Policy Swings Over Thirty-Five Years of Mental Health Social Work in England and Wales 1969–2004

Abstract

Thirty-five years ago social work in England and Wales was reeling in the wake of the Seebohm Report (1968) and local government reform that had brought about the unification of personal social services under new local authority Social Services Departments (SSDs). Over three decades later, social workers working in the fields of childcare, mental health, learning disability, older people and physical disability once again are increasingly working in separate settings. The Department of Education and Skills has acquired responsibility for children's services. While responsibility for community services for older people and those with physical disability is retained by social services, mental health social workers are again often working in healthcare settings, albeit in community mental health teams managed by new health and social care partnerships. This article considers, through a review of the policy and professional literature, the main political and workforce contexts of mental health social work in England and Wales between two main periods, 1969–1990 and from 1990 up to the present time (2004). It does this to illustrate how policy swings and trends during the periods have influenced social work practice, with a particular focus on mental health.