynamite, those that are dangerous and needing to be controlled. With the development of capitalism dependent on the exploitation of labour workers (Poynton, 2011), an economic system has been created, which in crisis, creates and recreates hardship for individuals whilst concurrently reducing the welfare resources introduced to relieve that very hardship (Brake and Bailey, 1980). The latter is a contradiction demonstrating the overwhelming power held by capitalists in society – the ability to create a hierarchical structure in which an ‘underclass’ categorises those that Spitzer (1975) refers to as social ‘junk’ and ‘dynamite’.

            As a result of capitalism, the societal involvement in social problems was hidden and not addressed; consequently social work became a ‘partner in crime’ in the silence culture of social justice (Steyaert, 2013). Pearson (1973) argues that to proclaim the humanistic nature of social work is fraudulent in that it produces an aims culture, aims of which are impossible to achieve in a capitalist society. Social work intervention, according to radical social workers, is ineffective if the client is unaware of the social context intrinsic to their social problems (Bailey and Brake, 1980).

Radical social work involves understanding oppression in the context of social and economic structures rather than affixing the problems to the individuals who are oppressed (Brake and Bailey, 1975). A radical social worker’s role involves positive assistance, the sustaining of mutual respect and the location of a service user’s problems in a wider social and political context (Brake and Bailey, 1980). Leonard (1975) outlines four aims for radical practice: education, linking people with systems, building counter-systems and individual and structural responses. Radical social work is deemed to be the foundation in the development of theories such as anti-discriminatory and anti-oppressive practice and critical social work theory. It is said to have transformed the social work value base to include anti-oppressive values (Ferguson and Woodward, 2009).

The 1970’s saw a tremendous rise in trade unionism amongst social workers, allowing for a collective identity to be created (Ferguson and Woodward, 2009) and thus contributing to radical social work practice. Along with this came ‘Case Con’, a social work magazine complementing the development of radical social work in the early 70’s. A theme of homelessness was developed throughout, with squatters supported and families sheltered in social work offices (Social Work Action Network, n.d. a).

Radical social work declined in the 1980’s with the election of Margaret Thatcher and the Conservative Party into Government. Ferguson and Woodward (2009) describe the deprofessionalisation of social workers as a result of them being ‘soft’ on the groups that this particular Government and the media branded as ‘scroungers’ and the ‘underclass’. The role of the welfare state in this era, and in the current context it can be argued, has been significantly reduced with access to support such as benefits and housing becoming more conditional and less abundant. Almost thirty years since the Thatcher Government, welfare state responsibilities continue to be mitigated and the poorest and most vulnerable individuals and communities become marginalised further, with people now more excluded than they have ever been (Ferguson and Woodward, 2009). This can be illustrated with the example of food banks. In 2008/09 25,899 people accessed food banks in comparison to a substantial increase to 913,138 people in 2013/14 (Trussel Trust, 2014).

The above points can also be substantiated by use of legislation enacted to reinforce capitalist ideology. The NHS and Community Care Act (1990) introduced the concept of care management, replacing direct work with adult service users with the bureaucratic managing and ‘rationing’ of resources (McNicoll, 2013). In section 79 of the Care Act (2014), a local authority is required to delegate its functions – thus conforming to the neoliberal notion of marketisation. Policy is developed in an attempt to further reduce reliance on the state. The Care Act factsheets (2014) state that local authorities should be working with communities to identify services that are already available to them, in other words utilising that of the third sector to promote independence.

The revisiting of community based work is central to radical social work theory and practice. Community development projects were intrinsic in the 70’s to a radical social work as they moved away from the pathologising and individualistic model of deprivation towards an understanding of class structure and economic and social contexts (Hatton, 2008). Social workers today are becoming progressively disheartened with the increasing bureaucracy resulting in less direct work with people – reopening the case for community social work (Holman, 2013). In today’s statutory context, social work has become more about fulfilling organisational functions than practicing the values on which it was developed (Asquith et al, 2005). Teater and Baldwin (2012) provide examples as to implementing community based work today: students conducting community profiles whilst on placement, utilising resources to conduct research projects concerning unmet need and information sharing amongst other authorities to gain a variety of perspectives. The values of a community approach reflect notions of collectivism rather than individualism (Jordan, 2007), thus allowing for acknowledgement of social problems in their social context.

