‘To the social work manager who supported me through my ASYE’

Our My Brilliant Colleague series invites you to celebrate anyone who has inspired you in your career.

In this entry, newly qualified social worker Anjali Singhal celebrates the team manager who, “without judgement”, supported her through the learning and struggles of her assessed and supported year in employment (ASYE).

This is about my team manager, Nasreen Agal.

I recently completed my assessed and supported year in employment (ASYE) and I was lucky to be in the same team that I had completed my placement in.

I was lucky enough to also remain with the same team manager, Nasreen.

Nasreen is always available to listen – whether it is about personal or professional need – and will always go above and beyond to help.

In one of my cases, I was pushing myself only because I thought it was needed for my career development, and she asked me to sit and reflect if I was ready for this. She provided me support without any judgment and allowed me the time to work on the areas I was struggling with.

She has always been open in her communication and expects honesty in return. There is no micromanagement; instead, she places ownership and responsibility on the professionals while always being available to guide and help them.

Her consideration extends beyond working hours too. Whenever we complete visits in the evening, she ensures that we all confirm we have reached home safely (we have a WhatsApp group for the team).

Thank you Nasreen.

How to nominate a colleague

You can nominate anyone who has inspired you in your career – whether current or former colleagues, managers, students, lecturers, mentors or prominent past or present sector figures whom you have admired from afar.

Nominate your colleague or social work inspiration by filling in our nominations form with a letter or a few paragraphs (100-250 words) explaining how and why the person has inspired you.

Despite the need to provide your name and role, you or the nominee can be anonymous in the published entry.

If you have any questions, email our community journalist, Anastasia Koutsounia, at anastasia.koutsounia@markallengroup.com.