NO MORE

1
NO MORE NEEDS growing confidence and
improving skills around sexuality in social work
research, learning and practice

• Practical Learning achieving excellence in the
  human services
• PEPE conference
• Edinburgh
• 2008
• Joy Trotter and Trish Hafford-Letchfield
• University of Teesside - London South Bank
  University

2
sexuality in social work

• familiar concepts
• social exclusion marginalisation
• anti-discriminatory and anti-oppressive practices
• these imply that social work
• embraces equality and diversity
• has become culturally competent
• subscribes to moral and ethical standards which
  include respect for others, regardless of their
  sexual orientation
• however
• sexuality issues continue to be marginalized or
  excluded altogether (Leech Trotter, 2005 Fish,
  2006)

3
sexuality in research

• Despite the 2002 RAE specifically remarking on
  sexuality as one of a number of new and emerging
  areas for social work (Shaw Norton, 2007) it
  continues to be under-funded and
  under-researched.
• Others have contributed
• education - focussing on schools sexual
  bullying and sex education
• sociology and social policy - developing
  understandings debates around sexuality
• economists and demographers - struggled to
  capture or predict trends relating to sexual
  diversity within families
• health and psychology mostly AIDS/HIV, STDs and
  other problems
• criminology around sex offenders and child
  sexual abuse

4
sexuality in learning

• Despite a number of pioneering texts around a
  decade ago (Logan et al, 1996 Hicks, 1996
  Trotter Gilchrist, 1996 Trotter, 1998 Brown,
  1998 Trotter, 2000a, 2000b Logan, 2001) very
  little has been transferred to national learning
  resources, training policies or general
  educational materials.
• Social Work and Sexuality (Brown, 1998) omitted
  from BASWs (Macmillan Press) re-launch of
  Practical Social Work series in 2006 (12 titles)
  nor was it included in advertisements for key
  backlist books (10 titles)
• Learning Matters helping social workers to
  support people in achieving their sexual rights
  (Jones Bywater, 2007, p134)

5
sexuality in practice

• Common mistakes
• sexuality often confused with sex (behaviour),
• sexuality confined to issues (problems) and/or
• sexuality conflated with sexual (sexiness).
• Technicist approaches to assessment and service
  provision have emerged which seek to identify the
  particular needs of minority populations
  (Jeyasingham, 2008).
• These have focussed on non hetero-sexual people,
  implying
• heterosexuals do not have needs
• non hetero-sexual people have only needs
• non-heterosexuals can be regarded as one
  homogenous population and
• there are no overlaps or needs that are held in
  common between the two populations.
• Its also assumed that once these so-called
  needs are known, they will somehow be
  addressed (Hicks, 2005).

6
community of practice

• Evolving
• Opening up a dialogue between inside and outside
  perspectives
• Invite different levels of participation
• Develop both public and private community spaces
• Focus on values
• Create a rhythm for the community

7
a case study

• Symposium Sexuality issues in social work
  practice, education and research
• Began in June 2004
• Aims/objectives - To extend and strengthen the
  knowledge base by
• providing a friendly and safe forum for
  discussion and dissemination of ideas
• sharing and developing ideas
• supporting and sustaining each others interests
  and endeavours
• contributing to and collaborating on research
  projects and publications.
•  Membership - Social work and allied academics,
  researchers, practitioners, students and service
  users with proven /or active interests in
  sexuality issues.
•  Activities
• share the data-base of contacts
• share information, news and ideas
• contribute reading lists, with recommended
  favourite(s) accompanying review
• regular meetings, seminars and conferences
• research projects
• collaborative writing

8
growing confidence

• Growing membership
• Developing identity
• Evolving leadership
• Ongoing learning through
• mutual engagement joint enterprise
• sharing -
• personal, educational professional histories
• life experiences
• giving meaning to practice
• participation

9
improving skills

• Virtual and real support network
• Developing expertise
• Campaigning / lobbying
• Publishing
• Workshops / conferences
• Research projects
• Seminar series

10
Exciting futures

• Early days fluid and informal network
• Recognising differences?
• Including and collaborating?
• Direction future?
• SIG or Symposium?
• Shifting the focus by
• pursuing clarity about values
• widening participation perspective
• meanings/understandings emerging - no more needs

11
References

• Brown, H. C. (1998) Social Work and Sexuality
  Working with Lesbians and Gay Men, Basingstoke
  Macmillan.
• Fish, J. (2006) Heterosexism and Social Care,
  Basingstoke Palgrave.
• Hicks, S. (1996) The last resort? Lesbian and
  gay experiences of the social work assessment
  process in fostering and adoption, Practice,
  8(2), 15-24.
• Hicks, S. (2005) Sexuality social work theories
  and practice. In Adams, R., Dominelli, L.
  Payne, M. (eds) Social Work Futures Crossing
  Boundaries, Transforming Practice, Basingstoke
  Palgrave Macmillan.
• Jeyasingham, D. (2008) Knowledge/ignorance and
  the construction of sexuality in social work
  education, Social Work Education, 27(2), 2235.
• Jones, R. Bywater, J. (2007) Sexuality and
  Social Work. Exeter Learning Matters.
• Leech, N. and Trotter, J. (2005) None of them
  ever asked about sex some personal thoughts as
  to why social workers have difficulty discussing
  sexuality with young people, Socio-analysis, 7,
  19-36.
• Logan, J. (2001) Sexuality, child care and
  social work education, Social Work Education,
  20(5), 563575.
• Logan, J., Kershaw, S., Karban, K., Mills, S.
  Trotter, J. Sinclair, M. (1996) Confronting
  Prejudice Lesbian and Gay Issues in Social Work
  Education, Aldershot Arena.
• Shaw, I. and Norton, M. (2007) The Kinds and
  Quality of Social Work Research in UK
  Universities Using Knowledge In Social Care
  Report 17, London Social Care Institute for
  Excellence.
• Trotter, J. (1998) Learning and practising, or
  just saying the words? Anti-discriminatory issues
  in social work training, Journal of Practice
  Teaching in Health and Social Work, 1(2), 31-47.
• Trotter, J. (2000) Speaking out, coming out and
  being outed different sexualities and child
  protection practices. In Cox, P., Kershaw, S.
  Trotter, J. (eds) Child Sexual Assault Feminist
  Perspectives, London Macmillan.
• Trotter, J. (2000) Whos leading whom? Sexuality
  and young people. In Harris, J., Froggett, L.
  Paylor, I. (eds) Social Work Making a Difference,
  Birmingham Venture Press.
• Trotter, J. and Gilchrist, J. (1996) Assessing
  DipSW students anti-discriminatory practice in
  relation to lesbian and gay issues, Social Work
  Education, 15(1), 75-82.