The privatisation of public services contributes to the capitalist dominance in society and the increased emphasis on health and social care organisations running for profit can have disastrous consequences for service users. Whitfield (2012) criticises the notion of ‘payment by results’ whereby providers are rewarded once targets and performance outcomes have been met. This is argued by Leys and Player (2011) as dangerous, as the quality of treatment is not accounted for in these outcomes. The epitome of this is Winterbourne View where service users with learning difficulties and mental health problems were abused at the hands of their carers. The serious case review conducted by Flynn (2012) identified that the average weekly fee for patients at Winterbourne was £3,500, with this providing no reflection of the service quality or patient safety and unlike most long-stay institutions, their annual turnover equated to £3.7 million.

In situations such as this, and in an era where integration between health and social care organisations is becoming more prevalent, advocacy in the context of radical practice is crucial. Boylan and Ing (2005) argue that providers need to promote awareness of advocacy as the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) (2010) state that there is limited information available on advocacy to those with a protected characteristic under the Equality Act (2010). This was particularly pertinent in the case of Winterbourne View; if the patients had been provided with access to advocates it is fair to suggest that the abuse may have been recognised sooner and in a more sensitive manner. SCIE (2009) state that a clear role within advocacy is to work alongside people to ensure that there is a move away from a service-led culture; an opportunity to empower individuals rather than just allowing them to argue their case.

            The experience of a ‘mixed economy of care’ among stroke patients was explored in a research study undertaken by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (1994). It was identified that the service users felt unprepared in becoming ‘consumers’ in relation to the purchasing of care and were reluctant in asking for support for fear of having an irritable response or their services withdrawn. The notion of the ‘mixed economy of care’ can not only lead to confusion and fear amongst vulnerable adults, but also expose them to abuse. Taking Spitzer’s (1975) analysis of ‘social junk’ as represented by the Government and media, the service users perceived to fit into this category are older people and people with physical and learning disabilities. Looking at how the personalisation agenda specifically in relation to direct payments affects the two service user groups, it is difficult to argue that this does not render service users more susceptible to abuse. Whitfield (2012) states that direct payments are ‘dressed up in the language of choice’ (pg. 7) and this is artificial as the state are transferring the risk and accountability to the service user. Samuel (2012) identifies a danger to this in that service users may employ unregulated workers, or friends and relatives that leave them at a heightened risk of poor quality care and abuse than that of people using general services. As well as this, he argues that they may be less likely to report poor care and abuse, especially if those that are employed are relatives or friends. Teater and Baldwin (2012) argue that the personalisation agenda facilitates anything but a collective approach and ‘cements’ and individualises service users within the care market.

            As well as the above, in a climate of austerity and severe cuts to benefits and services, disabled people continue to be the hardest hit (The Hardest Hit, n.d.). Disabled people are twice as likely to live in poverty than non-disabled people (Office for Disability Issues, 2011) and with plans to reduce benefit eligibility by up to 500,000, more than 25,000 people with a disability will be forced out of work (Disability Rights UK, 2012). Austerity measures limit the availability of resources and services and thus the amount of people that can access them. In other words, as resources and services are diminished, the service users deemed to be eligible for those that remain become increasingly reduced. Vulnerable adults needing to be maintained in the community within their support networks are denied access to services as a direct result of the ever-tightening eligibility criteria (Teater and Baldwin, 2012).

