Post Munro:The Shape of Things to Come

19th September 2011

The way we think about families:

- A debate still to be had - a postcode lottery

- For better or for worse

- Minimal state intervention

- Families can change

- And skilled, evidence based social work intervention can help facilitate that

- Moving away from problems to solutions, from punishment to support

- Acting early and acting fast

The way we think about leadership and organisational functioning:

- Paralysis and inertia

- Too much focus on the machinery around practice

- Culture eats strategy for breakfast (Allen, 2011)

- Good ideas with brilliant application

- The need for military precision

- The power of junior bureaucrats

- Doing deals v the dangers of compromise

- The disgrace of inefficiency

Doing things differently & effectively

•Small is beautiful

•A simple system for a complex task

•Role generosity

•Effort

•Realistic optimism

•A risk sensible system

•The productivity of responsibility

•Independence can generate an empty mind (Munro, 2011)

Coming Back Down to Earth……….

•Reclaiming Social Work – logical to its core•A whole system change•The dispensation authorities

- no quick fix - devolved decision making (avoiding the bottle neck) - demise of consistency - the threshold for intervention and continuation (the timescales won’t do it for you) - skilled and confident social workers - case consultation - capacity to undertake direct work (re-organisation of roles & expectations) - reflective time - managers who are capable and enabled to supervise •The anxiety generated and the role of leadership•Values, trust and professional ethics