Effective Writing for Social Work

Lucy Rai is Associate Dean of Teaching and Learning in the faculty of Health and Social Care at The Open University. She is a qualified social worker and has worked in both children’s and adults services. Lucy has been teaching at The Open University since 2001 and her research has focused on student and professional writing in social work.

• Writing in Social Work; Taking control of your writing; Essays and reflective writing in social work; Developing your writing during your practice learning opportunities; Purposeful writing in professional practice; Effective case recording ~ Lucy Rai and Theresa Lillis with Amanda Harrison and Guillermo Garcia-Maza;Writing reports as a tool of professional assessment ~ Lucy Rai and Theresa Lillis with Guillermo Garcia-Maza and Amanda Harrison;Embedding writing as best practice;Conclusion

"Illuminates the challenges of writing effectively, while providing perspectives that social work educators, classroom-based and agency-based, can consider as they guide students in developing the writing competences that are essential to good practice." British Journal of Social Work "This is the first book I have read about social work writing that analyses its importance and its contextual nature, not only for social work students, but also for practitioners and supervisors. It deserves a wide audience." European Journal of Social Work "An excellent analysis of the writing skills needed by social work students and practitioners. Scholarly, yet highly accessible, it will enable educators and students to develop teaching and learning to enhance communication with a range of audiences." Hilary Burgess, University of Bristol "A really welcome tool in enabling social workers and their managers to understand and appreciate the importance of good case recording and how to actually achieve it." Paul Evans, Head of Workforce Development, Cambridgeshire County Council