Supervision and the art of questioning

Posted: 31/05/2022

At any given moment in a supervision session, we may find ourselves wondering, ‘What is the most useful question I could ask right now?’ This, however, begs another question: ‘What do we mean by a useful question?’ Questions are fundamental in constructing—and changing—social realities. …Read more

Rainbow Talk – why LGBTQI+ resources are needed

Posted: 28/05/2021

Why are LGBTQI+ resources are needed? Because everyone deserves respect. We share spaces with people whose ideas, beliefs and stories differ from our own. Our interests, languages, bodies and styles are many and varied, and this rich diversity is reflected in our experiences of …Read more

Gender Fairness: the conversations we have to have

Posted: 04/06/2019

‘Many of us are not practised at talking about how social constructs of gender have influenced our own identity, our relationships at home and work, and our expectations of each other,’ writes Linda Beilharz (former executive officer at Women’s Health Loddon Mallee) in the …Read more

Self-care is Not Self-ish

Posted: 13/05/2019

As a social worker, I have been taught I need to practise self-care as this will assist me to continue to help others. Whilst I agree that self-care does have this function, I feel like the self gets lost in this explanation since the …Read more

How is Strengths-based Supervision Different?

Posted: 13/05/2019

Davys and Beddoe, authors of Best Practice in Professional Supervision: A Guide for the Helping Professions (2010: Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London), suggest that strengths-based approaches to supervision are different to an hierarchical and managerial model of supervision where the supervisor is perceived as the ‘expert’, who imparts …Read more

Exploring ‘Organisational White Privilege’

Posted: 26/09/2018

The Bendigo Reconciliation Committee has developed a FREE resource for mainstream community organisations to explore the issue of ‘organisational white privilege’. The development of this resource grew out of a Conversation Circle arranged by the Bendigo Reconciliation Committee (BRC) and member agencies during the …Read more

Welcome to ‘The Scaling Kit’ web-based app!

Posted: 15/05/2018

Scaling is a simple, highly visual and easily understood way of measuring and evaluating anything. Look around and you will see scaling being used in countless ways every day. A wall of a hospital might show a big temperature gauge to measure how fundraising …Read more

‘What Works?’ goes digital

Posted: 09/04/2018

Organisations that work well draw on a dynamic combination of strengths. What are the strengths of your organisation? How well does your organisation do with strengths such as planning, leadership, fairness, communication, role clarity, and creativity? What about managing change and resolving disputes? Which …Read more

Life is a Circus—But What About Our Teams?

Posted: 28/04/2017

‘Metaphor has a paradoxical power. It distances an experience by equating it with something else, but in so doing actually brings that experience closer.’ James Geary, ‘The Secret Life of Metaphor’, Ode Magazine, Spring 2011, p. 55 Human language is alive with metaphor. Not …Read more

Stereotypes: More than just…

Posted: 01/03/2017

Ever been to a funeral of someone you liked and thought you knew well, only to discover through the eulogy that there was so much more about the person than you knew? How many times have you walked by the reception desk, said hello …Read more

Are we making a difference?

Posted: 20/05/2016

This was the ‘Top 8’ topic for a recent session held with Anglicare Vic workers at St Luke’s.  It highlights the importance of self-reflection and how simple, but rich it can be to provide opportunities for social workers to talk about their work, and …Read more

Managing People: Power-over versus Power-with

Posted: 22/04/2015

Some might remember the cartoon where the boss yells at the worker, the worker then goes home and yells at their partner, then the child is yelled at, and later the child is seen taking it out on the family pet. So how do …Read more