Book review: Mark Doel (2010). Social Work Placements: A traveller’s guide. London: Routledge, 241 p., ISBN 978-0-415-49912-5

I remember my own social work education in the UK in the 1980s and especially the placements I undertook. The development of learning experiences that reflected levels and starting points, the ubiquitous ‘student cases’ we were presented with and the unquestioned assumptions we, our supervisors and our tutors made about adult learning rendered the need for a book such as this indispensable. Despite not having such a guide at the time, the placements were memorable, something Mark Doel acknowledges from his wide knowledge of the area in his book. It is this primacy of placement experience and learning that makes this text so valuable for today’s students and supervisors.