US Senator Elizabeth Warren has confronted the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, over reports that the state department is considering redirecting $500m from USAID to the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

What has this got to do with social work in England?

🧵 'Warren requested answers on whether USAID is considering awarding any funds to the GHF and the GHF’s connections to Boston Consulting Group, which reportedly helped set up the group’s operations following a series of shootings by Israeli forces at its food distribution sites.'

Reminder of the importance of being watchful of questionable, faith-based ideas influencing policy reform in children's services.

Michael Gove to speak at conference of National Conservatism movement, which seeks to advance Christian Nationalism... 1/
bylinetimes.com/2023/03/10/mps… Also speaking are Conservative MPs Miriam Cates & Danny Kruger, founders of the New Social Covenant, which promotes ideas such as ‘The state should safeguard the customs of the country’ and ‘Marriage is a public institution and essential to society’
newsocialcovenant.co.uk/about/

2/

Agency social work has gone far beyond service-oriented 'filling gaps' to a growth industry built on encouraging SWers to trade off their employment benefits for greater pay & flexibility.

That's bad for social work, the people we hope and aim to support and for wider society. Yes, it's about employers not valuing their staff. But we need to ask what drives these cultures. Social work has historically been undervalued, misrepresented, stigmatised & blamed in society & policy, which is not unrelated to the fact that the people we support have been too.

So a thread on the Commission on Young Lives' key funder, The Passion Project Foundation, a 'social impact aggregator' with links to a controversial quasi-religious personal development and a concerning interest in early years education... 1/

https://twitter.com/JoeEHanley/status/1588459289785647106

'The Passion Project Foundation was set up to evidence the value of social and emotional learning, and, in doing so, help inform policymakers and key government influencers of its social impact’.

👆TPP’s explicit, assumed remit to inform and influence government policy. 2/

Apposite commentary from Ray Jones on children's services over-reliance on agency social work.

Key points in thread below, for those for whom a screenshot isn't suitable. 1/
communitycare.co.uk/2022/11/02/inc… '[P]ublic money (which is already too little) is pouring out of children’s social services as BIG profits into private companies & their owners - money which should be available for help for children & families not to enhance the privilege of those who are already wealthy.' 2/