WHAT DO RESIDENTS OF INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS THINK SOCIAL WORKERS SHOULD DO: VOICES FROM BHAMBAYI
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15270/39-2-371Abstract
In 1992 the Centre for Social Work at the University of Natal established a community-based student unit at Bhambayi, an informal settlement some 25 kilometres north of the Durban city centre. Senior social work students, under the supervision of a member of the academic staff, offer a much needed social work service to this unique community. Students offer a variety of social work services. Individual casework services focus primarily on helping people to access grants and pensions and on specialist services for epilepsy, mental illness and mental handicaps. Child abuse, custody disputes and relationship problems are also dealt with. A children’s club provides a weekly meeting for primary school children and offers them the opportunity to socialise, learn arts and crafts, and to develop life skills. Community education programmes have been very successful, with the community participating enthusiastically in fun days, clean-up days and awareness programmes.Downloads
References
AINSLEE, R. & DE HAAS, M. 1998. Bhambayi: The “third force” in action. In: SCHUTTE, C.; LIEBENBERG, I. & MINNAAR, J. (eds) The hidden hand – covert operations in South Africa. Pretoria: Human Sciences Research Council.
CENSUS 1996. [http://www.statsa.gov.za]
CHAMBERS, R. 1983. Rural development: Putting the last first. Harlow, Essex: Longman Scientific and Technical.
CHIKANDA, E.N. 1987. Attitudes of the black public in urban areas to the care of the aged. Pretoria: Human Sciences Research Council.
COETZEE, J.K. 1996. A micro foundation for development thinking. In: COETZEE, J.K. & GRAAF, J. (eds) Reconstruction, development and people. Johannesburg: International Thomson Publishing (SA) (Pty) Ltd.
DATA RESEARCH AFRICA 1995. Bhambayi Survey. Durban.
FREIRE, P. 1972. Pedagogy of the oppressed. Middelsex: Penguin Books.
HOWE, D. 1993. On becoming a client. London: Sage Publications.
HUGHES, H. 1987. Violence in Inanda, August, 1985. Journal of Southern African Studies, 13(3):331-354.
KUZEL, A.J. 1992. Sampling in qualitative inquiry. In: CRABTREE, B.F. & MILLER, W.L. (eds) Doing qualitative research. Newbury Park, Ca: Sage Publications.
MORGAN, D.L. 1998. The focus group guide book. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
PADGETT, D.K. 1998. Qualitative methods in social work. Challenges and rewards. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
PRESTON-WHYTE, E. 1993. Women who are not married: Fertility, “illegitimacy”, and the nature of households and domestic groups among single African women in Durban. South African Journal of Sociology, 24(3):63-71.
PRESTON-WHYTE, E. & ZONDI, M. 1992. African teenage pregnancy: whose problem? In: BURMAN, S. & PRESTON-WHYTE, E. (eds) Questionable issue: Illegitimacy in South Africa. Cape Town: Oxford University Press.
RODWELL, M.K. 1998. Social work constructivist research. New York: Garland Publishing.
SCOTT, M.J. & STRADLING, S.G. 1994. Counselling for post-traumatic stress disorder. London: Sage Publications.
VAN SCHALKWYK, H.M. 1997. A participatory partnership model for social work in informal settlements. Johannesburg: Rand Afrikaans University. (Unpublished PhD thesis)
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
This journal is an open access journal, and the authors and journal should be properly acknowledged when works are cited.
Authors may use the publishers version for teaching purposes, in books, and with conferences.
The following license applies:
Attribution CC BY-4.0
This license lets others distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation.
Articles as a whole may not be re-published with another journal.
