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A storytelling framework for social care in Wales

“We are all storytellers. We all live in a network of stories. There isn’t a stronger connection between people than storytelling.”

- Jimmy Neil Smith, Director of the International Storytelling Center

About this framework

This framework is the result of partnership work between Social Care Wales and the Developing Evidence Enriched Practice (DEEP) programme to support and encourage the use of diverse storytelling methods.

People engage with social care services individually and collectively through the ups and downs of life. Management systems have an important role in social care services, but they can push us towards focusing on processes and numbers, rather than on people and their stories (Pascoe et al 2023). 

What is storytelling?

Stories tell us about events and experiences. Storytelling refers to sharing a story in some way. 

There are different ways we can do this (for example, fiction, real life experience, history, legend). We can use a range of formats that work to meet different needs (such as the spoken word, print media, visual arts and so on). 

In this framework our focus is mainly on using stories to share personal life experiences. However, fiction and traditional storytelling are also used in some of the methods we refer to.

How can we use storytelling in social care?

Storytelling can help us engage with people and can foster connection and understanding. Storytelling can also be used in evaluation, learning and development to support the implementation of the Social Services Performance and Improvement Framework around gathering and learning from people’s experience and personal outcomes.

Stories have the power to inform, inspire and challenge by:

  • helping us share experiences, ideas, and emotions
  • bringing people together and building relationships
  • helping us understand how people see and experience the world
  • making complex ideas and situations more relatable and memorable
  • supporting resilience and well-being in challenging times.

Storytelling framework: a foundation of ethical practice, three pillars of storytelling practice and a roof of benefits that completes the structure

What's included in the framework?

We all have our stories of sorrow, joy, experience, hope and change. Storytelling can play many roles in improving lives and organisations, whether you’re a practitioner, manager or someone accessing care and support. This framework aims to help people working in social care place storytelling and at the heart of their work.

It can be helpful to view the storytelling framework as a building that is constructed with:

References - click to expand

Pascoe, K., Waterhouse-Bradley, B. and McGinn, T. (2023) Social Workers’ Experiences of Bureaucracy: A Systematic Synthesis of Qualitative Studies, The British Journal of Social Work, 53, (1), pp. 513–533.