CHCCS411B Work Effectively in the Community Sector

#1: Working in the Community Sector & Values that Guide Working Practices

Lesson Outline

1. What is the Community Sector?

2. What do Community Service Workers do?

3. What values underpin Community Service Work?

4. Where do my personal values fit in?

The Community Sector

1. What is the Community Sector?Community, health, welfare, human services cover a wide range of functions:

• Objective of meeting human needs – individuals, groups, communities, even humanity as a whole

• Promote, Protect, Maintain, Enhance, Change

Youtube video: The Meaning of Human Services: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4XrBTBN2Ew

The Community Sector

Community Services can be:

• Private sector businesses... For profit organisations, social enterprises

• Public Sector... Direct government services, e.g. Dept of Families

• Non-Profit Organisations... Externally funded to deliver services, i.e. charities

The Community Sector

Health Education Welfare or social services

Child care Mental health Aged care Family services

Corrections Community Development Rehabilitation

Disability Services Legal services Youth work

Employment services Housing ... AND MORE!

Youtube video: This Could Be You: The Many Faces of Social Work http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77UGDj48oHs&feature=related

The Community Sector

Networking and Interagency Coordination (Joint Working)

• Partnership is the ultimate goal of a healthy functioning community sector... Not without challenges!

• E.g. Mental Health services working with Alcohol and Other Drugs services (AOD) with clients who have both mental health and AOD issues

• Joint working protocols, representation at forums, sharing resources, cross-sector conferences, swapping training/sharing skills, joint care plans, information sharing

The Community Sector

Reasons why you need to be aware of the roles of other organisations that work with your clients;

• A person you work with may require support from more than one sector

• You may be required to ask for advice from a worker in another sector to help improve the service you provide

• You need to be aware of additional services that are available to the person you are working with

The Community Sector

Networking and Interagency Coordination (Joint Working)

Some of the challenges:

• System Silos – history of working in isolation, change is hard

• Time limitations

• Differing service values

• Limited resources

• Difficult to coordinate between agencies

• Lack of awareness of what other services are out there

• Nature of the industry – low funds, high needs, high stress... It can be chaos!

(Note: Imagine trying to coordinate and joint work with a number of these challenges going on) Youtube video: Three Life Lessons for New Social Workers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b3RJbvOPtU&feature=relatedons

Community Service Workers

2: What are the varying roles a community worker can do?

(In Groups please write down your thoughts)

Personal Requirements

Question: What Skills, Abilities, Attitudes do you think are needed to become a great community services worker?

3. Values and Philosophy of the Community Sector:

Youtube video: Managing Values Across Cultures http://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=4DSV1NUGS3o

Values and Philosophy of the Community Sector

Overarching Principles

• Every human being regardless of ethnicity, age, gender, beliefs, and socio-economic status, has a right to maximise their potential providing it doesn’t infringe upon the rights of others

• Every society has an obligation to provide for and deal equitably with all it’s members and to make extra provision for those persons disadvantaged

Values and Philosophy of the Community Sector

Specific Principles to embrace as a worker;

• Holistic and Person-centred approach• Promoting wellbeing of staff, clients, communities• Early intervention• Appropriate services• Commitment to meeting the needs and upholding the rights of people• Belief in empowerment of Individual and community• Ethical behaviour – guided by professional codes of practice• Responsible and Accountable – Duty of Care

Values and Philosophy of the Community Sector

Your Values and Community Sector Values/Principles

To understand our values we can begin by looking at the beliefs that underpin them.

Our values are determined by our beliefs

Explore where these beliefs have come from...

Many of our earlier beliefs stem from our childhood and our family of origin. Often these beliefs are not questioned until they are challenged by life experiences. Have your values matured?

Values and Philosophy of the Community Sector

In examining your own values consider the statement below:

I have no right to try to impose my values on a client

However, I believe that there are times when it is appropriate for me to be open with a client about my values in order for me to be congruent.

If I have a clear understanding of my own values, I have an inner strength.

