Principal Children and Families Social Worker network meeting 18 - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Principal Children and Families Social Worker network meeting

18 December 2019

Welcome & minutes of last meeting

Claudia Megele & Carol Sibley National Chair and Vice Chair @PCFSWNetwork

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Chair update

Claudia Megele National Chair

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Communication and Leadership

Leadership in communication for PSWs: writing for the media (27 Feb. 2020)

https://www.eventsforce.net/mag/847/home

Communication in practice leadership: understanding and responding to the media (5 December 2019)

• How to make sense of and present complex stories.
• Impact and the order of telling.
• Strategies for achieving impact quickly when on camera.
• Getting the language right for a mass media audience.
• Showcasing good practice in developing a good story.
• Handling crisis situations.
• Different stories for different outlets.

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CPD PD Leadership ip Programme

• The principal social worker as a system’s leader
• These one-day workshops will focus on understanding and applying the

principles of systems leadership in the context of the PSW role.

• We will focus on the Host Model of Leadership and provide the opportunity for

participants to consider the ways in which they apply this in their role.

• The facilitators will employ interactive methods that will enable participants to

share their thoughts and ideas and learn from each other’s experience.

• Festival of leadership practice - Festival of Leadership Practice – One Day

National Event 30 April 2020

• This national workshop will celebrate the PSW’s unique leadership role. Drawing
• n the excellent practice that already exists within the PSW network, we’ll

explore the approaches that create most impact. PSWs will be encouraged to reflect upon their individual leadership style and consider ways in which this can be enhanced. This will be a very interactive and practice-based event, with plenty of opportunity to learn from each other.

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PCFSW SW Research & Pract ctice Development Project ct Partners

and in media partnership with:

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PSW Research ch & Pract ctice ce Development Project ct

• For our survey we have had 1753 participants.
• 20 active local authority partners.
• Our interim results were presented on 18 November at King’s College

Conference in our MRC Conference and were well received.

• A number of additional local authorities and nataionl organisation have

expressed interest to join the project and have requested to postpone the deadline for the survey.

• Therefore, we are extending the deadline for completion of survey to 15

February 2020.

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Vice Chair update

Carol Sibley Vice Chair

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National Child Safeguarding panel

Isabelle Trowler Chief Social Worker

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Break

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Enabling positive change in social work

Social Work England is a specialist body taking a new approach to regulating social workers in their vital roles. We believe in the power of collaboration and share a common goal with those we regulate – to protect the public, enable positive change and ultimately improve people’s lives

Who we are

Our Journey So Far….

• Children and Social Work Bill received royal assent on 28 April 2017.
• Social Workers Regulations 2018 laid before Parliament on 22 July 2018.
• Chair, CEO and Executive Leadership Team fully appointed by December 2018.
• Operational base in Sheffield opened in December 2018.
• We published our appointment rules on 31 January 2019 following a public

consultation.

• We launched our brand in February 2019.
• Ongoing recruitment.
• Consultation on rules and standards – March to May 2019.
• Regional Engagement Team Established in June 2019
• CPD consultation – October to November 2019
• 2nd December 2019 – Go live

We…..

• Set professional standards for social workers in England, including continuous professional

development standards.

• Will hold the register for circa 96,000 social workers.
• Set initial education and training standards and approve qualifying courses.
• Evaluate social workers’ continuing professional development.
• Approve post qualifying courses for persons who are, or wish to become, approved to act as approved

mental health professionals and courses for persons who are, or wish to become, approved to act as best interest assessors.

• Handle concerns raised to us about a social worker and assess whether a social worker’s practice has

fallen short of the professional standards.

