Social Work and Disability

Peter Simcock is Senior Lecturer in Social Work at Staffordshire University Rhoda Castle was formerly Senior Lecturer in Social Work and Applied Social Studies at Staffordshire University

• IntroductionPART I Perspectives: Understanding Disability1 Lived Experience of Impairment, Disability and Social Work2 Theories and Models of Disability3 Disability from a Life Course Perspective4 The Legal and Policy PerspectivePART II Diversity, Inequality and Disability5 Inequality, Oppression and Disability6 Disability and DiversityPART III Disability and Social Work Practice7 Communication and Engagement8 Working with Disabled Children9 Working with Disabled Adults10 Safeguarding, Social Work and Disability11 Collaborative PracticeConclusionBibliography

�Simcock and Castle offer a critical but balanced account of the role, function and context of social work with disabled people. The book is clear in asserting that social workers have an important and often positive role in the lives of disabled people. Countering some earlier texts which tended to be anti-social work and anti-professional, the authors make plain the barriers to enabling social work and the way the policy environment makes life challenging for disabled people and social workers. Optimistic in tone and practical in orientation, I would recommend it for practice and policy audiences alike.�Alan Roulstone, University of Leeds�This book is a very welcome addition to the limited literature on social work practice with disabled people. Its strength lies in linking a social model discourse with contemporary challenges for social work practice in this area. As such it �bridges the gap� between theoretical concepts and practice realities. It will serve as an excellent resource for discussion and debate with social work students.�David Mercer, Leeds Beckett University