I will not need to be defensive in trying to justify my values; they are mine and they will stand in their own right without the need for justification (Geldard & Geldard, 2001, p352).

Youtube video: Vanessa Allen - Aboriginal Community Worker

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHMrVlUh2Mo

Values and Philosophy of the Community Sector

Being non-judgmental is not easy, especially in situations where a client’s values strongly conflict with our own.

Being emotional, disagreeing and arguing with a client are often warning signs of values conflict – a button has been pushed and we become emotionally respondent by the fear of threat to our value system.

We are all unique individuals and different from each other. Some values may be similar and some different.

What are your thoughts on values? Which personal values do you think will be difficult to challenge whilst working in the community sector and why?

References •An introduction to Person Centred Therapy, online video, accessed 27 May, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qpfm5sY0OX0&feature=relmfu• Assertiveness - Tips for being assertive & saying 'No‘, online video, accessed 28 May, 2012.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZynhvBShqU• Bogutz & Gordon - Legal Issues for Mental Health Care Treatment, online video, accessed 28 May, 2012.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmzOmdLpzyg&feature=related• Building Stronger Communities through Stronger Community Organisations, Our Community.com.au, Policy Bank,

West Melbourne, accessed 20 July, 2012, date site last updated not disclosed http://www.ourcommunity.com.au/boards/boards_article.jsp?articleId=1453

• Building Stronger Communities through Stronger Community Organisations, Our Community.com.au, Access & EquityPolicy, West Melbourne, accessed 13July, 2012, date site last updated not disclosed

• www.ourcommunity.com.au/files/boards/Access_&_Equity_Policy.doc• Chenoweth L & McAuliffe D 2011 The road to social work & human service practice, 3rd edn.,Cengage Learning

Australia. • Corey G, Corey MS & Callanan P 2011 Issues and ethics in the helping professions, 8th edn., Cengage Learning:

Brookes/Cole , United States.

References• David Batstone: Unethical Behavior at Work?, online video, accessed 28 May, 2012.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-nz0kojLv8&feature=related• Dept. of Communities, Child Services & Disability Services, 2012, Queensland Government, What is Child

Abuse?, accessed 22 July, 2012, http://www.communities.qld.gov.au/childsafety/protecting-children/what-is-child-abuse

• Geldard D & Geldard K 2011 Basic personal counselling : a training manual for counsellors, 7th edn., Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.Pearson,Sydney.

• Kenny S 2011 Developing communities for the future, 4th edn., Cengage Learning Australia.• Lauren Mackler at Harvard Business School - Managing Conflict, online video, accessed 28 May, 2012.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZOVWzKzpNg&feature=related• Maidment J & Egan R (eds) 2009 Practice skills in social work & welfare, 2nd edn., Allen & Unwin, Australia. • Managing Values Across Cultures, online vuideo, accessed 29 May, 2012.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DSV1NUGS3o• McDonald C, Craik C, Hawkins L & Williams J 2011 Professional practice in human services organisations,

Allen & Unwin, Australia. • Nick Manning , 2005, YAPA (Youth Action & Policy Association), Surry hills NSW, accessed 23 July 2012

NSWhttp://www.yapa.org.au/youthwork/facts/dutyofcare.php• Reflective Practice - feedback from peers and learners, online video, accessed 29 May, 2012.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmgJJrxOtaA

References

• The Meaning of Human Services, online video, accessed 30 May, 2012 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4XrBTBN2Ew

• This Could Be You: The Many Faces of Social Work, online video, accessed May 30, 2012.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77UGDj48oHs&feature=related • The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Welcome to the UN, it’s your world, 2012, New

York, accessed 28 May, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77UGDj48oHs&feature=related

• Three Life Lessons for New Social Workers, online video, accessed May 31, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b3RJbvOPtU&feature=relatedons

• Vanessa Allen - Aboriginal Community Worker, online video, accessed 29 May,2012 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHMrVlUh2Mo

• Wales this Week - Social Services Care Proceedings , online video, accessed 31 May, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OOrhvWwwrw&feature=related