Signs of Safety: A Solution and Safety Oriented Approach to Child Protection Casework

by Steve Edwards, Andrew Turnell

This book presents a revolutionary approach to child protection work. It focuses on the question, "How can child protection professionals actually build partnerships with parents where there is suspected or substantiated child abuse or neglect?" The authors bring the solution orientation to child protection work, expanding the investigation of risk to encompass signs of safety that can be built upon to stabilize and strengthen the child's and family's situation. The philosophy behind this approach is clearly articulated through ten practice principles that serve as guiding beacons for child protection workers as they traverse the rough waters of abuse and neglect investigation. Child protection workers are involved with vulnerable, at-risk children in potentially volatile situations. Here they will find a new child protection assessment and planning protocol that allows for comprehensive risk assessment incorporating both danger and safety and the perspectives of both professionals and service recipients (parents). The authors provide practical, hands-on strategies for building a partnership with parents, which may, in the long run, prevent abuse and family dissolution. They illustrate these strategies in cases showing the subtle process of integrating the seemingly opposite notions of coercion and cooperation. Respectful, optimistic, and highly practical, this book promises to revitalize and redirect child protection services.

Genres: Social Work, Nonfiction

240 pages, Hardcover

First published July 17, 1999

Reviews

[KaWoodtiereads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent read. Recommended for anyone actively involved in child protection services.

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though by no means a comprehensive guide to child protection practice, this book does such an excellent job of providing an overview of the Signs of Safety approach, and how its use can offer new opportunity in the development of genuine partnership within incredibly difficult work.

A definite must for anyone in the field of child protection, and, though I'm still left with some lingering questions about how this approach can handle those particularly difficult cases, this book introduces a guiding light in how to do this work in an ethical and positive way. Strongly recommend.

[Ciara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slightly slightly out of date, there's a lot more up-to-date bits and pieces in trainings and online etc, but I find reading a book is a good way for me to learn, so this was useful.

The reality is that while I do have some issues with SOS as an approach, it's what's used by my agency, so I have to work around those issues and understand the approach as best as possible regardless.

I suppose my two biggest issues in practice are 1. many (but not all!) families going through the statutory child protection process are where they are because their own wider networks aren't particularly strong and/or have their own challenges and difficulties to manage. EG- a parent is often struggling to meet their child's needs because their own parents struggled to meet theirs (generational poverty and trauma etc), and yet we turn to those grandparents to support with the children as though it's simply an issue with the parent in the middle. And I know that's a vast vast simplification, but it's something that comes up in practice and I'm conflicted on.

And 2. the gap between child protection and welfare, and then the care system. Where we know, even using SOS that what is happening for the children in the family isn't good enough, where we're looking at ongoing cumulative harm, but where putting the children into care is going to lead to worse outcomes due to the care system in the situation it is (and not all children are worse off in care, just to note). But SOS sort of has an answer, like, oh if there's no change for the children, either because the parents have no capacity or motivation, then it gives you a space to wonder if the children should be in care, and that's all well and good, I guess, from a CPW perspective, but care isn't necessarily the answer either! So I feel like SOS sort of falters there.

But in saying that, I actually mostly like it as an approach, I like pulling networks together to look out for children, and I like how easily this book makes it all out.

[Lynn Lock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dipping in and out for work stuff which is why it took so long it’s a good book but basic and I can specifically see the benefit for CP work it’s less easy for other services

[Rob]

reading for work. child protection stuff

[Aaron Badgley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent, essential reading for child welfare workers and supervisors.

[Sunaina Mannan]

Easy read. Great examples. Sometimes points were stretched out for longer than they needed to be. Some points were repeated tirelessly. Spoke to a child welfare worker and she made a good point: Turnell's ideas are novel to the child welfare system. They have turned the system and the systemic thinking of workers upside down. Repetitiveness is a necessity.