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Problematising ‘Fused Principles’ in Discourses of Preventative Social Care: Interpreting the Implementation of National Social Services Legislation in Wales, UK
The British Journal of Social Work, Volume: 53, Issue: 4, Pages: 2331 - 2351
Swansea University Authors: Simon Read, Fiona Verity
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# The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The British Association of Social Workers. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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DOI (Published version): 10.1093/bjsw/bcad125
Abstract
Prevention is a core principle in social care legislation across the UK. However, history shows great variability in how a preventative social care agenda is conceptualised and implemented. We report findings from an independent evaluation of the implementation of the ‘2014 Social Services and Well-...
| Published in: | The British Journal of Social Work |
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| ISSN: | 0045-3102 1468-263X |
| Published: |
Oxford
Oxford University Press (OUP)
2023
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| Online Access: |
Check full text
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa63225 |
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| Abstract: |
Prevention is a core principle in social care legislation across the UK. However, history shows great variability in how a preventative social care agenda is conceptualised and implemented. We report findings from an independent evaluation of the implementation of the ‘2014 Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act’ incorporating a document analysis of reports and plans from Wales’ twenty-two local authorities (LAs) and eighty-eight qualitative interviews from social services strategic leaders and operational managers within four Welsh LAs. Analysis highlighted multiple interpretations of national policy, with notable overlapping agendas. In Gramscian terms, there is a constant process of negotiating prevention values and agendas, with consequences for whose interests are served. This was apparent through drives towards cost-saving, financial sustainability and reduced service demand operating alongside values-based principles rooted in well-being and mutualism. Following Kenny’s work in community development, we argue a ‘fusing’ of principles whilst espousing benefits for service users, potentially blurs the aims of the legislation, with implications for practice. |
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| Keywords: |
Care economics; financial austerity; fused discourses; prevention; social care; social policy |
| College: |
Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences |
| Funders: |
Welsh Government |
| Issue: |
4 |
| Start Page: |
2331 |
| End Page: |
2351 |