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• Day 1 - 4.4K hits on the website & 255 calls
• 19% of Social Workers have authenticated

their online account as of 13/12/19

• Go live video on Twitter seen 6.8k times
• Sense of positivity

Reflections on go live

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Regional Engagement Team

Engage, collaborate and coproduce with:

• Social workers
• People with lived experience
• Social work educators and trainers
• Social work students
• Partner organisations
• Social work employers

…to raise the standards of social work, and raise the profile of the profession …by supporting stakeholders to embed our professional standards and standards of education and training and to identify emerging trends, themes and issues and gather information and intelligence to inform our approach to regulation

• We have make direct contact with 1600+ social

workers

• Positive response
• Held 3 regional events with 100+ attendees
• 3 Twitter Q&A sessions
• Met with BASW
• Met with OFSTED
• Made contact with all Local Authorities
• Engagement survey

Headlines

• CPD
• Fees
• Student registration
• Online account
• National conference
• Regional engagement

So far…

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CPD Process – Year 1

CPD year starts Social worker carries out CPD Social worker records in

• nline account

By end of year, social worker ensures they have met our requirements Social worker confirms at point

• f renewal that they continue

to uphold the professional standards, which include requirements around CPD Regulator selects 2.5% sample from social workers that have uploaded CPD, notifies them and confirms they are valid CPD entries Regulator determines which social workers have not uploaded any CPD and determines an appropriate course of action

Recording CPD – My Social Work England Account

• Social Work England provide an
• nline account for all social

workers

• Social workers are required to

upload their CPD

• There are template options to

upload your CPD

• 4. As a social worker, I will:

4.1. Incorporate feedback from a range of sources, including from people with lived experience of my social work practice. 4.2. Use supervision and feedback to critically reflect

• n, and identify my learning needs, including how I use

research and evidence to inform my practice. 4.3. Keep my practice up to date and record how I use research, theories and frameworks to inform my practice and my professional judgement. 4.4. Demonstrate good subject knowledge on key aspects of social work practice and develop knowledge

• f current issues in society and politics impacting on

social work. 4.5. Contribute to an open and creative learning culture in the workplace to discuss, reflect on and share best practice. 4.6. Reflect on my learning activities and evidence what impact continuous professional development has on the quality of my practice. 4.7. Record my learning and reflection on a regular basis and in accordance with Social Work England’s guidance

• n continuing professional development.

4.8. Reflect on my own values and challenge the impact they have on my practice.

Professional Standards relating to CPD

Structured form

Structured form

• 1. Look out for an email from Social Work England – check our

website for updates socialworkengland.org.uk

• 2. Set up an online account with Social Work England

Next steps…

Questions

Lunch

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Developing Principles for Good Practice when working with Domestic Abuse

Pam Ledward & Robert Tapsfield Family Rights Group

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Robert Tapsfield

Independent Consultant

www.frg.org.uk

Pam Ledward

Principal Social Work Adviser

Family Rights Group’s advice service

There has been a stark rise in calls from mothers experiencing domestic abuse contacting FRG for advice about children’s services involvement – from 16% of callers overall in 2007/8 to 68% of callers

• verall in 2018/19.

Information from the advice service shows that mothers who have experienced or are experiencing domestic abuse often feel unsupported by children’s services and that the child protection process can compound their experience of being victims. The onus is still often exclusively on mothers to demonstrate they can protect their child, with fathers and father figures too often not held accountable or overlooked.

www.frg.org.uk

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Keeping Safe project

Funded by Trust for London the project aimed to enable women in London who are survivors of domestic abuse to be in a position to make informed decisions and influence what happens to their children when social workers are involved. Joint project with Rights of Women since February 2014. The advisory board included specialist workers from Refuge, Women’s Aid, SafeLives, Solace, DVIP, children’s services representatives, and mothers with experience of the child welfare system.

www.frg.org.uk

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Keeping Safe project (2014 to 2019)

Work included:

• Specialist and tailored information on FRG’s website for

mothers experiencing domestic abuse, including online frequently asked questions (FAQs) and a downloadable leaflet.

• FAQs for social workers and for domestic abuse practitioners.
• Consultancy with London Boroughs of Southwark and

Wandsworth.

• A downloadable leaflet ‘Top tips for children and family social

workers working with families affected by domestic abuse.’

www.frg.org.uk

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• Focus on engaging and communicating with mothers.
• Safety planning.
• Power issues: what power dynamics may be at play and

what the impact of these are.

• Prioritise safety.
• Work with resistance: recognise fears about children’s

services involvement.

