A fight to work with families, rather than against them: exploring social workers’ experiences of working within the Family Safeguarding Model; an IPA analysis

The Family Safeguarding Model is a strength-based framework within Child Protection Services in the UK. Given the emotional toll of traditional social work practice that seems to work ‘against’ families, it is important to understand how social workers experience this way of working. To date, there has not been any research exploring social workers’ experiences within this framework. This qualitative study explores social workers’ experiences of working within this model and its implications for relationships with families and professionals. Semi-structured interviews were completed with six social workers. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used. Three Group Experiential Themes (GET’s) were identified: fighting to work with families, feeling held and protected and breaking at the seams. The model enabled social workers to develop meaningful relationships with families and consider risk in the context of parents’ early trauma. The MDT offered a ‘secure base’ from which they were able to take positive risks and manage anxiety. However, these experiences were diluted by increased service demands, leaving social workers feeling disempowered. Findings suggest value in consistent in-house multi-agency support, enabling shared responsibility for complex cases. Further research is required on social workers who have worked in other strengthening family frameworks.

Keywords: child safeguarding, family safeguarding model, child protection