A letter from Social Workers to policy makers asking to review the affirmation only approach to children

[gardenbird48]

The Evidence Based Social Work Alliance have written an open letter to the main policy makers of Social Work (Chief Exec. Social Work England etc) to request a review of evidence and policy around gender dysphoria in children and alternatives to the affirmation only approach.

I hope they can get some conversation going around this.

twitter.com/ebswa/status/1361782173251104768

Of immediate concern is the increasing numbers of children and young people with gender dysphoria who are presenting to the profession. The welfare of gender-dysphoric children is increasingly being discussed within the child-protection context, and yet our attempts to explore alternatives to the affirmation model are being met with accusations of hateful conduct and referrals to our regulator for investigation. We are being silenced in our attempts to understand and discuss the evidence-base approaches to exploring this phenomenon.

62cf5a1c-609c-4461-b8e5-f59bba1da22c.filesusr.com/ugd/2a3ee9_b2dcbf8dd81248c08d54ba181544364c.pdf

Excellent. I am really glad to see this as I had thought the profession had been captured . Relieved that this is seen to be not the case.

So glad to see this - and particularly glad that it's UK-wide. Thanks EBSWA. Please keep us updated...

Well done EBSWA. That's one regulatory captured profession there and it would be great to see the stranglehold loosened in order to centre children's needs rather than adult priorities.
Mr Justice Hayden was highlighting this in a ruling back in 2016 that severely criticised social workers for pandering to lobby groups rather than safeguarding children - unbelievable that social care completely ignored it:
www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Fam/2016/2430.html

Thanks for posting this letter gardenbird48, that's an encouraging development.

I know several social workers and youth workers who've been struggling with this approach. They know the affirmative model is failing the children who often have a multitude of issues, because it's presented as a cure-all, with zero evidence for this being true. Some of them have left the profession or were "managed out" because they have concerns about this. I hope this will allow them to have the respectful but open debate that is necessary to properly support these vulnerable children.

It's a good letter

I feel another judicial review coming along

@CharlieParley

Thanks for posting this letter gardenbird48, that's an encouraging development.

I know several social workers and youth workers who've been struggling with this approach. They know the affirmative model is failing the children who often have a multitude of issues, because it's presented as a cure-all, with zero evidence for this being true. Some of them have left the profession or were "managed out" because they have concerns about this. I hope this will allow them to have the respectful but open debate that is necessary to properly support these vulnerable children.

you're welcome, I was pleased to find it.

It must be hugely distressing for a social worker who can clearly see the cause(s) of a child's distress to have their hands tied and be forced to go along the affirmation route probably under threat of their livelihood.

Being a social worker sounds like an extremely difficult job and that will make it ten times worse imo.

Excellent - the tide is turning

I’m really pleased to see this. My daughter’s school referred us to social services a couple of months ago for not affirming her as a boy, but fortunately after interviewing her, the social worker felt there was no role for social services. I felt the social worker really listened to our point of view (we’ve had three mental health experts advise affirming is not appropriate for her).

If EBSWA make headway at a national level, I’d be absolutely thrilled as speaking to other parents, it can be very hit or miss depending on your area.

rogdmum

I hope you’ve written to the governors about this. And taken it further if you’re not happy with the reply.

yay ! a spot of good news

Really good news. There is a lot of lightning shone on this issue from many angles.

I have just seen on twitter that they received some responses.

A joint response from the different UK regulatory bodies:

www.socialworkengland.org.uk/news/joint-response-to-open-letter-from-ebswa/

Not saying a huge amount, but positive passages are:
"We note the concern you raise about instances of threats, bullying and intimidation among social workers. We expect all social workers to meet and uphold their professional standards and codes, this includes in workplace settings, online and among peers."

"We welcome further thoughts and advice on how we might best engage on this issue and what role you consider for the UK regulators in ongoing consideration of the matters you have raised."

Its extremely positive that they got together to draft a reply & indicate willingness to engage.

Letter from carcass.

www.ebswa.org/news

I don't think they get it at all, but at least these positive bits:
" We work closely with Social Work England and the BASW and would be willing and
interested in contributing to a review of social work practice guidance in this practice
area."
"Please do write again if you would like to correspond further or indeed to have a virtual
meeting."

