University of Northampton to celebrate World Social Work Day with special conference

The University of Northampton is pleased to host an international event to celebrate World Social Work Day 2017, along with key partners from Northamptonshire County Council and the Social Work Academy.

Held on 21 March, World Social Work Day is led by the International Federation of Social Workers, and the theme for year’s day is ‘Promoting Community and Environmental Sustainability’ – which relates to the third pillar of the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development. The day is celebrated globally, and people around the world will be sharing thoughts and views on social media using the #WorldSocialWorkDay and #WSWD hashtags.

At the Northampton conference – to be held at King’s Park Conference Centre -social workers, social work leaders, health professionals, staff and students will come together for a full-programme, featuring keynote speakers and networking opportunities. The chance to network with key players in the social work industry is of significant benefit to the University’s undergraduate and postgraduate students, as they hone their employability skills before embarking on future careers.

Dr Sukhwinder Singh, Senior Lecturer in Social Work, is one of the event organisers. He explained: “The University of Northampton is proud to support this world wide day of celebration. We offer an international programme in social work at both degree and Masters level, which equips our students with the knowledge, skills and values needed to work anywhere around the globe.”

“As a profession – and indeed as a University – we are committed to supporting the most vulnerable in society, and for the conference we have lined up some brilliant keynote speakers who will share their thoughts on key social issues,” Sukhwinder added.

Keynote speakers at the conference include:

Professor Jane Callaghan, Professor in Psychology from the University of Northampton, who will be sharing her research on the impact domestic violence has on children

Amanda Taylor, Senior Lecturer in Social Work from the University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN), who will be discussing digital social work and how we can apply modern technology to our work with children.

There will also be input from service users who access the Children’s Rights Service, unaccompanied asylum seeking children (UASC) and Adult services, and lots more.

Places are available to professionals working in the Children and Families, and Adult Directorates, and to students currently studying the BA and MA in Social Work at the University of Northampton. For any queries, please contact Sukhwinder Singh or Bernadette Curran.