Researcher wins British Journal of Social Work Prize

Dr Lisa Morriss, Lecturer in Social Work at the University of Birmingham has been awarded the BASW Kay McDougall British Journal of Social Work Prize for an article looking at the newly created role of the Approved Mental Health Professional.

The prize is awarded to the best article, as decided by the BJSW Editorial Board and in agreement with BASW, based on aspects such as breadth of scholarship, relevance to practice and international appeal.

Dr Morriss’s paper ‘AMHP work: dirty or prestigious? Dirty work designations and the Approved Mental Health Professional’ explores the notion of ‘dirty work’ in relation to the newly created role of the Approved Mental Health Professional (AMHP). An AMHP undertakes various duties set out in the Mental Health Act, in relation to assessments to make applications for compulsory admission to psychiatric hospital. It has been argued that undertaking this social control function is ‘dirty work’. However, the findings from a study of social work AMHPs in England suggest that the picture is more complex. Rather than being designated as dirty work, AMHP duty was presented as prestigious and as advanced social work.