One form of personal social service inaugurated by the Mans field House Settlement in Canning Town was the "poor man's lawyer," the idea being to give free legal advice to the very poor. This effort has been widely extended and has now been regularized by the law societies.
Public Social Service.—In the sphere of public health (q.v.), voluntary agencies are doing much to assist the local authorities and the Government.
Although most British hospitals are voluntary efforts and uti lize the service of unpaid workers, they are gradually taking on the character of public service. Indeed the poor law authorities are responsible for large numbers of hospitals and infirmaries. There is a National League for Health, Maternity and Child Wel fare which has done much to create a sound public opinion.
• These are now supported by local grants and government aid. There are ante-natal clinics, baby and child welfare clinics, clinics for children up to the age of 5, followed by medical inspection and treatment of children in the public schools. In all these cases there is much voluntary assistance and it is a form of social service which will shape the whole future of the country.
Compulsory education has narrowed the field of social service, so far as children are concerned, to the work of management and the after-care committees, although a development of in terest on the part of parents in the work of the school is being encouraged and spreading with great rapidity.
Adult education (q.v.) offers great opportunities for voluntary effort.
Whatever may be the future of the boards of guardians, the sense of obligation to the poor which was formerly expressed through the monasteries or the overseers of the parish is bound to continue. Harshness of administration has gradually been ameliorated owing to a more humane public opinion. The services both of men and women on boards of guardians are often rendered purely as giving an opportunity for social work. The Brabazon Society in giving concerts and entertainments in workhouses and infirmaries has created an atmosphere of friendliness and espe cially in relation to the children has opened up a sphere of helpful ness. Many guardians take a special interest in emigration, which though it is not a final solution of economic problems does in many cases offer a way out and a prospect of future usefulness.
There are many men and women to-day who accept the position of magistrate because they feel they can thus serve society most effectively, and by exercising wisdom and patient consideration enable those who have transgressed the law to recover good citi zenship. In connection with the criminal system a good deal of
social work is carried on in connection with the Borstal institu tions, remand homes and prisons, while the work of probation officers, whether paid or voluntary, in connection with children's courts has wrought a veritable revolution in the treatment of young offenders. (P. A.) Social service or social work, as understood in the United States, is that form of persistent and deliberate effort that helps the individual (or family group) to make a satisfactory adjust ment to his environment. This effort takes several forms. Social work as a profession is attempting to prevent as well as reduce to a minimum those substandard social conditions which are the causes of poverty, ill health, and other types of human dis tress. It provides such practical services as financial aid to the needy, counsel on personal and family problems, suggestions on child training and management, and in general provides those aids to living which make for a richer and more wholesome exist ence. As the social worker in his daily practice and through research becomes conscious of social ills and their causes, he seeks a remedy and becomes an active protagonist of the changes needed to achieve that end.
Classification of Workers.—Under the auspices of both pub lic and private agencies, social workers perform a great variety of social services. Social work is carried on by three groups of workers. There are case workers who work with the individual (or family group) who is in some sort of trouble. They are the people who give financial aid to the needy, who give counsel on personal and family problems, who serve as probation officers in courts, who direct persons who have physical or mental illnesses, and who deal with the problems of children in school, institutions, and foster homes. Then there are the group workers who deal with people in groups in such places as settlements, recreation centres in schools and churches and playgrounds, and in such organiza tions as Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Young Men's Christian Associ ations, Young Women's Christian Associations, Jewish Centers, and similar organizations. They conduct such leisure-time activ ities as games, dancing, clubs, dramatics, lectures, arts and crafts, and study groups. Finally, there are those who are engaged in social welfare planning. They organize and co-ordinate the work of social agencies, raise funds, engage in social research and pro mote social legislation.