Devonshire social worker scoops top national award

PHOTO - (L-R) Broadcaster and journalist Ashley John-Baptiste with Lucy Hunt, Team Leader of the Year, Adult Services; Georgia Chimbani, sponsor Suffolk County Council

© Social Work Awards

A social worker from Devon County Council has been revealed as a winner at the Social Worker of the Year Awards 2022.

Lucy Hunt, who is a Locality Team Manager with a specialism in adults with learning and physical disabilities, scooped the prestigious gold award for the ‘Team Leader of the Year, Adult Services’ category at the national ceremony, which took place recently.

The Social Worker of the Year Awards are run by a not-for-profit charity to celebrate great social work, share best practice and promote positive stories from the profession.

Each award category is judged by an independent panel of social workers at all levels, people with lived experience, young people who have been in care and senior figures from the world of social work.

Leading inspiration

Lucy Hunt is a team manager who doesn’t shy away from a challenge. At a time when the learning and physical disabilities locality team she heads up was experiencing a 30% increase in safeguarding activity, a 40% combined waiting list increase, and a 20% staff vacancy rate, Lucy still found the time and inspiration to develop a new model of practice.

The Crisis and Review model uses a path approach to person-centred planning and aims to reduce waiting list times and numbers, increase reviews, develop service user participation and promote staff wellbeing. It’s been in place for six months and already the team are on target to complete 73% of reviews for adults aged 18 to 65, have reduced the waiting list by 82%, and achieved a saving of £90,000 for the local authority.

Lucy is also ensuring that other areas of the service can benefit from this new approach to practice, by developing it for use with different client groups and offering peer sessions to other team managers. The model has piqued the interest of students and newly qualified staff too, with many approaching Lucy with a request to join her team.

Valued by colleagues for her commitment to human rights, coaching and organisational skills, and ability to bring out the best in practitioners, Lucy is an inspirational leader.

Social work values

Lucy is described by one team member as ‘level headed in a crisis, able to maintain empathy for the client and the worker, whilst continuing to be professional in her attitude and values at all times’.

Another colleague said: “Lucy’s social work values are at the forefront of her practice. Her commitment to human rights is an inspiration and motivator for us all. As a manager Lucy has steered us through some difficult times but always remained optimistic, approachable and supportive.”

Speaking about her award win, Lucy says: “Social work is the greatest profession and I feel very proud of the profession and the social workers here today.

‘I have the greatest team around me; they are sensational and do the most incredible work in our communities. I feel incredibly humbled and shocked to win this award surrounded by amazing social workers from across the country.”

Peter Hay, Chair of the Social Work Awards, says: “As a charity, it has been wonderful to recognise the fantastic achievements of our deserving gold and silver winners.

‘Lucy is a true innovator and leader who lives and breathes social work values. She deserves so much recognition for the positive impact she has made to the young people and families she supports, as well as the pioneering new ways of working she continues to introduce for his team.

‘We hope that this celebration of the support, dedication and leadership demonstrated by the finalists at this year’s awards provides inspiration and encouragement for all social work professionals to deliver innovative practice in their future careers.”