            A radical social work would stress the need for collective action between both professionals and service users. Langan (2002) states that people are united today with the conviction that society is disintegrating. A dominating feature of radical social work aims for values of equality, justice and involvement in society by means of collective action (Howe, 2009).  Policies need to be developed from the bottom-up, with service users with first-hand experience of the impact of governmental policy perceived and treated as experts. People need to develop a ‘collective approach to autonomy’ (Teater and Baldwin, 2012: 36) to be able to critically appreciate their circumstances (Doyal and Gough, 1991). This directly linking to Bailey and Brake’s (1980) argument mentioned above around the ineffectiveness of social work if an individual is not aware of the social context to their problems. The Mental Health User movement along with the Disability Rights movement are the epitome of when collective action has successfully challenged policy and societal perspectives.

One way in which we can help promote further collective action between service users is to develop forms of participation that are less tokenistic, moving to the view that service users are allies. Arnstein’s (1969) ladder of participation illustrates three areas of participation that provide service users with a degree of power: partnership, delegated power and citizen control. If methods are developed that reflect these three areas Warren (2007) argues that service users will: influence service provision, increase their confidence and self-esteem, become empowered through collective involvement and develop peer-led initiatives. Baldwin and Sadd (2006) argue that current participation can be viewed as tokenistic, however we must stress the importance of eliminating this, forming alliances and moving towards the top end of the ladder in which Arnstein (1969) describes. An example of ways in which this can be done reflects practices at the University of Bath, in which service users are involved with interviewing, lecturing and assessment of students and their readiness to practice.

As well as the above, service providers will also benefit in the sense that service users and carers hold first-hand experience and knowledge that can challenge stereotypes and educate professionals (Young et al, 1998). Professionals also need to act collectively in order to actively advocate for social justice. This can be achieved alongside a trade union such as UNISON or by joining a radical campaigning group such as the Social Work Action Network (SWAN) (Baldwin, 2011). SWAN’s (n.d. b) ethos echoes that of radical social work – promoting models of practice ‘rooted in social justice’ and to advocate alongside service users and carers. This stresses the importance of forming alliances as mentioned in the example above.

            It is apt to suggest that adults with a drug and/or alcohol dependency are classified within what Spitzer (1975) would label the ‘social dynamites’ of society. The stigma associated with people that have drug misuse problems is substantial in that they are stereotyped as dangerous and dirty; this having a direct impact on the ways in which policy is implemented to support them (UK Drug Policy Commission, 2010). People experiencing stigma are less able to participate in seemingly generic life experiences – a career, intimate relationships and a place to call home (Goffman, 1963). A research study undertaken by Corrigan et al (2009) identified that people labelled as drug addicts are less likely to be offered and given help than those with a mental illness or disability. The control element required for these ‘social dynamites’ is substantiated by the criminalisation of drug possession, with up to seven years in prison punishable to those caught with Class A drugs (Gov UK, 2014). By criminalising the use of drugs it pathologises and individualises the issue and attributes it to that of the person, rather than considering the societal factors that may cause a person to take drugs. This is the basic premise radical social work wishes to eradicate.

            The UK Drug Policy Commission (2010) states that professionals should be adequately trained to appropriately respond to people with substance misuse problems. In a radical context, this could involve revisiting our professional value base, particularly in relation to anti-oppressive values. In an article written by a social worker for Community Care (2014) it was argued that we as social workers have a duty to identify and fight discrimination and oppression at every level. If we are not actively identifying and challenging discrimination toward our service users then in effect we are not practicing social work according to the definition provided by the International Federation of Social Workers; ‘principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities’ (IFSW, 2014).

            Another radical offering to address issues such as the above is to expose the political nature of social work to students within social work education. Many students advocate a commitment to social justice, however they are disillusioned in their belief that this can be achieved through individual practice (Baldwin, 2011). A political standpoint can help social workers become sensitised to the client and their perception of their situation – this is particularly important for those who have succumbed to self-blame (Bailey and Brake, 1980). This is directly applicable to individuals with substance misuse problems as there is a tendency to internalise the societal stigma and blame themselves for the issue rather than recognise it in a social context. A social work assessment reflects an individual’s need and eligibility to access resources. An assessment in this sense is a highly political social work activity, with social workers used by organisations as resource managers rather than ‘enablers of choice and control’ (Baldwin, 2011: 198). By not having this political nature of social work exposed, we may risk further perpetuating inequality and oppressive practices (Thompson and Thompson, 2008). Along with this comes the importance of developing critically reflective practitioners within social work education. Having this skill allows social workers to recognise the influence of power inequalities which contribute to the creation of problems for service users (Howe, 2009). Baldwin (2011) argues that a critically reflective stance is crucial in that it notes how users are constructed within the welfare system.

