Social Work and Sexuality: Working with Lesbians and Gay Men

176 Pages·1998·38.685 MB·English

by  Helen Cosis Brown (auth.)

PRACTICAL
SOCIAL WORK
Series Editor: Jo Campling
IBAswl
Editorial Advisory Board:
Robert Adams, Terry Bamford, Charles Barker,
Lena Dominelli, Malcolm Payne, Michael Preston-Shoot,
Daphne Statham and Jane Tunstill
Social work is at an important stage in its development. All professions
must be responsive to changing social and economic conditions if they are to
meet the needs of those they serve. This series focuses on sound practice and
the specific contribution which social workers can make to the well-being of
our society.
The British Association of Social Workers has always been conscious of its
role in setting guidelines for practice and in seeking to raise professional
standards. The conception of the Practical Social Work series arose from a
survey of BASW members to discover where they, the practitioners in social
work, felt there was the most need for new literature. The response was
overwhelming and enthusiastic, and the result is a carefully planned,
coherent series of books. The emphasis is firmly on practice set in a
theoretical framework. The books will inform, stimulate and promote
discussion, thus adding to the further development of skills and high
professional standards. All the authors are practitioners and teachers of
social work representing a wide variety of experience.
JO CAMPLING
A list of published titles in this series follows overleaf
Practical Social Work
Series Standing Order ISBN 978-0-333-69347-6
You can receive future titles in this series as they are published by placing a standing
order. Please contact your bookseller or, in the case of difficulty, write to us at the
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Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS, England
PRACTICAL SOCIAL WORK
Robert Adams Social Work and Gill Gorell Barnes Working with Families
Empowerment Cordelia Grimwood and Ruth Popplestone
David Anderson Social Work and Mental Women. Management and Care
Handicap
Jalna Hanmer and Daphne Statham
Sarah Banks Ethics and Values in Social Women and Social Work
Work
Tony Jeffs and Mark Smith (eds) Youth
James G. Barber Beyond Casework
Work
James G. Barber Social Work with
Michael Kerfoot and Alan Butler
Addictions
Problems of Childhood and Adolescence
Peter Beresford and Suzy Croft Citizen
Involvement Joyce Lishman Communication in Social
Work
Suzy Braye and Michael Preston-Shoot
Practising Social Work Law (2nd edn) Carol Lupton and Terry Gillespie (eds)
Helen Cosis Brown Social Work and Working with Violence
Sexuality Mary Marshall and Mary Dixon Social
Robert Brown, Stanley Bute and Peter Work with Older People (3rd edn)
Ford Social Workers at Risk Paula Nicolson and Rowan Bayne Applied
Alan Butler and Colin Pritchard Sooial Psychology for Social Workers (2nd
Work and Mental Illness edn)
Crescy Cannan, Lynne Berry and Karen Kieran O'Hagan Crisis Intervention in
Lyons Social Work and Europe Social Services
Roger Clough Residential Work Michael Oliver Social Work with Disabled
David M. Cooper and David Ball Social People
Work and Child Abuse
Joan Orme and Bryan Glastonbury Care
Veronica Coulshed Management in Social Management
Work
Malcolm Payne Working in Teams
Veronica Coulshed Social Work Practice
(2nd edn) John Pitts Working with Young Offenders
Paul Daniel and John Wheeler Social Michael Preston-Shoot Effective
Work and Local Politics Groupwork
Peter R. Day Sociology in Social Work Peter Raynor, David Smith and Maurice
Practice Vanstone Effective Probation Practice
Lena Dominelli Anti-Racist Social Work Steven Shardlow and Mark Doel Practice
(2nd edn) Learning and Teaching
Celia Doyle Working with Abused Children
Carole R. Smith Social Work with the
(2nd edn)
Dying and Bereaved
Angela Everitt and Pauline Hardiker
David Smith Criminology for Social Work
Evaluating for Good Practice
Angela Everitt, Pauline Hardiker, Jane Gill Stewart and John Stewart Social
Littlewood and Audrey Mullender Work and Housing
Applied Research for Better Practice Christine Stones Focus on Families
Kathy Ford and Alan Jones Student Neil Thompson Anti-Discriminatory
Supervision in Social Work Practice (2nd edn)
David Francis and Paul Henderson
Neil Thompson, Michael Murphy and
Working with Rural Communities
Steve Stradling Dealing with Stress
Michael D. A. Freeman Children. their
Families and the Law Derek Tilbury Working with Mental Illness
Alison Froggatt Family Work with Elderly Alan Twelvetrees Community Work (2nd
People edn)
Danya Glaser and Stephen Frosh Child Hilary Walker and Bill Beaumont (eds)
Sexual Abuse (2nd edn) Working with Offenders
Social Work and Sexuality
Working with Lesbians and Gay Men
Helen Cosis Brown
--
MACMIllAN
© British Association of Social Workers 1998
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of
this publication may be made without written permission.
No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or
transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with
the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988,
or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying
issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court
Road, London WIP 9HE.
Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this
publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil
claims for damages.
The author has asserted her right to be identified as the
author of this work in accordance with the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published 1998 by
MACMILLAN PRESS LTD
Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS
and London
Companies and representatives
throughout the world
ISBN 978-0-333-60884-5 ISBN 978-1-349-13415-1 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-13415-1
A catalogue record for this book is available
from the British Library.
10987654321
07 06 05 04 03 02 01 00 99 98
Copy-edited and typeset by Povey-Edmondson
Tavistock and Rochdale, England
This book is written for lesbians and gay men,
both as service users and providers; for a more creative,
celebratory, reflective and competent future.
Contents
Acknowledgements x
1 Introduction 1
Conversation 2
Language 3
Structure 4
2 Competent Anti-Discriminatory Social Work Practice 8
The concept of competence in social work 8
Competence: knowledge, values and skills; strengths
and dilemmas 10
Knowledge 11
Values 12
Skills 15
Non-discriminatory perspectives and competent
practice 16
Competence and anti-discriminatory practice 18
Power, oppression and empowerment 21
Competent practice with lesbians and gay men 22
3 Placing the Debate within its Social/Political Context 23
The legislative backdrop: the British context 24
The development of lesbian and gay rights and
activism 29
Comparative development: Britain and Australia 32
Britain in the 1980s: a case study of the potentialities
arising out of contradictions 36
The next agenda 41
4 Lesbians and Gay Men in Social Work 42
Discrimination 42
Coming out 46
Social work education: production of the professional 51
Last word 56
Vll
Vlll Contents
5 Social Work Knowledge - Revisited 57
Theories, methods and models 58
Psychology, sociology and radical social work 63
Anti -oppressive/anti -discriminatory practice
literature 69
Utilising knowledge effectively 70
6 Social Work: Organisation and Context 72
Autonomous organisation versus integration 72
Supervision 78
Assessment 83
Different social work contexts 86
7 Children and Families 90
The social and historical context 90
Preventative work with and support to families 93
Child protection 98
Fostering and adoption 101
Young people 105
8 Social Work with Adults 109
Generic themes 109
Mental health and ill health 113
Chronic sickness, death and bereavement 116
Physical disability 117
Old age 119
Learning disabilities 122
9 Social Work and Probation Practice with Offenders 125
The British criminal justice system 125
Community-based probation and resources 128
Residential provision - prisons and hostels 131
Competent anti-oppressive practice in work with
offenders 132
10 Concluding Thoughts 134
Social work knowledge 134
Social work education 135
Social work practice 136
Contents IX
Relevant Organisations 138
References 143
Author Index 157
Subject Index 161
Acknowledgements
This book has grown out of the opportunities I have had, since
being involved with direct social work delivery, to reflect on my
own, and others' practice. I have learnt more from service users and
clients than from anyone and I am indebted to their ability to share
their thoughts and experiences with me over a number of years.
I have been greatly influenced by and am grateful to my collea
gues in practice, particularly to those I learnt a great deal from,
including Sue Anderson, Jeanette Brewster, Charlie Burr, Chris
Cotter, Barbara Eaton, Ena Fry, Joy Howard, Peter Morgan, Jenny
Pearce, Pilly Sharpe, Jane Stacey and Robert Wilson.
My time as a principal lecturer at Middlesex University enabled
me to relate my practice experience to a theoretical base. I wish to
acknowledge the input of the following to that process: Anthony
Borgiono, Elaine Creith, Jane Dutton, Tony Goodman, MaryAnn
Henderson, Ravi Kohli, Michele McCarthy, Cathy McGowen,
Jenny Pearce, Phil Slater, and the many lesbian and gay students
who helped me deconstruct and reconstruct some of my ideas.
The writing, collating and production of the book has been
facilitated by inputs from firstly, Diane Adderley (who proof read
and typed the first draft), Kate Jarvis, Dawn Sharpe and my very
patient and supportive editor, Jo Campling, and the helpful con
tribution of my two anonymous readers.
My thanks go to the following organisations and individuals who
were generous with their thoughts, materials, information and
guidance: The Albert Kennedy Trust, All Saints Bookshop (Mid
dlesex University), Angie Mason and Stonewall, Anthea Lowe of
the Anti-discrimination Board of New South Wales, AUT (Associa
tion of University Teachers), GALOP (Gay London Policing
Group), Gays the Word, NAPO (National Association of Probation
Officers), NATFHE (National Association of Teachers in Further
and Higher Education), Rights of Women Lesbian Custody Group
and UNISON.
Underpinning the over-long completion of this project has been
the support of my friends and children. My gratitude is due to Aaron
Brown, Julian Lousada, Clare Parkinson, Jo Rosenthal, Casey Ryan,
Clare Widgery and Elaine Creith, who at the end gave invaluable
practical and intellectual support. HELEN COSIS BROWN
x