27/11/2015 - 11:48 am

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Counselling Skills for Social Work

Counselling and social work have long been connected. Counselling is defined by Feltham and Dryden (1993) as a ‘principled relationship’in which practitioners draw upon a knowledge-base of psychological theories. As counselling is service-user-led and social work is governed by legislative and policy frameworks that often lead us to take a directive stance with service users, referring to ‘counselling skills’ in social work practice seems most fitting. The Barclay Report clarified the use of counselling skills in social work to be a means by which service users are assisted through the process of personal change or change of their environments. Counselling skills should also be used in social work practice to help people tolerate the emotional impact of their world (Barclay Committee, 1982). This also comes into conflict with some forms of ‘therapy’, in that emotional healing is not always possible without changes to an individual’s environment. This is especially so in relation to abuse. This is dis- cussed throughout this book, again reinforcing the use of ‘skills’ as the most relevant term to describe such ‘therapeutic’activity within social work practice. Counselling and counselling skills are governed under the Ethical Framework of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). (Lisa Miller, Counselling skills for Social Work)