            Radical social work is retrievable in today’s context if it is able to rediscover ‘its humanistic roots’ and the principles of individual liberty and human rights (Langan, 2011: 163). This article has used Spitzer’s (1975) analysis of ‘social junk’ and ‘dynamite’ in relation to disabled adults and adults that have substance misuse problems and highlighted the issues exposed to these groups in today’s capitalist dominant and neo-liberal society. I have explored issues such as: the personalisation agenda, direct payments, austerity measures and resource cuts, privatisation and the criminalisation of behaviour and offered solutions from a radical social work perspective to help in overcoming them. To summarise, the solutions offered within this article are: advocacy, the revisiting of community based social work, exposing the political nature of social work particularly within social work education, forming alliances with service users by developing less tokenistic forms of participation, ensuring we continue to be critically reflective, acting collectively and reminding ourselves of our main principles of social justice and anti-oppressive values. As demonstrated in this article, it is undeniable to argue that radical social work, if applied in the ways outlined above, can make a significant contribution to alleviating the pressures of neoliberalism and capitalist measures in today’s context of social work services for adults. If we can completely apply a radical approach to our practice as social workers, principles such as equality and social justice will become more prevalent in society rather than branded an unachievable aim.

Arnstein, S., (1969). A Ladder of Citizen Participation. Journal of the American Institute of Planners . 35 (4). Pp. 216-224

Asquith, S., Clark, C. and Waterhouse, L., (2005). The Role of the Social Worker in the 21 st Century – A Literature Review . Available from: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/resource/doc/47121/0020821.pdf  [Accessed 17th December 2014]

Baldwin, M. and Sadd, J., (2006). Allies with Attitude: Service Users, Academics and Social Services Agency Staff Learning how to Share Power in Running a Social Work Education Course. Social Work Education . 25 (4). Pp. 348-359

Baldwin, M., (2011). Resisting the EasyCare Model: Building a more Radical, Community Based, Anti-Authoritarian Social Work for the Future. In: M. Lavalette, ed. Radical Social Work Today: Social Work at the Crossroads . Bristol: The Policy Press. Pp. 187-204

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Langan, M., (2011). Rediscovering Radicalism and Humanity in Social Work. In: M. Lavalette, ed. Radical Social Work Today: Social Work at the Crossroads . Bristol: The Policy Press. Pp. 153-164

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Critical and Radical Social Work

An international journal.

Critical and Radical Social Work  promotes debate and scholarship around a range of engaged social work themes.

The journal publishes papers that seek to analyse and respond to issues, such as the impact of global neoliberalism on social welfare; austerity and social work; social work and social movements; social work, inequality and oppression. Read more about Critical and Radical Social Work.

Frequency: January, April, July and October

Controlling care or caring control? Violent entanglements within UK immigration and counter-terrorism policies

