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This course will provide students with an introductory understanding of the foundations of social work and human services practice with children, young people, and families. Focus of practice will include both statutory and non-government service organisations and examine relevant legal aspects of engaging in family interventions. Course learning activities will focus on developing student understanding of family structures, family processes and the concept of family as a social construct, with reference to global and systemic definitions of family.

Foundational practical skills in direct practice with children, parents and other care givers will be considered, including developing competencies in being able to support the family unit, as opposed to approaches that emphasise individual responsibility. Specific needs of vulnerable children and families will be considered particularly with respect to these families' engagement with various service systems including child protection, domestic and family violence services, health and mental health services, and juvenile justice systems.

This course provides students with knowledge and skills to practice competently with children, young people, and families as social workers and human service professionals. It introduces students to the breadth of government and non-government family support services in Australia and describes practice approaches for working with the family unit as aligned with legal frameworks, along with navigating the complexities faced by social work and human services professionals working in this context. An emphasis on using an intergenerational lens to unearth the transmission of disadvantage in family work, and trauma informed principles is used to educate students about engaging with children, young people, and families in the sector. Students will learn about family connected recovery and the model of collaborative family work, which draws on a range of theoretical perspectives, including strengths-based practice, child and family centred practice, and child protection issues relevant to social work and human services practice in the context.

This course will provide students with an essential area of competency, as outlined by the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW), in working with children, young people and families; including unearthing the use of family connected recovery as a way to achieve social justice and other mandates of the social work profession. This course will also require students to practice critical reflexivity, identifying how values and beliefs determine the identification of family issues and ethically informed social work intervention.

On completion of this course students should be able to:

1. Describe the scope of social work and human services practice with children, young people, and families.
2. Identify and demonstrate different child and family approaches, theories, and frameworks of social work and human services interventions for supporting children and families.
3. Demonstrate an understanding of trauma informed principles and the model of collaborative family work; and its application to social work with children, young people, and families.
4. Critically reflect on the complexities faced by social workers and human service professionals when working collaboratively with children, young people, and families.
5. Illustrate an ability to utilise critically reflexive practice when engaging in child and family work as social and human service professionals.