Social Care
Social care is a profession where people work in partnership with those who experience marginalisation or disadvantage or who have special needs. Social care worker may work with:
What personal qualities do you need to be a social care worker?
A social care worker must have a broad knowledge base in their field; the ability to work both independently and as part of a team; research skills; and a problem-solving approach.
In addition, certain personal attributes tend to characterise practitioners, such as reliability and trustworthiness; empathy, compassion; and maturity. Social care practitioners must be open-minded and be prepared to examine and perhaps even change their own attitudes towards others.
Social care work can be very challenging – emotionally and physically - and can mean working in some very difficult environments – but it can also be uniquely rewarding.
- Children and adolescents in residential care;
- People with learning or physical disabilities;
- People who are homeless;
- People with alcohol/drug dependency;
- Families in the community;
- Older people;
- Recent immigrants to Ireland.
What personal qualities do you need to be a social care worker?
A social care worker must have a broad knowledge base in their field; the ability to work both independently and as part of a team; research skills; and a problem-solving approach.
In addition, certain personal attributes tend to characterise practitioners, such as reliability and trustworthiness; empathy, compassion; and maturity. Social care practitioners must be open-minded and be prepared to examine and perhaps even change their own attitudes towards others.
Social care work can be very challenging – emotionally and physically - and can mean working in some very difficult environments – but it can also be uniquely rewarding.
Helpful websites within Social Care
- Activelink - comprehensive collection of links to Irish non-profit organisations. Also carries non-profit sector news items
- ARK - archive of social and political information about Northern Ireland. A joint initiative of the University of Ulster and Queens University Belfast.
- British and Irish Legal Information Institute - provides comprehensive access to British and Irish public legal information, including statutes, court decisions &c
- Care and Health - comprehensive and useful UK-based site for social workers and allied professions
- CINNI - a useful directory of community-based groups in Northern Ireland
- CYCnet - US-based international child and youth care network, with online journal and discussion group, links, information &c
- Electronic Library for Social Care - developed by the UK Social Care Institute of Excellence
- European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research - a UN-affiliated intergovernmental organisation concerned with all aspects of social welfare policy and research
- Glossary of public and voluntary sector terms - from the British Guardian newspaper. Many of the terms are also used in Ireland, from ASBOs to whistleblowing
- IGC - Institute for Global Communications. Vast international online resource of information on social issues, activists and organisations, founded in 1987
- Interagency publications and resources database - searchable database of the publications of the Combat Poverty Agency, Comhairle and ADM. Covers wide range of topics from advocacy to youth
- Public Communications Centre - non-profit media organisation that works with Irish not-for-profit groups
- Online dictionary of the social sciences - with 1000 entries from Aboriginal Peoples to Xenophobia. From Canada's Athabasca University
- Regard - searchable database of social science research in the UK
- reSearchWeb global links [Scotland] - searchable database of links to Scottish and other English language websites useful for social work and social care
- Social Policy Virtual Library - 'links to sites of major organisations, libraries, research institutes, publications and journals as well as access to on-line databases and data sources, other information gateways, social policy mailing lists and discussion groups'.
- Social Science Information Gateway (SOSIG) - social welfare links. Comprehensive international resource
- social studies site at IT Sligo - resources for those studying applied social studies
- social studies sites - at HEANet: a smallish collection of useful sites, especially in sociology
- Sociology and social studies - set of links at TCD library
- Sociosite - excellent links on poverty, inequality, class and related issues
- Trinity College, Dublin - set of social studies links
- Waterford IT library - expanding set of links for social care students
- WWW resources for social workers - at New York University