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Save Haringey Travelling People's Team: Sign Online Petition Now

SWAN condemns the plans by Haringey Council to delete the Haringey Travelling Peoples Team (HTPT) (including the Traveller Liaison Site Management post that sits within the team).

HTPT supply vital support to the Gypsy and Traveller residents in the London borough, who are, in many cases, a highly vulnerable community. Residents rely on this team for a variety of essential services. These include services for Traveller Children and Family Joint Case Work, Vulnerable Adults Case Work, Education Support Work, Community Group Work Youth Work and Welfare Rights Work. On accommodation issues the team play a key role in ensuring the cohesive and culturally appropriate management of the borough’s Traveller sites, engagement with unauthorised encampments and Traveller Housing Support. The team also provides support for Health Issues, Child Poverty Needs Assessments and support for Community Engagement and input into service provision.

***Sign the online petition here.***

SWAN supports Remploy strikes

SWAN (Social Work Action Network) extends its full support to the striking Remploy workers tomorrow who are trying to save their factories, jobs and livelihoods.

Earlier this month, the Minister for Disabled People, Maria Miller announced the closure of 27 of the 54 Remploy factories meaning the sacking of more than 1,200 mainly disabled workers.

All social workers and social care workers should stand in solidarity with disabled people fighting for their right to work and should visit the pickets lines where possible. Messages of solidarity can be sent via Disabled People Against Cuts at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Social Worker of the Year Awards 2012 and possible sponsorship by G4S

The Social Work Action Network (SWAN) has been in contact over the last two weeks with the Social Worker of the Year Awards about their association with the multinational security services company, G4S. SWAN has grave concerns about G4S and finds the track record of this company totally incompatible with a commitment to human rights and social justice which are the root of social work.

The following statement was drafted by SWAN West Midlands, has been endorsed by the Steering Committee of SWAN as our official position:

THE SOCIAL WORKER of the YEAR AWARDS AND G4S

The Social Work Action Network National Steering Committee notes:

- The annual Social Worker of the Year Awards were sponsored by G4S in 2011
- The complicity of the British-Danish security firm G4S with abuses of Human Rights in the Occupied Territories and within the state of Israel in breach of the fourth Geneva Convention namely - its provision of technology for several military checkpoints in the occupied West Bank, supply of luggage scanning equipment and full body scanners to several Israeli military checkpoints in the West Bank, including Qalandia checkpoint near Ramallah, Bethlehem checkpoint, Irtah checkpoint near Tulkarm and provision of full body scanners to the Erez checkpoint in Gaza – all of which violate international law.