Addressing the issue of child sexual abuse in Pakistan: A conceptual analysis

Drawing on academic and government literature and the authors’ professional experience in working with child sexual abuse (CSA), this article details the current issues in Pakistan within a global context of Asia. This discussion addresses the context of CSA in Pakistan, causes and incidence of CSA, reporting of CSA, lack of effective structures to protect children, public education for CSA, and finally discusses the example of Punjab Province in Pakistan and its approach to dealing with CSA. The article contributes to an understanding of current reporting, intervention, and treatment of victims of CSA in Pakistan from a social work/policy perspective.

Developing a Theoretical Framework to Discuss Mothers Experiencing Domestic Violence and Being Subject to Interventions: A Cross-National Perspective

The discourse about domestic violence has developed in patriarchal societies, and so we position our understanding of ‘mother’ within a patriarchal framework. We explore the ways in which ‘mothering’ and ‘mother blame’ have been constructed within that framework and how this becomes relevant in the context of domestic violence and child welfare social work. We review literature from Australia, Canada, England and Wales, and the United States of America that has focused on child welfare responses to mothers experiencing domestic violence and abuse. On the basis of that review, we argue that mothers are responsibilised for violence and abuse they do not perpetrate. We show that the way legislation operates in some jurisdictions facilitates hegemonic, patriarchal constructions. We call for a review of current child welfare social work policy and practice in which domestic violence is present.

Pruned, policed and privatised: the knowledge base for children and families social work in England and Wales in 2019

The focus of this chapter is on the knowledge base for social work practice with children and families and its relationship to current social work policy development in England and Wales for the foreseeable future. It is argued that over the last ten years, the nature of the knowledge base for children and family social work, including the way it is generated, accessed and applied, has been increasingly subject to politically initiated change. This article argues that over the previous ten years of ‘austerity’, knowledge for social work has been purposely, and increasingly, ‘weaponised’ as a component of the same political system which introduced and now sustains neo-liberalism and austerity. Deliberate decisions have been taken by government in order to initiate- through a variety of inter-linked and mutually reinforcing strategies- the reframing and repackaging of the role of knowledge in social work practice with children and families. Following a review of current approaches to understanding social work knowledge, the article identifies five key inter-linked projects , which have been established by the Conservative government . It argues that these are intended to deliver a far-reaching political colonisation of the existing knowledge base for social work, which should be resisted by all social work stakeholders.

Social work as policy innovator: challenges and possibilities in the UK

This chapter provides a brief overview of recent and current developments in social work policy activism in the UK. It reflects on the ‘radical social work’ tradition, and the relationship between policy work and professionalism in social work. Drawing on examples of organisation around key campaigns, the chapter makes the case for policy-oriented practice, as integral to all aspects of social work. In this respect, the distinction between ‘direct’ and ‘indirect’ practice is redrawn, in order to demonstrate that both are equally infused with a policy dimension. It is impossible to undertake ‘policy-free’ practice; and the impact of policy and structures on service users has to be factored in to all aspects of social work intervention.