Children’s social services set to embrace social media

Children’s social services set to embrace social media

Recent reports have suggested that modern technology is set to transform social care, with some commentators asserting that social media, such as Twitter and Facebook, could have many uses in the sector.

An increasing number of local councillors have recently begun writing blogs and using Twitter, while some local authorities already use text messaging to remind young people of upcoming appointments.

Social media offers an easy way to communicate and is widely accessible from almost anywhere. Recent statistics reveal that more people have access to a mobile phone than a computer, and commentators note that many young service users are more than comfortable using social media tools on their phones.

The Safeguarding 2.0 Project is now working to develop new ways for child protection practitioners to communicate using Facebook-style technology. Such tools would enable information to be distributed quickly across children’s services and could even, it has been suggested, act as an early warning system to enable earlier intervention.

Any development in the social media field would, however, be subject to comprehensive security and confidentiality requirements before it could go live. The Institute for Research and Innovation in Social Services has already compiled a sample policy for the use of social media in social services. General consensus is, however, that good practice in social networking is no different from that in any other form of communication.

Perry Leeks, Managing Director at First Response Training, says: "It is no surprise that children’s social services are looking at ways in which they can adopt this technology, which is so phenomenally popular among young people. It is a way in which support from and regular communication with a social worker can be seamlessly built into their lives. It can also be used for workers in the sector to communicate with each other and share information quickly and easily.



"Such is the power of social media that people from all walks of life and organisations from all sectors are looking at how it could be used to benefit them. First Response Training has a Facebook page, which anyone can join, and people can also follow us on Twitter. This is a great way for us to communicate with our clients, promote our message of health and safety at work and keep people updated about our latest products, special offers and events."

Follow the Facebook and Twitter icons on First Response Training’s website to join their Facebook page or follow them on Twitter.