S.W.E.E.T. Engaging service users in social work training

How can service users be engaged in social profit training? Useful tips, benefits and obstacles, inspiring exercises and videos.

Field of interest: People and Society; Education

Duration: 9/01/2020 - 31/08/2023

Financing: Erasmus+

Service users are crucial in social work training. After all, the goal of social work is to support people to improve their well-being and help them solve problems. By integrating the experiences of service users into the curriculum, students can learn how to work effectively with and for these target groups.

Advantages

Involving service users in social work training has a number of advantages:

First, it ensures that students develop a greater understanding of service users' experiences and needs. This can reduce prejudice and increase inclusion of people from diverse backgrounds.
Involving service users provides an opportunity to use their knowledge and experience in curriculum development. By listening to their perspectives and needs, social work courses can better connect with practice and students can learn how to work effectively with different stakeholders.
Finally, involving service users in social work training can help develop competences essential for work in practice. By working with real clients, students can develop their communication and relationship skills and learn how to deal with complex and challenging situations.
For service users, it provides an opportunity to develop their own competences, increase self-confidence and improve their social standing. Service users, in turn, get a more realistic view of students' lives and of the social work profession.

Online toolbox

This transnational project aims to develop and share innovative practices. The first step was to map pedagogical actions in the respective institutions (France, Sweden, Italy and Belgium). The data collected from teachers, students, social work organisations and service users provide an overview of the benefits and barriers for students and service and education users. The various actions during the S.W.E.E.T. project, S.W.E.E.T. stands for social work education expert-by-experience toolkit, resulted in an online toolbox that can inspire and support teachers in their teaching of social work.

Get inspired by our online toolbox

On our website, you will find useful tips, benefits and obstacles, inspiring exercises and videos on the use of service users in social work training.