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Book Reviews

Fiona Mitchell

Child and Family Social Work 2005, 10, pp 87–93

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2005 Blackwell Publishing Ltd

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The powerful foreword shows how those who have chosen to undertake socially useful work now find themselves conscripted into being agents of immigra- tion control. It refers to NASS as an agency dealing with the withholding of welfare, starving out migrants, immigrants and refugees. The foreword urges that the most principled and effective action would be for agencies to break all links with NASS, hence ‘pulling the plug’ on the whole immigration control system.

Chapter 1 looks at the current arrangements for asylum-seekers and places these arrangements within their historical context. Asylum-seekers have now become separated from mainstream services. This chapter is very informative and concise on the histor- ical overview, the relevant legislation and the develop- ment of NASS. It discusses how the DSS, doctors and social care workers are all now part of the infrastruc- ture of enforcement, gate-keeping access to services and monitoring the status and movement of asylum- seekers and those subject to immigration control. This chapter is exciting and timely in its call for ‘strategies for resistance’ (p. 11), urging that it is imperative for social work and social care professions to speak out and take action.

Chapter 2 gives a short history of social work and discusses how social work has developed with budgets now outweighing ideals. The activities of social work- ers are increasingly monitored by the General Social Care Council (GSCC), which is accountable to the Secretary of State; this leads on to the very interesting point that GSCC inspectors decide the course con- tent of the new Social Work degree. Worryingly, the content places more importance on managing, gate- keeping and controlling resources and behaviour than on understanding social problems and their origins.

Chapter 3 focuses on how needs are not being met, with social workers being often ill-informed of immi- gration law and untrained for specific areas of work. There is often ignorance about rights, duties and responsibilities. Chapter 4 develops the theme of ‘deserving’ and ‘undeserving’ clients. This chapter paints a very realistic picture of the work of an asylum team within social services: isolation from other ser- vices within the authority and the work being more quantitative than qualitative. It also highlights the need for improved interagency partnerships. There is a real need for valuing and sharing the specialist knowledge and experience of the refugee agencies and refugee community organizations.

Further chapters look at the issues arising from the specific needs of unaccompanied minors, disabled

asylum-seekers and refugees, and asylum-seekers as offenders and victims within the Criminal Justice Sys- tem. Two further chapters extend the subject area much wider: one compares the reception and care for young separated refugees in Finland and the UK; the other looks at the service received by asylum-seeker and migrant children in Ireland. These two chapters provide reflection on good practice but stretch the realms of this book.

The clear overall message of this book is that social care ‘practice needs to go beyond the simple recogni- tion of oppressive circumstances, for practice implies action’ (p. 145). ‘The creeping influence of the wider political agenda’ (p. 218) is damaging the ethos and morale of the social work profession. It raises the question as to how far collaboration will go for the social work profession and refugee agencies.

This timely book encompasses so many issues and theories in just one publication and I certainly recog- nize the dilemmas and experiences discussed. It will definitely be on the reading list for our students. Buy the book!

Helen Carr

Lecturer in Social Care University of Kent at Canterbury

Sibling Relationships: Theory and Issues for Practice

Robert Sanders

Palgrave Macmillan, Hampshire, 2004, 270 pp. £17.99 (US

$26.95). ISBN 0 333 96411 X

This is a carefully crafted and thoroughly researched book that impresses because it manages to articulate theory and its application in a way that is easily acces- sible to the reader. It is thought provoking and it requires the investment of some time and care, in appreciating the detail, to benefit fully from the wealth of information it captures. One of its strengths exists in the links it makes for the reader, through the ref- erences cited, to a breadth of research in the area. Another of its strengths is in the clarity that is pro- vided by the structure chosen for this book. The book achieves what it states it intends to do.

