ABSTRACT
This chapter sketches out some key considerations that are essential for guiding policy and practice initiatives for social work intervention with black families. In the aftermath of abuse black mothers' caregiving and parenting is subjected to an intense scrutiny. Arguably, the shame, despair and humiliation mothers suffer play a powerful role in influencing how they negotiate the contradictory demands to meet their children's needs. Practitioners have to strike a difficult balance between the protection of black children and the rights and responsibilities of their parents. The main challenge for practitioners is to be able to weigh up the risks for children, whilst at the same time work in an enabling an empowering way with their primary carers. Of importance is the need to identify and work from a strengths' perspective with black mothers, whilst simultaneously working with fathers, father-figures or other significant others involved in children's lives.
