ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the contribution of race relations models to the development of social work policy and practice. It explores the central tenet of universality within welfare provision, and asks whether minority ethnic groups can benefit from social work. The chapter focuses on minority families and children to illustrate state and regional responses. It argues that in the absence of a coherent approach, social work policy and practice is underdeveloped in the area of race, ethnicity and need. Within the personal social services, the anti-racism model dominated social work thinking at the policy and practice level, and enjoyed the full support of social work professional bodies such as the British Association of Social Workers, and the Central Council for the Education and Training of Social Workers (CCETSW). The chapter concludes that developments in child care policy, social work practice, by and large, remains patchy and piecemeal.