Reply from BASW, same link, whole thing copied here:
"
Thank you for your open letter dated 9th February 2021 and your appeal for a policy review and practice
guidance regarding sex and gender identity and the requests you make.
We believe and fully understand that this is a very important area for social work practice with children and
adults. We are following and debating the implications of recent legal and clinical developments. Recently
our magazine Professional Social Work carried articles from different perspectives on transgender practice
with young people.
We do not claim to have done all the work we need to do. In September 2020 BASW Council passed a
motion that agreed for BASW to:
• Plan for the development of social work capabilities on gender identity
• Address the lack of training across social work education on gender identity.
There is much to be done to clarify policy and practice guidance in this field and for that to be evidence
based. Equally for social work to be properly evidence based in this field, there is a need for more
evidence to be generated – empirical and otherwise - and also for that which is presented to be more
available, known and understood across the profession. BASW has a key role in all of this.
We wholeheartedly agree that no social worker should experience threats, bullying and intimidation in their
work on this or any subject.
There are contested views and complex safeguarding considerations at stake. We will engage with these
and ensure the association has an ethical stance and promotes good evidence and practice guidance that
properly protects the wellbeing and interests of children and young people.
We will continue to develop our work, in discussion, considered debate and engagement with our members’
policy and ethics group/s. BASW will support, work with other social work bodies and where appropriate
lead the debate and development of best evidence on sex and gender identity in social work practice.
BASW would welcome further direct dialogue with EBSWA on these important issues going forward."

Well done to whoever is behind ebswa. It is really positive to get these responses to your first step.

Woops that was meant to be cafcass not carcass!

Thanks for the update Manderley

With children in care and looked after children (LAC's?) overrepresented in presenting to gender clinics around the world, social workers must be listened to.

That's a cautiously positive response. Good to see that they haven't gone down the "all questions are bigotry" so loved by the lobby groups. Evidently all the emerging evidence about experimental untested medical treatment of children has given them pause for thought.

At the very least, it's an openness to dialogue - as long as it's not a Spartan Helots offer of enfranchisement that turned into a culling (that's my default pessimism so that I can't be disappointed, ignore me).

www.redalyc.org/jatsRepo/282/28250843014/html/index.html

Thanks for this.

It’s an interesting area. I’m wondering how student social workers who are going through the University systems at this point in time (and all that comes with that as we have seen) will influence the issue.

It’s heartening that the subject is being discussed sensibly.

Brilliant thread by a social worker (a long one)
twitter.com/susiehawkes/status/1397078160550866944

[quote FindTheTruth]Brilliant thread by a social worker (a long one)
twitter.com/susiehawkes/status/1397078160550866944[/quote]
Disappointing behaviour from the Diversity Champion of the relevant organisation given that she's managing her social media in that capacity:

twitter.com/susiehawkes/status/1397078199255945216?s=20

Plus her quote-tweeting Pink News' criticism of Maya Forstater:

twitter.com/susiehawkes/status/1397078206935674881?s=20

Yes the diversity lead's tweets seem inappropriate, appearing to come down on one side of a legal case which they are not involved in, before the judgement. And even worse that the organisation retweeted it.

But, the CEO Ruth Allen is engaging on this sensibly on twitter. I wouldn't expect her to say anything about her colleague's tweet informally on twitter, but she's not dismissing the concerns about that out of hand either. She said "The Forstater case is live & complex raising important issues of free speech and protection of right to beliefs (etc) vs rights of people affected by that speech. We await the court judgement & rationale & will consider implications for social work." Among other things in conversation on twitter.

Between that and the official replies, it's amazing to see significant people like this actually taking the whole thing seriously and acknowledging there are things to be discussed, and being respectful about it. I've been involved in this for more than 3 yrs now, and it shouldn't be amazing but it is.

I might be getting ahead of myself, but perhaps this is a model for how people can start to bring things into the open in their own professions. I hope ebswa can keep the conversations going with these bodies.

I might be getting ahead of myself, but perhaps this is a model for how people can start to bring things into the open in their own professions. I hope ebswa can keep the conversations going with these bodies

hope so Manderley. In the US, according to some tweeters, social workers are ordered to only follow the affirmation model. can see a lot of lawsuits there in future

I am so glad I retired before the shit hit the fan...especially before mandatory training courses were run by SW and Mermaids among others. I could not have worked under such regulation . Glad to see some are standing up for children ( and parents) who have to negotiate in a situation where the problems they have cannot be explored properly because of affirmation only type interventions.