How do social workers navigate the unique challenges of serving rural and remote communities?

Facing the Challenges of Social Work in Australian Rural and Remote Communities explores the unique experiences of living and working in rural and remote areas of Australia. This book delves into the difficulties posed by long distances, limited services, and insufficient support for vulnerable people and families within government policies and services that are developed in urban contexts. Social workers in these areas face similar struggles in accessing services, compounded by recruitment and retention challenges, practice limitations, and ethical dilemmas as they navigate being both part of and outside the community. While set in the Australian context, the book is relevant for other rural and remote settings.

Despite these challenges, small communities often demonstrate collective resilience during crises, such as natural disasters. This resilience provides opportunities for social workers to strengthen and build community capacity through a deeper appreciation of place, identity, and strengths-based practice. This book draws on decades of the authors’ experiences and first-hand accounts of strength-focused practices that go beyond enhancing resilience to fostering flourishing communities.

Ideal for educators and students in social work programs, disability studies, social work practitioners, community development programs, and rural and remote education courses.

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Acknowledgements
• Abstract
• Table of Contents
• Acronyms
• 1 Rural Australia: Its places, spaces and people
  • 1 Welcome
  • 2 The ‘rural’ in an Australian context: Myths and realities
  • 3 A ‘tyranny’ of distance and demography
  • 4 Human service delivery
  • 5 Understanding rural and remote
  • 6 Gathering the evidence
  • 7 Book structure
  • Reflections from your experience
• 2 Rural and remote practice
  • 1 Introduction
  • 2 A brief history of rural services and rural social work
  • 3 Social work education
  • 4 What is rural social work?
    • 4.1 Generalist practice
    • 4.2 Community embedded practice
  • 5 Who are rural social workers?
    • 5.1 The rurally committed
    • 5.2 Leavers
    • 5.3 Sea-changers/tree-changers
    • 5.4 ‘Grow your own’
    • 5.5 Mid-term career movers
    • 5.6 New graduates
  • 6 Challenges, opportunities and being ‘on the ground’
    • 6.1 Dual relationships
    • 6.2 Working in statutory environments
  • 7 Technology and innovation
  • 8 Conclusions
  • Reflections from your experience
• 3 The ‘paradox’ of community
  • 1 Introduction
  • 2 Defining ‘community’
  • 3 Social policy and community construction
  • 4 Just who defines community?
  • 5 Community construction
  • 6 Churn in community practice
  • 7 Community as social planning
  • 8 Community as geography
  • 9 Does community development remain an option?
  • 10 Alliances as foundations for strengths-based practice
  • 11 Practice in times of disaster
  • 12 Conclusions
  • Reflections from your experience
• 4 The power of ‘place’: Place-identity as a strategy for strengths-based ecological practice
  • 1 Introduction
  • 2 Flourishing as a framework
  • 3 Praxis in place
  • 4 Narratives of place
  • 5 The politics of praxis in place
  • 6 Changes in praxis
  • 7 Community as landscape and built environment
  • 8 Conclusions
  • Reflections from your experience
• 5 Community-focused strengths-based practice
  • 1 Introduction
  • 2 Strengths and challenges
    • 2.1 All about you
    • 2.2 All about place
    • 2.3 The problem of churn
    • 2.4 Personal and professional isolation
    • 2.5 ‘Belonging’ to the community
    • 2.6 On stigma and stereotyping
  • 3 Strengths-based practice approaches in community work
  • 4 Looking to the future
    • 4.1 Place based policies and programs
    • 4.2 Environmental or green social work (GSW)
  • 5 Strategies for strengths-based community practice
    • 5.1 Professional development and practice supervision
    • 5.2 Communities of practice
  • 6 Conclusions
  • Reflections from your experience
• 6 Ready, set, go – your rural practice journey
  • 1 Introduction
    • 1.1 Getting ready
    • 1.2 Field placements
    • 1.3 Preparing to start your rural job
    • 1.4 Entering your community
    • 1.5 Building your networks
    • 1.6 Exiting
    • 1.7 Your practice framework
  • 2 Conclusions
  • 3 What of the future? …
  • 4 A final note
  • Reflection from your experience
• References
• Index

Lesley Chenoweth, Professor Emeritus at Griffith University, a social work educator, researcher and policy activist in fields of disability, community development and collective impact.

Daniela Stehlik, an expereinced social scientist, explores sustainability, social cohesion, and women's energy in driving community flourishing in Australia.