University conference set to explore the future of social services in Wales

A Bangor University conference will explore the implications of a historical new act set to transform social services’ provision in Wales.

The one-day event, held at Neuadd Reichel, Bangor, on Friday 4th July, will unite academics, researchers, government representatives and social services practitioners and managers to discuss and evaluate the potential impact of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, which came into effect on 1st May 2014.

The Act represents the biggest development to happen to social services in Wales for over 60 years. It will provide a coherent legal framework for the sector and is expected to transform the way in which services are delivered, promoting people’s independence by giving them a stronger voice and more control. It will also encourage a new focus on prevention and early intervention.

Hosted and sponsored by Bangor University’s School of Social Sciences, with co-sponsorship from the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and the All Wales Academic Social Care Research Collaboration, this bilingual conference will consider the implications from a number of different viewpoints and interpretations. “This is an excellent opportunity for practitioners, managers, students, lecturers and others associated with the field to consider the future of social services in Wales, in light of this pioneering new act”, comments Malcolm John, lecturer in Social Work and Social Policy at Bangor and co-organiser of the event. “We look forward to welcoming attendees from all over Wales to the University to hear the views and opinions of some of the leading experts in the area.”

Among those speaking at the conference will be Hywel Williams, AM for Arfon; Albert Heaney, Director of Social Services and Integration, Welsh Government; Rhian Huws Williams, Chief Executive of the Care Council for Wales; Mike Lewis, lecturer in Social Work and Social Policy at Cardiff University; Professor Peter Huxley from the Centre for Social Work and Social Care Research at Swansea University; Gwen Carrington, Community Director at Anglesey County Council; and Morwena Edwards, Head of the Social Services, Housing and Leisure Department at Gwynedd Country Council.

Publication date: 23 June 2014