Poverty, exclusion and child protection practice: the contribution of ‘the politics of recognition&respect’

ABSTRACT

The affective dimensions of poverty, including the impact of wider policy discourses and services that ‘other’ and shame people in poverty, are increasingly recognized. In response, Lister [(2013). Power, not Pity: Poverty and Human Rights. Ethics and Social Welfare, 7(2), 109–123] advocates for ‘a politics of recognition&respect’ that centralizes the voices, participation and lived experiences of those who live in poverty. This paper considers how applying Lister’s theory could improve child protection (CP) social work in England, from a human rights and social justice perspective. The paper draws on findings from an ATD Fourth World participatory research project aimed at updating the course content for a pre-existing social worker training module on poverty awareness. The project brings together families with experience of poverty and CP interventions, social work practitioners and academics.

RÉSUMÉ

Les répercussions de la pauvreté sont des plus en plus reconnues. Elles incluent l’impact des discours de la politique des services publiques et les conséquences créées par des services sociaux qui dénoncent comme « autre » et font honte à ceux qui vivent dans la pauvreté. En réponse à ces discours, (Lister, R. (2013). Power, not Pity: Poverty and Human Rights. Ethics and Social Welfare, 7(2), 109–123.) recommande une ‘politique de la reconnaissance et du respect’ qui réunit les voix, la participation et le vécu personnel de ceux qui vivent dans la pauvreté. Cet article considère comment l'application de la théorie de Lister pourrait améliorer l’assistance sociale et plus particulièrement la protection de l'enfant en Angleterre dans le cadre des droits de l'homme et de la justice sociale. Cet article rassemble les résultats d'un projet de recherche participatif mené par ATD Fourth World dont le but était de mettre à jour un cours d’apprentissage ciblant les assistants sociaux pour les sensibiliser aux conséquences de la pauvreté. Ce projet rassemble des professionnels de l’assistance sociale, des universitaires et des familles qui vivent dans la pauvreté et avec une expérience personnelle d’une intervention par des services sociaux.

KEYWORDS:

• Poverty
• child protection
• participation
• recognition
• shame

MOTS CLÉS:

• Pauvreté
• protection de l’enfant
• participation
• reconnaissance
• honte

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Dr Anna Gupta is a Senior Lecturer in Social Work at Royal Holloway, London University. Anna's research interests includes decision-making in the family courts, child protection and families in poverty, social work with Black and other minority ethnic communities and the application of the Capability Approach to social work practice.

Hannah Blumhardt is an independent researcher based in New Zealand with an academic and professional background in history, international relations and law. In 2014, she worked as part of the Policy, Participation and Training team at ATD Fourth World UK.

ATD Fourth World UK is a human rights-based, anti-poverty organization that tackles inequality and promotes social justice. Working in direct partnership with families and individuals experiencing poverty, the Family Support Programme recognizes and builds upon the strengths of families and works alongside them in overcoming the challenges they face. The Policy, Participation and Training Programme provides a platform for people to have their say on decisions that affect their lives and, by bringing together people experiencing poverty with professionals, academics and policy-makers, strives to raise awareness of poverty, counter prejudice and improve policy and practice.

Notes

1 The Commission was set up by the UK Coalition against Poverty to examine why people experiencing poverty do not influence decision-making and policy. Half of the commissioners were from ‘public life’. The other half had direct experience of poverty.