Memorandum submitted by Research in Practice
INTRODUCTION
Research in Practice actively supports a network
of over 100 public and voluntary sector agencies across England
and Wales in using an evidence-informed approach to improve services
and outcomes for vulnerable children and families.
We limit our response to comments in Care
Matters: Time for Change White Paper and provisions in the
Children and Young Person's Bill relating to elements relating
to the role of the practitioner. We have worked closely with children's
services for over a decade. Our roots are firmly in children's
social care, focusing primarily on promoting positive outcomes
for children through the delivery of evidence-informed services
at all levels of organisational structure, including front line
practitioners. Our response specifically relates to the following
parts:
1. Remodelling the children's Social Care workforce.
2. Social worker training development and links
to recruitment and retention.
3. Social work practices.
1. REMODELLING
THE SOCIAL
CARE WORKFORCE
1.1 Care Matters: Time for Change responds
to the need for reform of the social care workforce in direct
contact with children and young people drawing from analysis of
response to the Green Paper. At its heart is the challenge to
create an environment where children and young people have a stable
relationship with their social worker who can give them adequate
time and with whom they can develop trust. Our experience reflects
the general consensus that while pockets of good practice exists,
under current structures social workers have not been able to
provide continuity of care. We therefore welcome the remodelling
pilots that are being undertaking with the Children's Workforce
Development Council and would advocate for careful design and
evaluation of the 30 pilots (although we understand that since
the White Paper was published there are now only 18). It will
be less possible to identify general trends across 18 pilots.
However, even then the very different nature of Local Authorities
across the nine regions and other structural change occurring
alongside the pilots will influence findings. What may happen
is that pockets of good practice emerge that cannot be attributed
to any particular intervention. However, if an approach is adopted
where the agencies share knowledge across piloting areas, and
are transparent about their methods, successes and failures, the
potential for developing a sound qualitative understanding of
what works through the development of case-studies and testimonies
is significant. A generous timescale for piloting and evaluation
negotiated with those participating, is recommended.
1.2 We welcome further investment in ICT
to enable social workers to work flexibly and make more efficient
use of time. We would add that ICT investment also potentially
increases the ability of social workers to link to research sites
and analytical tools which in turn aids them to make evidence-informed
decisions. One frustration of developing on-line and multi-media
learning tools has been the inconsistency across local authorities
in the provision and access of ICT. It is not simply provision
that is the issue but also the importance of ensuring on-line
and disk access is enabled. A current Change Project led by research
in practice has focused on this area. The Change Project "Growing
Digital" is currently working with a team of social work
managers to develop on-line learning to better enable analysis
in assessment and to conduct on-line assessments that link key
research messages to assessments.
1.3 In relation to the Integrated Children's
system, we would welcome findings from the evaluation of the pilots
about what has been found to be effective in relation to implementation
and its impact on core processes and services for children and
families. We have anecdotal evidence from some of our agencies
that due to the drive for efficiency, focus on systems reform
and restructuring, that social workers are loosing the ability
to focus on children and family needs and are becoming increasingly
system focused. This anecdotal evidence arises from networking
with leaders of evidence-informed practice within our agencies
and also through developing case-study workshops where expert
facilitators work with social workers to get them to re-focus
on need.
1.4 It is encouraging that the White Paper
builds on evidence and research that was presented in the Green
Paper. We particularly welcome the desire to learn from international
examples of social pedagogy, as expressed in paragraphs 7.10 and
3.59. In recent years evidence such as that from the Thomas Coram
Research Unit[1]
has shown the possible benefits of adopting the approach. The
ethos fits in with the UK Government's current aspiration for
a holistic approach to the provision of services for children.
The White Paper mentions pilots in residential care. To adopt
the approach more widely, there would also need to be a value
shift and links with Universities who are potential providers
of academic learning in relation to social pedagogy. The research
indicates that this would involve considerable financial investment.
2. SOCIAL WORK
TRAINING AND
DEVELOPMENT AND
LINKS TO
RECRUITMENT AND
RETENTION
2.1 We are enthused by further endorsement
in the White Paper of commitment to social work training and skills
development and look forward to the forthcoming Children's Workforce
Strategy which will aim to develop skills and knowledge in relation
to the aspects of workforce reform addressed in this response
and would hope that the strategy continues to place emphasis on
the importance of evidence-informed practice and the role the
approach plays in developing a workforce with the ability to analyse
complex information and develop evidence-informed decisions.
2.2 We are particularly committed to encouraging
better performance by social workers undertaking assessments and
building care plans. Our work over the last three years developing
guidance for social workers using research evidence in court[2]
has focused on practice improvement in developing evidence-informed
assessments, plans and reports for court. Alongside this work
the NCB have developed tools to aid analysis in assessment.[3]
Both projects provide practical materials that are rooted in practice.
We are passionate about delivering training and skills development
agendas that link the research and practice worlds together. Local
Post Qualifying Consortia should continue to develop effective
partnerships between employers and Universities in order to provide
education that has local practice relevance.
2.3 We also support the work done by SCIE[4]
which underpins the GSCC's commitment to working towards full
participation of services users and carers in the development
of the social work degree. It is heartening to see in the White
Paper reference to supporting access for Carers to the new social
work qualifications framework. This participation also has the
potential to help refocus social workers on need rather than services.
