With the help of one of the four chapters of DD208 film 1 ‘Surveillance: welfare, crime and society’, explore how surveillance can help us understand the ‘entanglements’ between social welfare and crime control.
Surveillance plays an integral part in both crime control and social welfare. To help understand the entanglement of the two, I intend to discuss examples of how people according to their roles in the situation think differently about surveillance and safeguarding. The main focus will be on the ‘safeguarding of children’ in chapter 2 from the film (The Open University, 2013).
Children are one of the most vulnerable members of our society, because of this it is important to watch out for them. Making sure that we look after their welfare, health and wellbeing. This is where surveillance plays an important role; it’s down to everyone to keep an eye out for them from the parents, neighbours, teachers and welfare workers, everyone they have contact with. This is where an entanglement of social, welfare and crime control come together. An example of how safeguarding use’s surveillance as a main method to help deliver protection for the children whilst supporting the parents, was evident in the film ‘safeguarding children’ (The Open University, 2013). It featured an in-sight into a drop-in clinic called the ‘Baby café’. Helen Wright, a midwife, explained how it provides an environment where mothers can just drop in with their babies to get help and support from the practitioners running, it, therefore, providing social welfare. The mothers feel better for having the support and less likely to feel that they are under surveillance. Helen explained how at the ‘baby café’ this was an ideal time for the practitioners to monitor for any behavioural signs or other problems which could be harmful early on, therefore, protecting the child through crime control. This is one way that shows entanglement between both social welfare and crime control in a very comfort,...