Abstract
SummaryMark Fisher’s Capitalist Realism, published in 2009, has been recognised as one of the most important contributions chronicling the rise, application and consequences of neoliberalism. However, Fisher’s ideas have until now only garnered passing mention in the study of neoliberalism in children and families social work in England, despite there being extensive research, argument and publication on the subject more broadly. This article attempts to rectify this gap and apply Fisher’s theory to the recent reforms in children and families social work in England.FindingsThe article applies Fisher’s commentary on the co-option of language, invoking crisis, bureaucracy and proposing change to implement no change, to the reforms in children and families social work that began with the implementation of Reclaiming Social Work in 2008. Since that time, the original architects of Reclaiming Social Work have gained significant positions of power and influence and been instrumental in introducing neoliberal reforms throughout children and families social work in England.ApplicationsThrough applying the approach and concepts of Mark Fisher, this article concludes that it is possible to determine that the current reforms are, at their core, neoliberal in nature and driven by an ideological imperative to transform children and families social work in England into a neoliberal edifice, with less public sector and state input and oversight and an increase in the influence of ‘not-for-profits’, charities and international for-profit consultancies.
Highlights
The article applies Fisher’s commentary on the co-option of language, invoking crisis, bureaucracy and proposing change to implement no change, to the reforms in children and families social work that began with the implementation of Reclaiming Social Work in 2008
Mark Fisher is arguably one of the most original and influential thinkers on late capitalist society, the education sector and British culture in recent times (Arcand, 2018; Garrett, 2018a; Garrett & Conneely, 2015; Withers, 2019). Through his most influential work, Capitalist Realism (Fisher, 2009), he provides an in-depth analysis of neoliberalism, its essential contradictions and how neoliberalism ‘seamlessly occupies the horizons of the thinkable’ (p. 8), making other alternatives impossible to imagine
Over ten years old, Capitalist Realism is a seminal text on the subject of the impact of neoliberalism in the UK
Summary
The article applies Fisher’s commentary on the co-option of language, invoking crisis, bureaucracy and proposing change to implement no change, to the reforms in children and families social work that began with the implementation of Reclaiming Social Work in 2008. Keywords Social work, England, Mark Fisher, capitalist realism, neoliberalism, neoliberal reform
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