Andy
Merker has started his year as President
of the Social Care Association.
What does he hope to achieve?
A Solid
Apprenticeship
Andy
Merker is currently the Head of Operations for Long Term Care and
Aftercare services in the City of Birmingham Social Services Department,
a post he has held since last year. He is no newcomer to Birmingham,
though, having worked for the Department for 26 years in a variety
of capacities.
He started
his career in social care in 1973 as a nurse therapist in a regional
residential psychiatric clinic for young children. Subsequently he
worked for several years in a community home with education (CH(E))
which acted as a regional observation and assessment centre with a
short break to gain his C.Q.S.W. at Bangor University.
In 1980
he entered management as the House Warden of a long term unit of a
CH(E), and went on to manage a District Centre providing community-based
intervention and assessment, short-term residential respite and assessment
and the placement allocation function for the city. He also gained
experience of field social work as Team Manager of a long term children’s
team and a generic intake team before becoming responsible for the
City’s Aftercare Service in 1993.
Why Care?
Why did
Andy choose to work in social care? “I think really that I was
kidnapped and tricked into social care!!!” he says. “My
original aim was to progress into clinical or educational psychology.
The nurse therapist role was undertaken as part of my degree course
and I entered residential social work in a CH(E) as a temporary measure,
awaiting a teaching vacancy.
“I
was initially incredulous that people would pay me money to play football,
go swimming, go camping and lots of other enjoyable activities. Whilst
I was enjoying my second (paid) childhood, I also discovered that
working with people in a residential setting, particularly young people,
was an incredibly stimulating challenge and that the practical application
of the theories that had seemed so straightforward in college was
absolutely fascinating and absorbing. I found it particularly rewarding
to manage to help young people to overcome their problems, gain stability
and successfully return to live with their families or in the community.
“I
am proud to have worked for Birmingham Social Services and to have
witnessed the positive development of social care within the city.
Despite the financial constraints that the city has faced over the
years, I have never failed to be impressed by the wealth of resources
that exist within the people working in the Department.”
Residential
Care and After
Andy
has spent much of his career working with young people and is currently
responsible for six residential homes and a 30-strong team dedicated
to aftercare, providing support to vulnerable youngsters when they
leave council care, until they find their own feet.
He says:
"During my career, I have seen youngsters come into residential
care and then catch up with them years later during aftercare. One
of the best parts of the job is seeing them develop from young people
who make you put your head in your hands into mature adults, triumphing
against all the odds and difficulties.
“While
they are in our care, we have to do as much as we can to prepare them
for life outside. We can help them to develop skills and abilities
- not just practical skills, like cooking a meal, managing money or
changing a plug but looking at ways to build relationships and self-esteem.
“We
can find these youngsters accommodation, a place on a training course,
probably even a job, but unless they feel good about themselves or
relate well to other people, the chances of their being successful
are very slim.
"In
aftercare, you face all the frustrations of being a parent. You think
you know best, but these are young adults and they make their own
choices. Sometimes they fall, and can fall quite terrifyingly. We
are there to pick them up, dust them down, and provide continuous
support."
Roles
in the Department
Andy
is based in Selly Oak, but he spends roughly half of his time out
and about
across the city. His busy schedule can include everything from visiting
a residential home, attending a briefing on the Victoria Climbie case
to talking to a member of staff with the job of tracking down 19-year-olds
who were formerly in the Council's care.
He has
also worked on the reorganisation of long term and aftercare into
four teams so that the system mirrors the Primary Care Trusts that
look after the city's health services. He also takes his turn to be
on call to deal with difficult situations that may crop up. Andy says:
"Sometimes, it's just a case of reassuring a member of staff
that they are not alone in a difficult situation."
New legislation
that came into force in October 2001 means that councils like
Birmingham have a statutory duty to support the young people leaving
their care from the ages of 16 to, in some case, 24. Birmingham receives
around £11.5 million a year in guaranteed Government cash to
carry out that work and is part-way through a three-year programme
to develop aftercare. Since he took over, Andy’s team has grown
from 12 to the current 30. It is due to expand to 50.
Leaving
Care is Hard
Andy
says: "We try to help young people to build up the normal networks
that
other people have, encouraging them to tap into support from other
agencies like
Housing, the Connexions youth service or the health service.
It’s
tough leaving home and coping alone with the demands of everyday life.
Holding down a job, getting along with lots of new people or remembering
to
pay your bills are all tough when you're doing them for the first
time. Most of us are lucky enough to have family and friends to fall
back on when we hit difficulties, but for dozens of Birmingham teenagers
each year, it's a different story.
Around
200 16 to 18-year-olds leave Birmingham’s care homes to start
life on
their own each year. Although the public perception persists that
youngsters go into care because they are trouble-makers or criminals,
most children in Council homes are there because of traumatic family
breakdown or abuse. While their behaviour might be challenging, they
are also likely to be badly damaged and have complex needs, which
means that entering the adult world can be particularly difficult.
Fairness
and Injustice
Andy understands just how tough it can be for some of these teenagers
to make the transition. “I have a strong sense of social fairness,
and injustice or oppression often motivates me into action. Oppressive
behaviour by people or organisations can disable individuals and prevent
them from reaching their true potential and is very wasteful. It particularly
annoys me when this happens and the individuals are blamed for failing
to succeed, because many of them accept this blame.
“At work my belief in the positive potential of young people
strongly motivates me to challenge these processes in order to help
them achieve and successfully manage the power to which they are entitled,
particularly when they become adults.
Thinking of a Career in Social Care?
Andy says, “You are looking at an occupation with incredible
responsibility for promoting the care and welfare of others. The task
will be physically hard and emotionally draining at times. You will
need to develop “social work plus” skills and abilities
to deliver a service at all sorts of unsocial hours often in a “public”
manner.
“You
are considering an occupation that is often considered to be a second
class profession and which will frequently pay you less than you could
earn working behind the counter of the local supermarket. This is
no longer an occupation for streetwise grannies. Take up as much training
as you can in social care before and after you enter the work and
never believe that you know it all. Be prepared for the most rewarding
experiences you will ever have.”
Support through the SCA
Andy acknowledges the support he has had through his membership of
the SCA. “The Association has provided me with a network of
colleagues that give me much support on a personal and professional
basis. The generic nature of social care and, in turn, my membership
constantly exposes me to different ideas and approaches that can be
applied in the area where I work.
“I am proud of the achievements of the Association in the way
it has championed, influenced and furthered the development of quality
and professionalism in social care. My local and national involvement
has been rewarding as a way to be at the cutting edge of social care
developments and to assist the Association to continue in this role.
Being President is a major responsibility, an honour and a privilege,
and a way in which I can repay the Association for all that it has
given to me.”
Andy’s
Presidency runs alongside his duties for Birmingham. “As the
President of the Social Care Association, I welcome the opportunity
not only to act as an ambassador for the Association, but also for
my Department and the city.”
During
his year of office, Andy will be visiting association branches in
all parts of the British Isles as well as observing and sharing good
practice with them. His theme for the year is “Merging Services,
Emerging Solutions”, looking at changes in social care and inter-agency
working. Speaking at his inaugural ceremony recently, Andy said, “I
want to use my year in office to explore these issues, to stimulate
debate and to visit and meet with people involved in these areas of
change and to witness the gains and the pitfalls that are the result.
“Together
we can identify if there is really a difference as a result of these
changes, and make sure that we continue to embrace and adopt the best
ways of delivering quality care in the future.”