Revisioning social work with older people living in a care home: promoting rights and reducing social control, disabled people negotiate gender, sexual identity and self-directed social care support in england: how does choice and control operate, unlearning nationalised social work in times of rising right-wing populism, ‘false evidence appearing real’: the evolution of pre-criminal safeguarding for childhood radicalisation in the uk, ‘disabled children will now be on the street as soon as they turn 18’: reclaiming advocacy, social rights and social work’s visibility in the public debate, exploring feminist egalitarian discourse and sex work for the social work curriculum: a critical pedagogy, the impact of the prevent agenda on social work: a systematic literature review, social work with unaccompanied asylum-seeking children and young people: resisting the rhetoric, the ‘service user’ label through critical constructivist lenses, turning sex workers into self-caring persons: relying on technologies of the self in social work practice, when resistance becomes policy: discretionary space, professional autonomy and disobedience in dutch social care reform, moments of epistemic friction: resistance and acceptance of early prevention science in child protection social work practice and policy, low-barrier harm reduction and housing for older people in vancouver’s opiate crisis: meeting people where they are, toward a social justice framework in trauma-informed practice in schools, youth–adult partnerships for youth activism: a critique of the utility of empowerment theory, food bank perceptions and food insecurity of older people: findings from an empirical study and how health and social care professionals might offer more support, the man with a plan: a genealogical study of the medicalisation and individualisation of the 2004 norwegian drug treatment reforms, to establish the unestablishable: non-governmental social work with asylum-seeking minors in a neoliberal sweden, assembling the multitude: the transversal potential of categories for social work practice, a critical history of child protection and welfare services for disabled children in the republic of ireland, 1960–2023, mazibuyele emasisweni : the nexus of ubuntu philosophy, climate change and green social work, disrupting neoliberalism and human-induced climate change: emancipatory social work for ecosocial justice, social work and support policies in higher education in portugal, radical social work in south africa: a rapid systematic review, solidarity is not a dirty word: exploring and locating solidarity as a theory and model for a radical community social work practice, ‘rocking the boat’ at the boundaries of social work practice, social assistance policy and the working class in brazil: challenges and contradictions, cultural singularity: informing white practitioners who serve non-white clientele, parity of participation: social justice and women’s experiential knowledge in contemporary family violence policy and service development, is there space for a ‘care-oriented’ advocacy in social work practice with people who have substance use problems, searching for a congruent framework to teach sexuality in social work: a personal reflection, talking about needs and rights in inter-agency meetings: interpretive contests in swedish welfare provision, maybe you can be too resilient: a sociological investigation into how student social workers perceive resilience in their practice, volume 12 (2024): issue 3 (jul 2024), the importance of social policy and economic context for social work: a latin american dialogue, encouraging professional excellence among social workers from disadvantaged minorities: palestinians in israel as a case study, ‘already doing the work’: social work, abolition and building the future from the present, body, visual arts and healing: a study of the effectiveness of facilitative visual arts interventions with women survivors of intimate partner violence in kerala, “i feel like it’s capitalising on the poor”: electronic gaming machines, neoliberalism and the invisibility of social work, activation measures through the lens of governmentality, the practice of zero tolerance: emergency placement by child welfare services in norway, in the business of gendered violence: the private shelter discourse in sweden, the hidden, human costs of the uk’s failing ‘market’ for home care, human rights in social work: what we cannot not want – a response to whelan and flynn, reflections from members of a collaborative social work practitioner–academic research team investigating the career progression experiences of black social workers.

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Aims and scope Abstracting and indexing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Testimonials Contact us

Aims and scope

Critical and Radical Social Work: An international journal  promotes debate and scholarship around a range of engaged social work themes. 

The journal publishes papers which seek to analyse and respond to issues, such as the impact of global neoliberalism on social welfare; austerity and social work; social work and social movements; social work, inequality and oppression. 

It welcomes contributions that consider and question themes relating to the definition of social work and social work professionalism, that look at ways in which organic and 'indigenous' practice can expand concepts of the social work project and that consider alternative and radical histories of social work activity. As a truly international journal, it actively encourages contributions from academics, scholars and practitioners from across the global village.

Abstracting and indexing

Critical and Radical Social Work  is abstracted and/or indexed in:

• Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI)
• European Reference Index for the Humanities and Social Sciences (ERIH PLUS)
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• ProQuest Social Science Premium Collection
• Social Care Online

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Our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion statement outlines the ways in which we seek to ensure that equity, diversity and inclusion are integral to all aspects of our publishing, and how we might encourage and drive positive change. 

