This research aimed to consider the impact of introducing the systemic approach to child protection practice through the forum of group reflective supervision. A single case discussion was observed, recorded and transcribed and the data interpreted using thematic analysis (Braun and Clark, 2006). The social workers observed were trained in the systemic approach to foundation level. The data generated showed social workers using hypotheses to put forward ideas about a family shaped by systemic principles. However the inclusion of a pathologising discourse about a mother being blind to the sexual abuse of her daughter and an absence of self‐reflexivity suggested social workers were limited by linear thinking. The paper uses this data to suggest a tension between systemic practice and the child protection paradigm. The findings illustrate the challenge of occupying a systemic posture (the being) and the application of systemic concepts and techniques (the doing) in child protection. This paper recommends that systemic practice be taught and supported in social work to shape a more robustly reflexive systemic ‘being’ in the child protection context. Practitioner points There are tensions in applying systemic principles in social work contexts that create unique challenges for practitioners Without due attention to systemic epistemology in group reflective supervision, practitioners can rely too much on techniques to the detriment of reflexivity Hypothesising in the child protection context can be useful in the work but can be constrained by institutional pressures Without paying attention to circularity and reflexivity, hypotheses can recreate pathologising discourses

There has been growing recognition of the co-occurrence of substance use and intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization in women’s and men’s lives, yet many IPV service providers have not developed an integrated response to these issues. Fewer still have implemented substance use services from a harm reduction approach. This article outlines the approach, policy changes, initial outcomes, and learning points for an IPV agency in Ireland, which implemented a harm reduction response to female IPV survivors who were also using substances problematically. Barriers and challenges for staff and management seeking to coordinate and integrate service delivery on the dual issues are also presented.

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This paper is an adaption of a keynote address delivered at the Association of Family Therapy Conference 2022.   Gender attracts our attention. The reference points for this living and lived concept are changing as people inhabit new truths and reclaim ancient wisdoms of gender. Therapists face the challenge of holding multiple and heart-felt truths about what gender can be in the context of increasingly polarised views of what gender should be. In this paper, I examine how binary gender, created by pathologising colonial practices restricts the psychotherapeutic imagination of what gender and sexuality can be. I encourage practitioners to leave what Hare-Mustin calls the mirrored room (1994) in which dominant socio-political discourses limit possibilities. I discuss how installing a mirror ball, a symbol of queer joy and celebration, in practice spaces would create a fracturing and queering of discourses reflecting wider lived experiences, communities and language practices.

AimsPhysical chastisement is any punishment in which physical force is used to cause pain or discomfort. Perceptions differ between cultures as to what constitutes acceptable chastisement. Studies have been carried out into physical chastisement in specific ethnic groups but there is a lack of evidence in the United Kingdom (UK) population as a whole. In order to provide meaningful preventative intervention, it is necessary to ascertain the scale and nature of the issue. The aim of this study is to determine the demographics of this problem in one region of the UK.MethodCases of non-accidental injury referred to a tertiary safeguarding unit between Jan 2014 and Sept 2015 were identified using the electronic database. A retrospective casenote review identified cases of physical chastisement – defined as any physical act carried out as a remedial measure, in a controlled manner, in response to behaviour of a child that was deemed unacceptable by the perpetrator who is a person with authority over the child. We included reflex chastisement. Data were analysed for nature of abuse, perpetrator and cohort demographics.Results579 case notes were reviewed with 53/579 (9.2%) fitting our criteria for physical chastisement. 38/53 (72%) of the cases occurred in ethnic minority or immigrant families. The male:female ratio was 1.9:1. The age range was 2–15 years, the majority of cases being 5–10 years old. In 36/53 (68%) of the cases the child was hit with an implement, 33/36 (92%) of these cases involved ethnic minority families. In all cases, the abuser was a primary care giver: 26/53 (49%) mother or step-mother, 22/53 (42%) father or step-father and 5/53 (9.4%) both.ConclusionUnacceptable chastisement is a complex, emotive and sensitive area of safeguarding work. The negative effects on the child are well documented. The findings of our study reveal that it represents a sizeable proportion of the safeguarding workload and is more likely to occur within some ethnic minority groups. In order to further understand this problem, we must work collaboratively with social care, police, health, education and communities. Any preventative work undertaken to address this issue will need to transcend boundaries – not only between agencies but between cultures.