Working with uncertainty and risk in children's social care: Video learning resources
Published:
In this series of seven videos, Professor Eileen Munro discusses how conditions of uncertainty and risk shape effective child protection work. The videos examine factors that can support or hinder good practice and decision making.
How do uncertainty and risk affect the way that we work with children and families? In this series of seven videos, Professor Eileen Munro examines how the complex conditions in which we work shape child protection practice.
Introduction
Promoting and protecting the wellbeing of children and young people is at the heart of children’s social care. However, decisions around risk of harm to a child are almost always made in a context of uncertainty, where there is limited information to inform decision-making and planning for the future. Working in contexts in which risk and uncertainty are frequently present will often cause professionals anxiety, which is likely to affect reasoning skills and decision making.
Drawing on a wide range of relevant evidence, Professor Munro discusses the need to acknowledge the different perspective on decision-making that is gained with the benefit of hindsight. To develop practice in real time, Munro focuses on the importance of articulating and sharing the reasoning behind decisions made. She sets out the case that it is most productive to judge practice by the quality of decision-making and reinforces the vital need to learn from social work successes as well as failures.
The films
An overview of what uncertainty and risk looks like in child protection.
Defining a well-reasoned judgement or decision and an achievable standard of practice.
Bringing together social work expertise and organisational context and culture.
Reviewing the organisational factors that influence how we work with families.
The key elements of a safety culture.
Paying attention to context when predicting human behaviour.
The multi-faceted nature of social work expertise.
Professor Eileen Munro
Professor Eileen Munro is an Emeritus Professor of Social Policy in the Department of Social Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Her background in both philosophy and social work has shaped her research interests in reasoning skills in child protection, leading to an interest in how organisational cultures help or hinder good quality reasoning and practice. Understanding of the complex causal processes in working with families has triggered a critical interest in the philosophy of social science underlying the evidence-based policy and practice movements.
In 2011, Prof. Munro led the ‘Munro review of child protection: a child-centred system.’ The report set out reform proposals intended to create the conditions for professionals to move away from a compliance driven system into one that enables them to make the best judgements to help children, young people and families.
Professional Standards
PQS:KSS - Child and family assessment | Analysis, decision-making, planning and review | Confident analysis and decision-making | Purposeful and effective social work | Support effective decision-making | Designing a system to support effective practice
PCF - Critical reflection and analysis | Intervention and skills | Contexts and organisations