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Testimonials

"A much-needed outlet for social workers to promote innovative and challenging standpoints. The journal stimulates debate and gives voice to those advocating for groups that are relegated to the margins." Linda Briskman , Swinburne Institute for Social Research, Australia

"At a time when social work, both in the UK and internationally, is coming under increasing pressure for its allegiance to refugees and other oppressed and marginalised groups, Critical and Radical Social Work brings together impassioned, evidenced and progressive voices supporting social work's commitment to a social approach and social justice." Peter Beresford , Professor of Citizen Participation at the University of Essex and Emeritus Professor at Brunel University London, UK

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What are we looking for?

Critical and Radical Social Work publishes papers which seek to analyse and respond to issues, such as the impact of global neoliberalism on social welfare; austerity and social work; social work and social movements; social work, inequality and oppression. It welcomes contributions that consider and question themes relating to the definition of social work and social work professionalism, that look at ways in which organic and 'indigenous' practice can expand concepts of the social work project and that consider alternative and radical histories of social work activity. As a truly international journal it actively encourages contributions from academics, scholars and practitioners from across the global village.

The following types of submissions are welcome:

• Academic articles: between 6,000 and 8,000 words, including abstract (150 words maximum), notes, tables, figures and references. Articles should seek to analyse and respond to issues, such as the impact of global neoliberalism on social welfare; austerity and social work; social work and social movements; social work, inequality and oppression. Contributions are welcome that consider and question themes relating to the definition of social work and social work professionalism, that look at ways in which organic and ‘indigenous’ practice can expand concepts of the social work project and that consider alternative and radical histories of social work activity.
• Commentaries: 4,000 words including abstract (75 words maximum) and references. Commentary on policy developments/struggles and social movement activity.
• Voices from the front line: 2,000 – 4,000 words, including references. Articles which address the experience of front-line workers and service users. Please also see our Voices from the Frontline author guidelines.  
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All submissions should be made online at the Critical and Radical Social Work Editorial Manager website: https://www.editorialmanager.com/crsw/default1.aspx

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Critical and Radical Social Work is published by Policy Press. Articles are considered for publication on the understanding that on acceptance the author(s) grant(s) Policy Press the exclusive right and licence to publish the article. Copyright remains with the author(s) or other copyright owners and we will acknowledge this in the copyright line that appears on the published article.

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In order to improve our accessibility for people with visual impairments, we are now required to ask authors to provide a brief description known as alt text to describe any visual content such as photos, illustrations or figures. It will not be visible in the article but is embedded into the images so a PDF reader can read out the descriptions. See our guidance on writing alt-text .

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Book : Bengtson, V.L. and Lowenstein, A. (2003) Global Aging and its Challenge to Families , New Jersey, NJ: Transaction Publishers.

Darling, D. (2010) Injustice: Why Social Inequality Persists , Bristol: Policy Press. 

Book with editor : Bengtson, V.L. and Lowenstein, A. (eds) (2003) Global Aging and its Challenge to Families , 5th edn, New Jersey, NJ: Transaction Publishers.

Chapter in book or in multi-authored publication : Bengtson, V.L. and Lowenstein, A. (2003) Citizenship in action: the lived experiences of citizens with dementia who campaign for social change, in R. Smith, R. Means and K. Keegan (eds) Global Aging and its Challenge to Families , New Jersey, NJ: Transaction Publishers, pp 305–26.

Journal reference : Williamson, E. and Abrahams, H. A. (2014) A review of the provision of intervention programmes for female victims and survivors of domestic abuse in the UK,  Journal of Women and Social Work , 29(1): 178-191. doi:  doi.org/10.1177/0886109913516452

Jeffrey, C., Williams, E., de Araujo, P., Fortin-Rochberg, R., O'Malley, T., Hill, A-M., et al (2009) The challenge of politics, Policy & Politics , 36(4): 545–57. doi: doi.org/10.1177/0886108913516454

Website reference : Womensaid (2016) What is domestic abuse?,  https://www.womensaid.org.uk/information-support/what-is-domestic-abuse/ .