2.4 Particularly welcomed is the proposed
"newly qualified" status for social workers which has
the potential to increase confidence and competence of the workforce
and aid quality assurance in relation to service delivery as reflected
in current practice in health and education. To illustrate why
we think this is important we can take an example from the Change
Project referred to below[5]
which found that newly qualified social workers were often unprepared
and lacking in experience to give evidence confidently in the
family court. Many agencies had a policy that social workers would
not be put in this position until at least two years into practice.
However, this was not a reality for all social workers and practice
and support varied across the country.
2.5 In paragraph 7.12 specific reference
is made to developing training in relation to safeguarding, child
development and the capacity to deliver evidence-based interventions.
In the summary to the chapter it also mentions attachment. Developing
skills and specialisms in these areas will significantly impact
on a social worker's ability to make professional assessments
and may well reduce or at least make more obvious where further
expert opinion is required. Tool 4 in the forthcoming publication
Evidence Matters: Social work expertise in the Family Court[6]
was developed from looking at the National Occupational Standards,
PQ and Degree frameworks and induction standards. It lists the
areas of practice that a social worker is expected to have knowledge
in. Any one of the 56 areas listed could potentially be an area
of specialism and the tool brings home the very broad range of
skills a social worker is expected to have. We welcome that the
White Paper expresses commitment to explore with partners options
for greater specialisation in social work qualifying degrees both
at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
2.6 There are concerns within the research
in practice network about Post Qualifying no longer being linked
to a Performance Indicator. Where money was ring fenced PQ had
a status of priority. This also encouraged the development of
recruitment and retention strategies that linked PQ to probation
and progression. The Government must do everything it can to encourage
local authorities to support PQ and Continuing Professional Development
if the aspirations in the White Paper are to be achieved.
2.7 Over the past five years research in
practice has aimed to link the continuing professional development
methods we provide with beneficial accreditation mechanisms, in
order to maximise the benefit to professionals engaging in CPD.
We believe that much more could be done to ensure that high quality
training and development is recognised. In particular we feel
that the requirements for Post Registration Training and Learning
do little to ensure that the CPD social workers engage with has
any element of quality. Much more could be done to link PRTL with
recognised the diversity of high quality training providers and
also link with common induction standards.
3. SOCIAL WORK
PRACTICES
3.1 In responding to the Green Paper, research
in practice raised concerns about the introduction of Social Work
Practices. Since that response the power to enter into arrangement
for discharge of care functions now has prominence in Part 1 of
the Children and Young Persons Bill, along with provisions for
piloting. We welcome plans to pilot and reiterate what is stated
above about ensuring that effective evaluation plans are put in
place to maximise the benefits of the piloting process, ensuring
that evidence can be drawn out about reducing staff turn-over,
increasing time with children, decreasing social work time spent
on bureaucratic requirements. Although assessment of the impact
of SWP's on longer-term outcomes for children and young people
will be difficult, if not impossible to achieve during the period
of these pilots, inclusion of their views in the design as well
as participation in the evaluation will be valuable.
3.2 We hope that our concerns that this
model might undermining the drive towards effective evidence-informed
front line practice will be taken on board and that positive steps
are taken to maximise the role of Social Work Practices as possible
sites for developing practice knowledge and research. We are in
support of the aspiration's behind SWP's set out in Consistent
Care Matters[7]
although to deliver these a change in culture would be required
to protect SWP's from becoming embroiled in the same restraining
bureaucracy in which social workers currently operate. National
and International research shows that such a climate is not conducive
to recruitment and retention. SWP's need to be driven by need
and not systems and if that can be achieved the potential for
them being more effective in developing positive and enduring
relationships with looked after children may be significant.
CONCLUSION
We fully support the Government's endeavours
to improve social work practice in relation to Looked After Children.
We are enthused by the Government's focus on practice improvement
in this area and are advocating for keeping evidence-informed
practice high on the agenda in relation to workforce reform. Maintaining
a focus on children and young peoples needs and being able to
reach best decisions through understanding what works and applying
critical skills in relation to assessments and care plans is central
to what we try to achieve when working with practitioners. We
are pleased to see these issues covered in the White Paper and
that aiming for continuity of care for Looked After Children is
at the heart of the proposals.
February 2008
1 Petrie P, Boddy J, Cameron C, Heptinstall, E, McQuail
S, Simon A, Wigfall V (2005) Pedagogy-a holistic, personal
approach to work with children and young people across services:
European models for practice, training, education and qualification
Thomas Coram Research Unit, Briefing Paper June 2005. Back
2
Eccles C, Erlen N (2006) Social Work and the Use of Research
Evidence in the Family Court, research in practice, Dartington. Back
3
Dalzell R, Sawyer E (2007) Putting Analysis into Assessment
NCB. Back
4
Levin E (2004) Involving Service Users and carers in social
work education SCIE. Back
5
Eccles C, Erlen N (2006) Social Work and the Use of Research
Evidence in the Family Court, research in practice, Dartington. Back
6
Eccles C, Erlen N (2008) Evidence Matters: Social work expertise
in the Family Court, research in practice (forthcoming). Back
7
Le Grand, J (2007) Consistant Care Matters: Exploring the Potential
of Social Work Practices. Back
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