Dr Robin Sen
BA (Hons), Dip SW, SFHEA, MSW, MPhil, Msc, PhD
Department of Sociological Studies
Honorary Research Fellow
Full contact details
Department of Sociological Studies
The Wave
2 Whitham Road
Sheffield
S10 2AH
- Profile
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Robin became an Honorary Research Fellow in the Department in September 2020. Prior to this he was a Lecturer in Social Work in the Department and he now works as a Lecturer in Social Work at the University of Dundee at the same time as holding an Honorary appointment at the University of Sheffield. Robin's practice background was principally as a child and family social worker in Glasgow. He is also a qualified Practice Teacher in social work. Robin is the co-editor of Practice: Social Work in Action journal with Dr. Wulf Livingston at Wrexham Glyndwr University. The journal has an explicit aim of encouraging submissions from newer writers (early career academics, practitioners and people with expertise by experience) as well as more established writers so Robin will be pleased to hear informally from anyone in those categories considering submitting to Practice. Robin is also an active member of the British Association of Social Workers (BASW) and sits on their Children and Families Group for England.
- Research interests
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All of Robin's research is connected to issues in children and families practice and policy, with particular emphasis on issues of family support, safeguarding and work with Looked after Children.
- Publications
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Books
- Effective Practice with Looked After Children. Macmillan International Higher Education.
Journal articles
- Exploring Aspects of Care Systems in Different Contexts and Reflecting on Practice in Child Protection Social Work, and in Social Work Education. Practice, 35(2), 99-101.
- The Global Deinstitutionalisation of Care, No Recourse to Public Funds and Self-Care for Social Workers. Practice, 34(3), 169-170.
- A safe place of one’s own? Exploring practice and policy dilemmas in child welfare practice with families waiting for adequate and secure housing. European Journal of Social Work.
- The End of the Second Year of Covid-19. Practice, 33(5), 335-337.
- Social Work Roles and Tasks in the 2020s. Practice, 33(4), 251-252.
- Turning 18 in specialised residential therapeutic care: Independence or a cliff edge?. Children & Society. View this article in WRRO
- Frameworks, Decision Making, Pathways and Social Work Practices. Practice, 33(1), 1-2.
- Reflections on social work 2020 under Covid-19 online magazine. Social Work Education.
- 'Entitled to special protection and assistance'?. Social Work 2020 under Covid-19.
- Politics, social work and Covid-19. Social Work 2020 under Covid-19.
- Exploring the declining rates of state social work intervention in an English local authority using Family Group Conferences. Children and Youth Services Review, 106, 104458-104458. View this article in WRRO
- ‘When you're sitting in the room with two people one of whom… has bashed the hell out of the other’: Possibilities and challenges in the use of FGCs and restorative approaches following domestic violence. Children and Youth Services Review, 88, 441-449. View this article in WRRO
- Belonging to the Library: Humanising the Space for Social Work Education. Social Work Education. View this article in WRRO
- Not All that Is Solid Melts into Air? Care-Experienced Young People, Friendship and Relationships in the ‘Digital Age’. British Journal of Social Work, 46(4), 1059-1075. View this article in WRRO
- Building Relationships in a Cold Climate: A Case Study of Family Engagement within an ‘Edge of Care’ Family Support Service. Social Policy and Society, 15(2), 289-302. View this article in WRRO
- Some Useful Sources. Social Policy and Society, 15(2), 331-336.
- Introduction: Intensive Family Support Services: Politics, Policy and Practice Across Contexts. Social Policy and Society, 15(2), 251-261.
- Improving Outcomes for Looked after Children: A Critical Analysis of Kinship Care. Practice, 26(3), 161-180.
- Grading the graded care profile. Child Abuse Review, 23(5), 361-373.
- In Search of Origins. Practice, 25(1), 75-77.
- Foster carers' involvement in contact: Other professionals' views. Practice, 23(5), 279-292.
- Contact between children in out-of-home placements and their family and friends networks: A research review. Child and Family Social Work, 16(3), 298-309.
- Managing contact in Scotland for children in non-permanent out-of-home placement. Child Abuse Review, 19(6), 423-437.
- Rethinking Residential Child Care, Positive Perspectives. Child & Family Social Work, 15(1), 128-128.
- Lessons learnt? Abuse in residential child care in Scotland. Child and Family Social Work, 13(4), 411-422.
- Providing a Secure Base in Long-Term Foster Care by M. Beek and G. Schofield, BAAF, London, 2004. 272 pp. ISBN 1-90369-940-1 (Pbk), £13.95. Child Abuse Review, 15(2), 152-153.
- Ontological (In)security in Early Career Social Work during COVID-19: Experiences in Scotland. The British Journal of Social Work.
- Social Work under COVID-19: A Thematic Analysis of Articles in ‘SW2020 under COVID-19 Magazine’. The British Journal of Social Work.
Chapters
- Conclusion: Children's services reform looking back and forwards, The Future of Children's Care: Critical Perspectives on Children's Services Reform (pp. 194-213).
- The Living Library in social work education, Involving Service Users in Social Work Education, Research and Policy: A Comparative European Analysis (pp. 73-84).
- Video Enhanced Reflective Practice with Social Workers In Landor M, Todd L & Kennedy H (Ed.), Video Enhanced Reflective Practice Professional Development through Attuned Interactions Jessica Kingsley Publishers
- Using evidence to inform working with looked after children In Webber M (Ed.), Applying Research Evidence in Social Work Practice (pp. 127-142). Palgrave MacMillan
- Residential Child Care Legal Foundations and Requirements In Davies M (Ed.), Social Work's Knowledge Base Palgrave Macmillan
Reports
- Turning 18 : Independence or Cliff Edge
- Leeds Family Valued. Evaluation Report
- Evidence-informed Performance Improvement National Performance Indicator: Increase the overall proportion of local authority areas receiving positive child protection inspection reports
- Evaluation of Scottish Marriage Care Counselling Service Data
- Effective Practice with Looked After Children. Macmillan International Higher Education.
- Grants
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2020 – 22 Title: Changing Safeguards for Children in Care: Exploring the Views of Care Experienced People and Frontline Practitioners (With Dr Katie Ellis)
Sponsor: British Academy/Leverhulme
2017-18 Title: Exploring similarities and differences in child welfare between the UK and New Zealand
Sponsor: Worldwide Universities Network (WUN) Research Mobility Programme Award
2016-17 Title: Developing specialist practice resources for child welfare and family support practitioners (with Dr Harriet Churchill and Dr Jadwiga Leigh)
Sponsor: Innovation, Impact and Knowledge Exchange (IIKE) support fund, University of Sheffield
2015-16 Title: An Evaluation of Leeds City Council Social Care Innovation Programme (with Prof. Kate Morris)
Sponsor: DfE / Leeds City Council
- Teaching activities
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Robin no longer undertakes teaching in this Department but he continues to be involved in the supervision of three Departmental PhD students who are in the later stages of their studies:
Ahmed Alageili - The role of self-help groups in overcoming challenges faced by mothers of autistic children
Panrat Nimtaloung - Sharing family : children who have been in residential child care and who are integrated to foster care in Thailand
Permala Sehmar - Exploring family practices in the context of domestic violence and abuse and state responsesRobin is also currently External Examiner for the MSc in Social Work at Glasgow Caledonian University and the MA in Social Work at the University of Nottingham.