Management Board

Michael Lavalette , Editor-in-Chief,  Liverpool Hope University, UK Dimitra-Dora Teloni , Deputy Editor,  University of West Attica, Greece Charlotte Williams , Deputy Editor,  Bangor University, UK Neil Ballantyne ,  Australia and New Zealand Editor, The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand Nicki Blundell ,  Book Review Editor , Liverpool Hope University, UK Iain Ferguson , Consulting Editor, University of the West of Scotland, UK Rich Moth , Voices from the Frontline Editor,  Manchester Metropolitan University, UK Michael Reisch , North American Editor , University of Maryland, USA Linda Smith , Chair of the Board and Africa Editor , Robert Gordon University, UK

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Boys to men: the cost of ‘adultification’ in safeguarding responses to Black boys

Post-pandemic: moving on from ‘child protection’, reproductive justice, abortion rights and social work, critical social work as ethical social work: using critical reflection to research students’ resistance to neoliberalism, social work and marxism: a short essay on the 200th anniversary of the birth of karl marx, (against) neoliberal social work, what is the future of social work, greek social work and the never-ending crisis of the welfare state, crisis, austerity and the future(s) of social work in the uk, targeting the ‘hard to reach’: re/producing stigma, content metrics.

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Article contents

Radical social work.

• Mary Bricker-Jenkins , Mary Bricker-Jenkins Temple University
• Rosemary Barbera Rosemary Barbera La Salle University
• , and  Barbara Hunter-Randall Joseph Barbara Hunter-Randall Joseph College at Old Westbury, State University of New York
• https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780199975839.013.312
• Published online: 11 June 2013
• This version: 24 February 2022
• Previous version

Since the beginning of the profession, radical social work has avowed a commitment to practice dedicated to advancing human rights and social and economic justice. Since the 1980s, the rise of neoliberal global capitalism has vitiated support for robust social welfare programs; its conservatizing effect on the profession has rendered the radical agenda both more urgent and more difficult. Ensuing polarization in the economic, social, and political arenas has been mirrored in the profession as well: differences widen between the micro and macro realms and privatization engulfs the public welfare arena; the epistemological bases of knowledge and prevailing theories form competing camps; the entire project of social work for social welfare is challenged as Eurocentric and implicitly white supremacist. Radical social work has responded to these challenges with innovation and energy, deriving insight from and participating in spontaneous uprisings and resistance, while engaging theoretical and practical conundrums.

• progressive
• welfare state
• globalization
• postmodernism
• neoliberalism
• commodification
• macro social work

Updated in this version

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date: 18 September 2024

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Radical Social Work by Roy Bailey and Mike Brake: A Classic Text Revisited

Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work

Related Papers

Stephen A Webb

"‘Destined to become a 'must-read', this book injects titanium levels of excitement and promise to all those in social work seeking not just to study the world, but to change it.' - Donna Baines, Professor of Labour Studies and Social Work, McMaster University, Canada 'Do not expect to agree with everything you read here. Indeed, that is precisely why you should read it. It is time to shake up the social work conversation.' - Sue White, Professor of Social Work (Children and Families), University of Birmingham, UK 'This book is a gem' - Linda Briskman, Professor of Human Rights, Swinburne Institute for Social Research, UK 'An important and extremely timely book which will be of great value to all those concerned to place the challenges of inequalities and injustice at the heart of social work.' – Brid Featherstone, Professor of Social Care, The Open University, UK Fundamental to social work are the values of justice and equality. But it has long been felt that these values are being eroded under a system of capitalist power. Serving to reactivate and refresh social work’s radical tradition to form a new political agenda, The New Politics of Social Work: • Brings together leading international authors to deliver a critical exploration of the impact capitalism has had on social work • Paves the way for students and practitioners of social work to take a more transformative, radical approach This is an important and authoritative book for both advanced level undergraduate and postgraduate students of Social Work."

