RHUL’s social work team were delighted to welcome staff and students from Oakland University to London where they undertook a programme of visits to social services offices in three local authorities, three charities and several practitioner talks and events. Highlights included a walking tour led by a person with lived experience of homelessness and trips to London’s diverse communities and neighbourhoods.
The visit was arranged in collaboration between Karl Mason from social work at RHUL and Kareen Tonsing, Megan Widman, and George Sanders and at Oakland University.
The students had the opportunity to meet social workers and people with lived experience of social work. Common factors such as working with poverty and marginalisation were identified across the national contexts and students noted the excellent examples of collaborative practices, for example a visit to Camden Council’s Family Group Conferences team.
The students were struck by the extent to which the voice of people using services was emphasised during visits to Tower Hamlets Council’s adult safeguarding team and Lambeth Council’s children’s services. This was particularly emphasised when they visited ATD 4th World, a peer advocacy project for parents who experience poverty.
The diversity in London was also noted as a key asset with visits to the Afghan and Central Asian association, Brixton’s windrush square and market and talks from RHUL social work graduate Gaverne Bennett about race and racism in contemporary Britain.
The students had the chance to hear more about social work in England in a talk with RHUL’s Dr. Stefan Brown and a seminar hosted at Senate House on the theme of transnational social work which had contributions from Dr. Yohai Hakak from Brunel University and several partner agencies and alumni of the social work programme at RHUL.
