The fourth and final part of the book is dedicated to four examples of practice that present the theme of solidarity. In the PAP, solidarity is an ethical principle that dictates the positioning of the social worker vis-a-vis service users. By analysing situations in which social workers succeeded in standing by service users and other situations in which they were not successful, this part of the book aims to enrich the professional imagination and repertoire of solidarity in different contexts and settings.

Chapter 14, ‘When Douby looked for a home: “standing by” within the establishment’, tells the story of a woman who was evicted from her home, which she had occupied for many years, and the social work student who worked closely with her and tried to prevent the eviction. The story focuses on the response of the managers of the social services department to the event as an example of the difficulty of conducting a critical version of social work within the establishment.

Chapter 15, ‘A babysitter for a dollar: community development’, aims to draw conclusions regarding the appropriate community response to a case in which a fire broke out in the public housing apartment of a woman who had locked her children in when she left for work. Thinking about a response in terms of community development takes into consideration the structural barriers that this mother (and others) face, and challenges the automatic response that blames the mother for acting neglectfully.

Chapter 16, ‘Between Othering and solidarity: crisis intervention with children at risk’ builds upon a graphic description written by a social worker following a crisis intervention involving children at risk. The response of the social worker is analysed as an example of the ‘standing against’ position. The possibility of standing by is presented in the chapter as a tentative choice.

Chapter 17, ‘ “I’m not that kind of person”: solidarity in a group intervention’, tells the story of a group I worked with for two-and-ahalf years beginning in 2001.