- 16 Jun / 22News
“You have the opportunity to truly change lives and have a real impact” – welcoming our 2022 Cohort to the programme
Members of our 2022 Cohort have kicked off their journey to become mental health social workers through the Think Ahead programme. New participants attended an online launch event on 11 June, and heard from current and former participants, members of our Service User and Carer Reference Group, members of our head office team, and staff […]
- 10 Jun / 22Features
“As a social worker I can help amplify the voices of the marginalised.”
Irteza Masood joined the Think Ahead programme in 2021. For Pride Month, he discusses his intersectional identity as a queer south Asian man, taking back his voice, and how training as a social worker has helped him empower others to find theirs. Talking about sexuality within the south Asian community is a taboo, and being […]
- 9 May / 22Features
How can loneliness impact mental health? We asked our Practice Specialists
The theme for this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week is loneliness. The Think Ahead Practice Specialists, our in-house senior social workers with years of experience working across social work and mental health services, shared their thoughts on the real life impacts of isolation on mental health, and how we can better support people to connect […]
- 14 Mar / 22News
Social Work Week 2022
It is Social Work Week in England, an opportunity to bring people together to learn, connect, and promote social work. A chance to celebrate the profession; a profession that has arguably never been needed more than it is today. Particularly mental health social work. Social work and me This year, Social Work England has set theme […]
- 2 Mar / 22Features
Living with an eating disorder
I qualified as a Social Worker in 2013, after training for two years in London. Having moved from the countryside, studying, and living in London was such an exciting and eye-opening experience. I remember during one of our very early teaching sessions we were tasked with drawing a trauma timeline of our own life experiences; […]
- 20 Dec / 21Features
Public commitment to becoming an anti-racist organisation
Background In December 2020, we made a public commitment to become an anti-racist organisation. We outlined how we would make progress in achieving this and pledged to update on our commitments annually. In 2020, we committed to the following: Recruiting more people from Black, Asian and ethnically diverse communities into our graduate programme. Ensuring our […]
- 7 Oct / 21Features
My name is Matthew and I’m bipolar
My name is Matthew and I have bipolar type 2. That probably only means slightly less to you than it does to me. I don’t really like labels. They suggest there’s something concrete and tangible about my mental health that can be easily understood. I find my mental health really hard to understand so I can’t […]
- 26 Jul / 21Features
This is life with schizophrenia
Guy (pictured) trained to be a mental health social worker with Think Ahead. He shares this rare insight into living with schizophrenia with thanks to the people he’s worked with who were able to contribute. I am a social worker in a community mental health team supporting people with a chronic and enduring diagnosis of […]
- 27 Apr / 21News
Think Ahead trainees meet Minister for Mental Health, Suicide Prevention and Patient Safety
The Minister of State for Mental Health, Suicide Prevention and Patient Safety, Nadine Dorries MP, today joined us for a virtual meeting to learn about the invaluable contribution social work makes to mental health services. It was a pleasure to welcome the Minister of State today and show her the unique support mental health social […]
- 26 Mar / 21News
Think Ahead’s first conference – Mental health social work in 2021
We were delighted to be joined by over 350 delegates this week at our first ever conference, Think Ahead presents: Mental health social work in 2021. The event offered a rare opportunity to focus on the vital role frontline mental health social workers play in driving and responding to change. Our broad range of speakers brought a wealth of knowledge […]
- 9 Mar / 21Features
What is Social Work?
It is Social Work Week in England. A chance to celebrate the invaluable contribution social workers are making to people’s lives every day. But what does “social work” actually mean? There is no short answer. Or perhaps there is; it is about life and levelling the playing field of life. Enabling people to push past their […]
- 22 Feb / 21Features
“I saw that there was a demand for me to work in mental health” – Why we need more men in mental health social work
According to recent figures from Health Education England and a previous NHS Benchmarking Network/ADASS study, only 24% of mental health social workers in NHS Mental Health Trusts and 28% of those in Local Authorities are male. Meanwhile, 43% of respondents to the Care Quality Commission’s most recent survey of people using community mental health services […]
