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What we hear when we listen: Reflections on lived experience, practice and good social work communication
Listening from more than one place When I became involved in the Comparative Judgement project, which focussed on understanding what good social work communication sounds like in practice, I was not listening to the recordings from a single position. I listened as a parent with lived experience of children’s services, as a parent advocate who… Read More
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Which young people deserve extra help and what should that look like?
The word ‘deserving’ has a long, and often sorry, history in the UK’s social work and social security systems. Those who had fallen into hard times were seen as either the ‘deserving poor’ or the ‘undeserving poor’, according to how much they were seen as having caused their own misfortune or not. International research over the last few decades has shown that most of us still carry many of… Read More
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Five things child and family social workers need to know about Motivational Interviewing
1. What is Motivational Interviewing? It is common to think of Motivational Interviewing (MI) as a set of communication skills including open questions, affirmations, reflections and summaries (OARS). These skills matter a great deal, but they are not really what MI is about. Miller and Rollnick, the founders of MI, argue that its spirit –… Read More
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Talking and Listening to Children: how do social workers do it?
Social workers communicate with babies, children and young people as a routine part of their work, but the details of how they do this is often hidden from view. It is hidden because it takes place in home visits or other venues where the social worker often spends time one-to-one with the child. It is… Read More
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“Hello, my name is…”: ten years on, what can Dr Kate Granger’s legacy tell us about good communication in social work?
Yesterday marked ten years since the death of Dr Kate Granger. If the name isn’t familiar, her NHS campaign likely is. Kate was a young doctor being treated for terminal cancer. Lying in a hospital bed in 2013, seriously ill with post-operative sepsis, she noticed something that troubled her: many of the people caring for… Read More
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Our parents’ group (PRAG) experiences of presenting at an academic conference
What happened? On 15th April 2026, we travelled to Aberdeen to attend and present at the European Conference for Social Work Research. We presented to social work academics the following day about the work of our group, linking to our paper: Critical reflections on public involvement in research: Involving involuntary recipients of social services to improve research quality | The British Journal of Social Work… Read More
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#GoodCommunicationMatters: Why Communication Matters in Children’s Social Care
What makes the biggest difference to children and families? While new approaches and innovative ways of working are important, the quality of everyday conversations between practitioners, children and families remains at the heart of effective children’s social care. As part of CASCADE’s Summer 2026 focus on Developing Excellent Practice, we’re launching #GoodCommunicationMatters, a season of… Read More
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You Can Do Difficult Things: Lessons from My Placement at CASCADE
Eight months after joining CASCADE as a placement student, psychology undergraduate Kalila reflects on the lessons she’s learned about research, confidence, collaboration and stepping outside her comfort zone. Approaching the Spark building on my first day at CASCADE, the air felt turbulent, the damp taste of rain wetting my lips as cool sunshine broke through… Read More
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New co-produced film explores responses to child criminal exploitation in Wales
A new film co-produced with young people with lived experience and professionals has been launched by Action for Children and researchers at CASCADE, Cardiff University, to encourage discussion about how children affected by criminal exploitation are identified, supported and safeguarded across Wales. Our Paths, Our Voices accompanies a major study commissioned by Action for Children… Read More
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From Wales to Italy: Learning, Sharing and Strengthening Young People’s Voices
In May, CASCADE staff Louise Roberts and Rachael Vaughan visited Italy for a knowledge exchange visit hosted by SOS Children’s Villages Italy, our team had the opportunity to share approaches to care-experienced young people’s participation in policy, practice and service development. The visit involved a series of meetings across Bologna, Florence and Rome with key… Read More
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Children’s Social Care Research and Development Centre