Social workers, and the wider social service workforce (SSW), do not only operate in the provision of core social services in the social welfare sector. They can play a critical role across sectors, including the justice system, in helping reach and engage the most vulnerable individuals and communities with support and services.

This ASEAN Guidance is intended to support policy makers, managers and members of the social service workforce in ASEAN Member States (AMS) to consider the ways in which professional social workers, as well as the wider social service workforce, can be most effectively deployed in working with vulnerable individuals, including children and their families, who are involved in the justice system, whether as victims, witnesses or as people accused of crimes. This guidance will then help inform efforts to better plan, develop and support the workforce in these settings.

The Guidance also sets out how cross-sectoral deployment of social service workers can lead to enhanced and more sustained positive outcomes for target populations, by addressing underlying psycho-social factors which can contribute to improvements in justice outcomes.