Critical and Radical Social Work

Iain Ferguson

dermot brady

Linda Briskman

The call to radicalise social work is not new. Some of us are “mature” enough toremember Bailey and Brake’s 1975 treatise on the subject. Radical concepts slip and slide around the social work agenda in a semisustainable way. But its enduring presence is masked by terms that fit less controversially into the conservative world order: critical, structural, and transformative among them.In this comment piece, I argue that we do not need to merely revitalise the radical but to name it, proudly and loudly.

Social Work in Europe

Kieron Hatton

Social Work and Social Sciences Review

John Pinkerton

Katherine van Wormer

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• > Radical Social Work Today
• > Introduction

Book contents

• Frontmatter
• Notes on contributors
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• one Case Con and radical social work in the 1970s: the impatient revolutionaries
• two The best and worst of times: reflections on the impact of radicalism on British social work education in the 1970s
• three Social work and women’s oppression today
• four The jester's joke
• five LGBT oppression, sexualities and radical social work today
• six Radical social work and service users: a crucial connection
• seven Why class (still) matters
• eight International social work or social work internationalism? Radical social work in global perspective
• nine Rediscovering radicalism and humanity in social work
• ten Re-gilding the ghetto: community work and community development in 21st-century Britain
• eleven Resisting the EasyCare model: building a more radical, community-based, anti-authoritarian social work for the future
• Bibliography

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 September 2022

This volume has been put together to mark – and indeed celebrate – the 35th anniversary of the publication of Bailey and Brake's (1975) Radical social work . Bailey and Brake's work has become one of the few great, seminal texts of social work in Britain. Today, even those hostile to the general direction of the argument presented in the book, are willing to concede that the book had a significant impact on debates over social work theory and practice in the 1970s and 1980s.

Reading the text today there is no doubt that some of the chapters are shaped by the language and concerns of the 1970s Left. But in its emphasis on the iniquities of the social structure of capitalist society, the challenge it posed to state directed bureaucratic welfare, and its emphasis on the public and social causes of private pain, it was contesting and reshaping many of the dominant assumptions of social work theory. In doing so, it was in contrast to previously dominant perspectives that saw social problems in terms of individual failing and moral ineptitude on the part of ‘problem communities’.

As Roy Bailey points out in his foreword, the book was the first of a number of texts that offered a radical interpretation of social work theory, practice and intervention in the mid-1970s. Its publication reflected three significant and interconnected developments.

First, in the aftermath of the Kilbrandon (SHHD/SED, 1964) and Seebhom (1968) Reports, integrated social service/social work departments developed and created significant job opportunities for qualified workers. In response, higher education institutions expanded their social work course provision. Increasing numbers of social work students, however, then found themselves on courses where the traditional literature and theory base was found wanting. Psychological and medical accounts of clients and their problems were increasingly questioned and ridiculed by the new student cohorts (Jones, this volume). Instead students looked to new ideas that were emerging in the social sciences – ideas steeped in Marxist, feminist, countercultural and social constructionist perspectives that flourished in the early 1970s. Bailey and Brake put the book together to counter the traditional approaches to social work, to bring leading perspectives from the social sciences to social work and, by so doing, give students on courses the ammunition they needed to challenge the dominant theory base espoused on their courses.

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• By Michael Lavalette
• Edited by Michael Lavalette
• Book: Radical Social Work Today
• Online publication: 01 September 2022
• Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.46692/9781847428196.002

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Radical social work today: Social work at the crossroads

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Created to celebrate the 35th anniversary of Roy Bailey and Mike Brake's seminal text Radical social work (1975), this book explores the radical tradition within social work and assesses its legacy, relevance, and prospects. With a foreword by Bailey himself, it brings together leading academics within social work in Britain to reflect on the legacy of Radical Social Work (both the original text and the wider social movement) within social-work education, theory, and practice. With the current issues facing social work in Britain, the book examines the radical tradition to assert that ‘another social work is possible’.

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