Newly Qualified Social Workers Programmes

Child & Family Training (C&FT) was commissioned by Surrey County Council (SCC) to provide a comprehensive training and coaching programme designed to improve newly qualified social worker’s knowledge, skills and confidence in child and family assessments, parenting assessments, analysis and decision making in child protection and intervention approaches.

The C&FT training and coaching programme formed part of SCC’s Assisted and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE) programme. SCC provided additional elements that focused on agency orientation, procedures and requirements and other relevant topics such as domestic violence.

An evaluation of the C&FT pilot training and coaching programme was commissioned at the outset and was designed to try to understand whether ASYE’s skills, knowledge and confidence improve following training and whether the training is integrated effectively into their practice. 

View the Hope for Children and Families launch

In 2016 Buckinghamshire County Council and Milton Keynes Council commissioned C&FT to contribute to the authorities’ joint ASYE programme.

Four workshops were developed focusing on core practice processes (assessing and analysing; decision-making; planning; intervening; reviewing and evaluating – linked with the C&FT ‘seven stages’ framework) and critical practice themes (working directly with children and young people promoting children and young people’s ‘voice’; working with parents a carers; working with difference and diversity, building strengths and overcoming difficulties; legislation, statutory guidance, policies and procedures; knowledge, theory, research and evidence-based practice; intra- and inter-agency practice).

The workshop programme has drawn on C&FT’s extensive range of practice resources, tools and instruments, and related standardised training courses to create a customised programme.

The fourth cohort is due to start in the Autumn of 2017 and the programme will continue with further cohorts planned for 2018.