Updated December 2023
Helping survivors of family violence is a life mission and true calling for many community support workers (CSWs). The programs and services they deliver at emergency shelters and youth organizations give hope to thousands of people across Canada.
Updated December 2023
Working with disadvantaged and endangered children is truly a special calling. At-risk youth are one of the most vulnerable populations in our society.
Children facing trauma and crisis require skilled advocates—professionals who are trained to offer protection, support, and services that are specially designed to protect their safety, and create long-term solutions for health and wellbeing.
Interested in becoming a child and youth worker in Canada? Are you considering community services worker (CSW) training to specialize in this branch of social services?
Take a few moments to explore exactly what a child/youth worker is, the responsibilities you'd have in this role, and the skills and training you'll need to get started.
By the end of this post, you'll have a clearer idea of whether this career is right for you, and which steps to take next.
Updated December 2023
Community services workers (CSWs) help people dealing with serious personal and social problems. But this career is about so much more than that.
CSWs work with some of the most neglected, forgotten, and stigmatized people in our society.
From teens dealing with addiction, to homeless populations, to battered women, to ex-offenders: community services workers are trained to offer compassionate, practical, hands-on support where it's needed most.
There is no doubt that this work is challenging. But it's also incredibly rewarding and inspiring. Right on the front-lines of our neighbourhoods, CSWs literally change and save lives on a daily basis.
Looking for a career where you can really make a difference? Read on to discover four powerful ways you can transform your community, one person at a time, as a CSW.
A group of Community Services Worker students at Herzing College
Updated December 2023
What will your life look like after community services worker (CSW) training? Where will you work, and who will you work with?
This is, obviously, a key question for anyone considering a career in community services.
Our goal in this post is to give you a clearer idea of your options and opportunities as a freshly graduated CSW.
Updated December 2023
What happens to someone who has served time in prison and gets released back into the community? How do they find a job and a place to live? Who can they turn to for support to get their life back on track and start building a better future for themselves?
In many cases, ex-offenders find that support at a halfway house. Like the name suggests, a halfway house is a bridge between prison and the outside world—a place that is "halfway" between incarceration and the free community.
Updated December 2023
What does it mean to work as a community support worker? Is this the right career path for you?
There are so many myths surrounding the field of social services that it can be difficult for people to separate fact from fiction and make an informed decision about CSW training.
Let's start by debunking five of the most common myths about working in community services.
Read on to learn the truth about what CSWs do, who they work with, and how much money they earn.
Updated December 2024
Do you feel called to a career in social services? Want to make a real difference in your community helping disadvantaged, at-risk individuals create happier, healthier lives?
It sounds like you would be an ideal candidate for community support worker (CSW) training. CSWs work at the grassroots level, helping vulnerable children, adults, and seniors gain access to practical support and social services within their communities.
CSWs intervene where help is needed most. They guide individuals toward better life decisions, promote inclusion within our communities, and in some cases, provide emergency support to people in life-threatening situations. Fundamentally, CSWs help reshape and save lives.
Read on to learn more about what community support workers do, the job outlook for CSWs, and how training works.
Updated December 2023
Who exactly are "at-risk" youth? Definitions vary, but this term generally refers to young people whose health, safety, and future prospects have been seriously compromised by situations beyond their control.
These situations may include abusive home environments, mental illness, or addiction—and lead to criminal behaviour and/or dropping out of school.
Overall, at-risk youth are less likely to transition successfully into adulthood by finishing school, entering the workforce, maintaining good mental health, and becoming contributing members of their communities. Their lives are often cut short by suicide and violence, or derailed by incarceration.
Community services workers who specialize in youth work help troubled teens map out a better future and take the often challenging steps needed to get there.
Considering becoming a youth worker after CSW training? These are some of the challenges you'll be helping clients face and the special skills you'll need to counsel and support at-risk youth.
Updated December 2023
Federal government data shows that 10% to 15% of Canadian seniors suffer from depression. And that number is far higher among those in residential care.
Unfortunately, lack of awareness and stigmatization ensures that many cases of geriatric depression go unreported, undiagnosed, and untreated.
Community support workers (CSWs) are not trained to treat elderly clients with depression or make a clinical diagnosis—however, if CSWs can identify the warning signs, they can quickly intervene and connect those clients with potentially life-saving health care services.
This kind of early intervention is key. There are many treatments available for seniors battling depression, including counselling, medication, psychotherapy, and newer forms of brain stimulation. Once diagnosed, depression is highly treatable.
CSWs are front-line health care professionals who often work closely with elderly clients. They have a unique opportunity to help reverse the negative trend of geriatric depression in Canada. The best place to start is by learning how seniors are impacted by this mood disorder, and which warning signs to watch for.
Updated December 2023
In Canadian society, we place a very special trust in community services workers (CSWs) to protect and advocate for vulnerable individuals. We rely on CSWs to help make our neighbourhoods more fair, safe, and productive.
But given how complex their work can be, there are times when CSWs are faced with very challenging situations, conflicts, and decisions—where the outcome will have a serious and lasting impact on the life of a client, family members, or the CSW herself.
To help build ethical decision-making skills, and understand their responsibilities to the public, CSW students learn the code of professional ethics and values set out by the Canadian Association of Social Workers (CASW).
