ABSTRACT
The language of values is fundamental to social work's definition of itself. However, the clarity of professional value statements and the relationship between values and practice is problematic. The law spells out the powers and duties that social work has in a range of situations. Whatever the significance of shifts in language, respect for persons and self-determination remain central to social work practice. The complexity of the social work task relates in part to how the professional social worker negotiates the tension between social work values and the decision-making dilemmas that are integral to social work. A pre-birth child protection case conference was then convened and the decision was taken to place the unborn child's name on the child protection register. The local authority also decided to apply for an emergency protection order on the birth of the child rather than an interim care order as the latter would require the parents being given notice of the proceedings.
