Creative practice in rural social work

Working in a remote or rural area can mean that, in contrast to urban areas, newly-qualified social workers (NQSWs) don’t have the third sector organisations, specialist services or community supports available from other organisations. You may need to undertake a broader range of intervention work yourself. This requires creativity and the ability to collate resources you can use with different people.  

Developing your social worker ‘toolbox’

Over time, you will develop your own social worker’s ‘toolbox’: here are some links to get you started.  

Social worker Toolbox. Free tools and resources for use with children and adults.   

Rediscovering and mainstreaming community social work in Scotland (Turbett 2020). In this IRISS insight publication, Colin Turbett explores the role of community social work, the strengths of its approach and it’s application in social work practice. 

Case studies

[coming soon: links to documents or media files]

Travel in remote and rural areas 

Travelling in a remote or rural area can require careful planning, especially if you have recently moved there.

We asked some social work practitioners who work in rural areas for their strategies: 

• Ask service users for a mobile number and any visible landmarks if you are travelling to their home in the dark. 
• Think about where you will park when visiting remote areas as people may recognise your car.  
• Don’t park where you can easily be blocked in, make sure you can leave the property and any access to it when you want to. 
• If you need to ask for directions, think about how to do this while protecting confidentiality. 
• Plan your visits carefully to make the best use of time and allow realistic times for travel.  
• If you aren’t comfortable driving in certain conditions don’t take chances. It’s not just snow and ice you need to consider but high winds, causeways and single track roads. If you are living on or visiting an island, will you be able to get home? 
• If you are not sure about a journey, discuss it with another social worker or your manager and check if there is a team risk assessment. (If not, can you develop your own one?). 
• Plan your journey to visit friends and family in advance so you can do this in an emergency if needed.  

Helpful resources

[links on their way]