• Effective and risk-aware communication with mothers.
• Engage and communicate with fathers and father-figures

directly.

www.frg.org.uk

Top tips for working with families affected by domestic abuse

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Top tips for working with families affected by domestic abuse

• Role of FGCs in bringing the family network together to

make safe plans for the child.

• Help parents understand that both the mother and the

father are equally responsible for keeping their child safe from harm, including harm from witnessing abuse.

• Make sure that you know and understand the legal

framework and your authority’s policies and procedures. If the policies are having unintended consequences, managers should be made aware.

• Signposting to further support and information services.

www.frg.org.uk

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Self audit tool and learning

• For children’s services senior managers to review policies and

practice for families experiencing domestic abuse in their area in

• rder to inform a local action plan for improvement. Tool was piloted

in LB Southwark and Wandsworth and is being updated. Project learning included:

• Importance of DCS and senior manager ownership.
• Practice model and strategic plan.
• Impact of changes in key staff, Ofsted visits, organisational changes

etc.

• Identify key champions for change.

www.frg.org.uk

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Draft principles for good practice

These principles are intended to underpin and inform the work of practitioners, managers and commissioners in statutory and voluntary settings, who are engaged in providing services for children and/or adults where there is or has been domestic abuse and children’s services are or may become involved. Should be seen as additional and complimentary to other good practice or professional principles that guide and inform practice.

www.frg.org.uk

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Draft principles for good practice

• 1. Children’s lived experience, needs and voices should

be heard and understood and must always be central to planning and decision making.

• 2. Domestic abuse needs to be understood in a context
• f power imbalances and gender inequalities in society.
• 3. Listen to and explore the knowledge, experience and

views of victims.

www.frg.org.uk

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Draft principles for good practice

• 4. Hold perpetrators to account for their abusive behaviour

while recognising that this is not all that defines them.

• 5. Work with adult and child victims to ensure they are safe,

and do not hold adult victims responsible for preventing abuse and ensuring the safety of their children.

• 6. Engage with the whole family where this is safe to do so,

whilst always listening to the victims’ views about this.

www.frg.org.uk

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Draft principles for good practice

• 7. All practitioners working with families need an understanding of

domestic abuse, and to have the skills and confidence to work with victims, adults and children, and perpetrators.

• 8. Commissioners need to take a whole system approach covering

public health and education and early help and specialist services for children harmed by domestic abuse, victims/survivors and perpetrators.

• 9. Engage with child and adult victims and perpetrators on their

experiences of using services and work with them to improve and develop services.

www.frg.org.uk

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Consultation questions

• Is there anything missing?
• Do you disagree with any of the principles?
• Can you identify any difficulties with the principles as

written?

• Are you aware of any other work being undertaken to

develop principles covering domestic abuse?

• Do you have any good examples of putting principles

into practice?

www.frg.org.uk

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Principles for good practice: next steps

Consulting with children, women and men (including FRG’s parents’ panel members) and with practitioners, managers, commissioners and academics from across the sector. Consultation responses by the end of January 2020. Send to: robert.tapsfield@gmail.com Principles agreed by March 2020,

www.frg.org.uk

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Break

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Complexity in Practice: e- book contributions

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Table discussion: What advice would you give to your younger social work self?

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Spending Review: PSW Priorities

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Introducing the PCFSW CPD Programme

Hilary Medway Skills for Care

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An exciting offer for 2020

• Media Training Workshops
• Special Interest workshops, Webinars and Practice

Guidance

• Workshops to support self-facilitated Action

Learning

• PSW Leadership Development
• E book

www.skillsforcare.org.uk/PSWCPD

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PSW Leadership

Two part offer – with capacity for all:

• Festival of Leadership Practice – One Day National

Event 30 April 2020

• The PCFSW as a Systems Leader – Four one-day

regionally located workshops in May 2020

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PSW Leadership – Sharing the learning

We are looking for examples of:

• Excellent engagement with children and young

people, families and communities

• The establishment of Innovative partnerships
• Successful organisational culture change

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@skillsforcare @PCFSWNetwork www.skillsforcare.org.uk/psw

Keep in touch ☺

PSWnetworks@skillsforcare.org.uk

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