Mental Health Social Work in Context

There has been a re-energising of interest in social work in mental health services in recent years and mental health is now a core part of all qualifying social work students’ training.

Grounded in the social models of mental health particularly relevant to qualifying social workers, but also familiarising students with social aspects of medical perspectives, this core text helps to prepare students for practice and to develop their knowledge around:

• promoting the social inclusion of people with mental health problems
• the changing context of multidisciplinary mental health services
• an integrated evidence base for practice
• working with people with mental health problems across the life course.

Mental Health Social Work in Context is an essential textbook for all social work students taking undergraduate and postgraduate qualifying degrees in social work, and will also be invaluable for practitioners undertaking post-qualifying awards in mental health social work.

There has been a re-energising of interest in social work in mental health services in recent years and mental health is now a core part of all qualifying social work students’ training.

Grounded in the social models of mental health particularly relevant to qualifying social workers, but also familiarising students with social aspects of medical perspectives, this core text helps to prepare students for practice and to develop their knowledge around:

• promoting the social inclusion of people with mental health problems


• the changing context of multidisciplinary mental health services


• an integrated evidence base for practice


• working with people with mental health problems across the life course.

Mental Health Social Work in Context is an essential textbook for all social work students taking undergraduate and postgraduate qualifying degrees in social work, and will also be invaluable for practitioners undertaking post-qualifying awards in mental health social work.

Nick Gould is Professor of Social Work at the University of Bath, recognised internationally for his writing and research, and has held visiting appointments in Australia and Hong Kong. Since qualifying as a social worker over thirty years ago, he has combined an academic career with maintaining direct involvement in front-line practice, including serving for many years as a member of the Mental Health Review Tribunal. From 2003—6 he was the National Institute for Mental Health England’s Fellow in Social Care Research and Practice.