Specialist, social activities

Social work and counselling professionals provide advice and guidance to individuals, families, groups, communities and organisations on social and personal problems. They help clients develop skills and gain access to resources and necessary support services to deal with problems such as unemployment, poverty, disability, addiction, criminal behaviour or family problems.

• interviewing clients individually, with their families or in groups to assess their actual situation and problems and determine the social services required;
• analysing the client's situation and proposing alternative approaches to resolving the problem;
• compiling records or reports for courts or other legal proceedings;
• providing counselling, therapeutic and mediation services and group sessions to help clients develop skills and acquire the knowledge needed to deal with their social or personal problems;
• planning and implementing client assistance programmes, including crisis intervention and referral to agencies offering financial and legal aid, housing, medical and other services;
• investigating cases of abuse or neglect and taking measures to protect children and other vulnerable persons;
• working with offenders during and after their sentences to help them reintegrate into society and change their behaviour and attitudes to prevent reoffending;
• advising governors of prisons and similar institutions to help them determine when and under what conditions an offender should be imprisoned, released or subjected to alternative correctional measures;
• acting as advocates for their client groups before the community and lobbying for solutions to their problems;
• developing prevention and intervention programmes to meet community needs;
• maintaining contact with other social service agencies, educational institutions and health care providers to provide clients with information and feedback on their overall condition and progress.
• Examples of occupations in this unit group:
• Inspector, probation
• Marriage counsellor
• Expert, health insurance
• Social worker for work with persons with disabilities
• Social worker
• Specialist, social activities
• Specialist in a social service