Continuing Professional Development

Ruth Stark, Professional Officer with BASW, insists that service users deserve a social care workforce whose ‘learning never stops’…

‘Developing a competent, confident workforce’ is the branding the SSSC took when it was first set up to register and regulate the social services sector in Scotland. We display our competence, and it is often assessed, by the confidence that we have in our own learning and although we all learn in different ways, some from observation, some from books and some by being taught how to do things.

Once we have assimilated that knowledge and consolidated it through our practice we become regarded as skilled and useful practitioners and/or managers. But the learning never stops.

The role that the Regulatory bodies such as GSCC and SSSC should play in re-registration is monitoring that we are taking responsibility for our own learning through the re-registration requirements. It should ensure that we are not becoming lax or negligent in developing our skills, knowledge and practice wisdom and it should take action if we do not take that regular MOT.

How they do this still needs some appraisal across the UK so that it can be a seen as a credible and rigorous system (Professional Social Work, May 2007).The people who use our services deserve that from us.

So what are the opportunities out there to develop ourselves as key people in the delivery of services? What are our employers’ responsibilities to support us in the development of that competent, confident workforce?

Firstly employers do have a responsibility to support staff development. It is in the Code of Practice for Employers published by the all the regulatory bodies including the SSSC:

no 3:
As a social service employer, you must provide training and development opportunities to enable social service workers to strengthen and develop their skills and knowledge.

There is also a duty to make sure that each registered employee can achieve their own PRTL of 15 days in each 3 year registration period including 5 days focusing on work with vulnerable people. If your employer is not helping you achieve these goals contact your union or professional association, you have a professional right to expect support from them to undertake your professional duty.

Social work is about change – helping people adapt to change in their lives, perhaps loss of sight or hearing, loss of good health, getting old, reacting to stress, being the victim of crime or changing behaviour that has led to social exclusion and isolation from the community. So social workers are very good at helping other people negotiate change, but how good are we at noticing what is happening to ourselves.

We all grow and develop in this work – it is one of the reasons we joined up – never a dull moment! Social work staff have to be flexible, able to respond, meet people’s needs as well as assessing risk. As any well trained athlete we have to keep fit in these skills that we offer as our contribution to public service. Therefore we have to take time to do that training.

So where are the opportunities and how do you collate what you are learning. Keeping a log of what you read, what you learnt and what you could use next time you are faced with a given situation. You could have observed a colleague and thought – that was a good intervention – I must note that. You might get the chance to go on a course, study day or conference and heard something that challenged you to think about how you do your work back at base. Again note it, log it and gradually you will realise how much you are learning every day how to do your work more effectively and more creatively.

You will also be collating evidence that you are able to present to the SSSC or other regulatory body of your PRTL. If you do it on your computer make sure you have a back up system!

There are opportunities at all levels in the social work sector. ADSW have a conference every year, as do SCA, COT, RCN, EIS and BASW where the general policy issues across all sectors are given some prominence and specific issues highlighted. Then there are individual study days and seminars to address specific issues or develop intra-disciplinary learning.

Meetings to develop new services or develop longer established initiatives all constitute learning. BASW meetings to discuss practice and policy developments also constitute additions to PRTL. Reading and undertaking research adds to our knowledge and our portfolio. Contributing to best guidance documents and training materials – or discovering new interventions that work.

Sometimes we forget just how difficult it was on those first few attempts to ride a two wheeled bike without falling off, or drive a car without crashing the gears or coming to an abrupt halt.  Here we are required to chart our learning.

So what is the pay off? When you are standing alone in a witness box or being asked for your contribution in a case conference or departmental meeting you will be able to speak from your own observations, your knowledge about particular aspects of the case, your knowledge of what works and what doesn’t work.

The fact that you have charted your own learning and taken responsibility for it will boost your confidence in that knowledge and practice wisdom and your presentation of that evidence.

It will help in your advocacy skills working with the service user, knowledge is power and shared knowledge is shared power. Not only will you be a more confident worker but the people with whom you work will become more empowered.

Taking time therefore for PRTL is critical if we are to be part of that competent, confident workforce. If you are experiencing difficulty accessing that ‘professional right’ to enable you to do your ‘professional duty’ then you need to seek help from your union or professional association to do that.

The fact remains that we a have a duty to our communities to keep our professional knowledge and skills to the highest possible standard  and  –  go for Gold!

Contact the author, Ruth Stark