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The Myth of Generic Practice: Specialisation in Social Work*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2009

David Challis  and
Ewan Ferlie
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Abstract

There has been continuing debate ever since the reorganisation of social services following the Seebohm Report as to the most appropriate mode of organising field social work. At different times various models have been proposed with more or less enthusiasm, some of which expect fieldwork caseloads to be of a generic kind and others which demand a greater degree of specialisation. This paper examines the extent of specialisation in social work based on a national survey of fieldwork organisation and considers some reasons why this trend to specialisation is evident, even in authorities with a strong commitment to community-based modes of provision.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Social Policy , Volume 17 , Issue 1 , January 1988 , pp. 1 - 22
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1988

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