One of the important contentions of the book is the argument that sibling relationships are important for mediating the effect of adverse social circumstances. The author systematically builds a strong foundation to inform this position. The book engages the reader on a journey tracing the acquisition of knowledge about siblings. It travels from the binary representa-

Book Reviews

Fiona Mitchell

Child and Family Social Work 2005, 10, pp 87–93

©

2005 Blackwell Publishing Ltd

91

tion of siblings in myth and folklore through an over- view of the key principles of a psychoanalytic and family systems understanding of sibling relationships, and the development of what the author describes as simplistic typologies based on birth order and gender, to our current more sophisticated empirically based understanding of the complexities and of the quality of sibling relationships in various contexts.

The author explains the development of knowledge about siblings in a variety of contexts to illustrate the subtle complexities of sibling relationships. He draws on research and discusses practice issues in areas that include disability, separation and divorce, grief and loss, looked after children, child abuse and neglect, and mental health. In doing so he provides appeal for a wide readership. The case studies presented and the questions posed are thought provoking and will be useful for training and teaching purposes.

The book introduces early notions of the impor- tance of working in culturally sensitive ways and of taking care in cross-cultural contexts about making assumptions informed by one’s own class and cultural bias. These points are clearly and appropriately made but perhaps could have been further developed. The book itself makes reference to UK legislation, statu- tory authorities and assessment guidance but this does not detract from its relevance to an international audience and will no doubt add to its local appeal.

The author makes the point that there is a need to let go of some of the earlier more simplistic ways of understanding sibling relationships in order to make best use of new ways of understanding. He counsels about the folly of not accommodating new conceptual tools to understand the complexity and sophistication of sibling relationships and their usefulness as a point of intervention. He contends that while research has grown over the last decade there is little evidence that this knowledge has been put into practice. This book provides clear encouragement to do so.

The book offers something for a variety of readers. While it was perhaps written mostly for professionals working with children and academic teaching pur- poses its appeal may well be broader. It offers well- researched, clearly explained information for parents and siblings as well as social science scholars, researchers, welfare workers, and professionals work- ing with families and children. It is a book that anyone assuming the responsibility of work with families will want to read and will find useful.

Whether the reader is just beginning to think about sibling relationship issues or has been working with families for years, this book addresses material that

serves to extend and challenge thinking. The theoret- ical basics, for example attachment theory and scape- goating, are explained and then developed further. The author explains concepts and underpinning knowledge and does not assume the reader shares the same foundational knowledge upon which he draws. This ensures new information is based on well-estab- lished and common understanding and is affirming for more experienced workers.

The book underlines the importance of sibling rela- tionships and the extent to which they have been overlooked in work with families. It encourages con- sideration of how workers might best tap this ‘hidden’ resource in the interests of strengthening families. The appendices provide practical and usable tools to assist in working with siblings.

Overall, this book provides a solid evidence base to inform understanding of and work with siblings and their families that has the potential to make a positive difference across various practice contexts.

Julie Clark

University of Queensland

Child Welfare: Connecting Research, Policy, and Practice

Kathleen Kufeldt and Brad McKenzie (eds)

Wilfrid Laurier University Press, Ontario, 2003, 496 pp.

$39.95. ISBN 0 88920 392 X

This book contains a collection of papers from the National Child Welfare Research, Policy and Practice Symposium held in October 2000 in Canada. Follow- ing an informative overview of ‘Child welfare research and development’ in Canada, the chapters are orga- nized under four themes: the incidence and charac- teristics of child maltreatment (part 1); the continuum of care (part 2); policy and practice (part 3); and future directions (part 4).

The first four chapters contained within part 1 are all based on the analysis of data generated by the Canadian Incidence Study (CIS), the first national study to document the incidence of child abuse and neglect in Canada. Overall these provide a wealth of empirical data on the incidence and types of abuse in families and out-of-home placement, the psychologi- cal maltreatment of children and the profile of child protection workers. The fifth chapter provides a more reflective account of the main themes and their impli- cations for child welfare practice.

Part 2 contains a hefty 17 chapters tightly organized around three main areas. First, ‘Prevention and