Rural social work

Richard Pugh is Professor of Social Work at Keele University, UK, and has written on a range of rural issues including rural racism, professional and personal boundaries, and the theoretical development of rural social work.Brian Cheers is Adjunct Professor at the Centre for Rural Health and Community Development at the University of South Australia and Adjunct Professor in the Arts and Social Sciences Department at James Cook University, Queensland, Australia.

• Introduction; Contexts of practice; The social dynamics of small communities; Indigenous peoples: dispossession, colonisation and discrimination; The experience of other minorities; Problems and possibilities in rural practice; Models for practice 1: personal social services; Models for practice 2: community social work; Workforce issues; Conclusion.

"This book is timely for two reasons: first our greater understanding of the benefits of learning across social work contexts - the UK, Australia and North America. Second, the greater interest in local assessment of need, community profiles, decentralisation and place-shaping. Rural social work practice is rising up the education, training and research agenda; this text provides its champions and novices with stimulating and evidence-based ideas and information." Jill Manthorpe, Professor of Social Work, King's College London.