Practice learning

A12

Assess and manage risks to individuals, families, carers, groups and communities

• 
  Identify and assess the nature and level of risk; (D44)
  
• 
  Balance the rights and responsibilities of individuals, families, carers, groups and communities with the associated risks; (D45)
  
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  Plan and implement action to reduce risk; (D46)
  
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  Manage risk to individuals, families, carers, groups and communities over time and regularly monitor and re-assess priorities and actions; (D47)
  

2 and 3

• 
  Risk assessment
  
• 
  Risk management
  
• 
  Review reports/meetings
  

A13

Assess, minimise and manage risk to self and colleagues

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  Assess and analyse potential risk to self and colleagues; (D48)
  
• 
  Work within the risk assessment and management procedures of own and other relevant organizations and professions; (D49)
  
• 
  Plan, monitor and review outcomes and actions to minimise risk, stress and harm. (D50)
  

Levels:

• 
  Risk assessment
  
• 
  Risk management
  
• 
  Supervision minutes
  
• 
  Review reports/meetings
  
• 
  Team meeting minutes
  
• 
  Hand-over records
  

Outcome Statements

A14

Manage and be accountable for own work

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  Manage and prioritise their workload within organizational policies and changing demands; (D51)
  

• 
  Carry out duties using accountable professional judgement and evidence based practice; (D52)
  
• 
  Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of own programmes of work in meeting organizational requirements and the needs of individuals, families, carers, groups and communities; (D53)
  
• 
  Improve their own practice, using critical reflection, professional and managerial supervision and other supports as appropriate; (D54)
  
• 
  Prepare for, and participate in decision making forums; (D55)
  

Levels:

• 
  Supervision minutes
  

• 
  Evaluations of practice
  
• 
  Feedback from others
  
• 
  Personal and professional development workbook
  
• 
  Review reports/meetings
  
• 
  Learning agreement
  
• 
  Tripartite minutes
  

A15

Contribute to the management of resources and services

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  Contribute to monitoring the outcomes, quality and cost effectiveness of services in meeting need; (D56)
  
• 
  Contribute to the procedures involved in purchasing and commissioning services for individual packages of care; (D57)
  
• 
  Work with individuals requiring services who decide to use direct payments; (D58)
  
• 
  Contribute to identifying unmet need in service provision; (D59)
  
• 
  Contribute to managing and sharing information; (D60)
  

Levels:

• 
  Care plans
  
• 
  Agency reports
  
• 
  Contact sheets
  
• 
  Letters/memos
  

A16

Manage, present and share records and reports

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  Maintain accurate, complete, accessible, concise and up-to-date records and reports; (D61)
  
• 
  Provide evidence for professional judgements and decisions; (D62)
  
• 
  Implement legal and policy frameworks for access to records and reports and the protection of data, (D63)
  
• 
  Share records with individuals, families, carers, groups and communities as appropriate; (D64)
  
• 
  Share records with other professionals and agencies as appropriate; (D65)
  

2 and 3

• 
  Assessment/Review Reports
  
• 
  Care plans
  
• 
  Agency records
  
• 
  Supervision minutes
  
• 
  Minutes of formal decision-making meetings
  

A17

Work in and across

multi-disciplinary and multi-organisational

teams, networks, systems and agencies to contribute to the integration and effectiveness of services

• 
  Develop and maintain effective working relationships; (D66)
  
• 
  Contribute to identifying, agreeing and evaluating the effectiveness of the goals, objectives and lifespan of the team, network or system; (D67)
  
• 
  Contribute to evaluating the effectiveness of professional work groups; (D68)
  
• 
  Deal constructively with disagreements and conflict within work relationships. (D69)
  

Levels:

• 
  Minutes of formal decision-making meetings
  
• 
  Contracts
  
• 
  Care plans
  
• 
  Daily records
  
• 
  Correspondence
  

Key Role 6: Demonstrate and be responsible for professional competence in social work practice

A18

Research, analyse, evaluate, and use up-to-date knowledge of best social work practice

• 
  Review and regularly update own knowledge of relevant legislation, policy, procedural frameworks and research; (D70)
  
• 
  Articulate the basis for own practice using up-to­-date knowledge; (D71)
  
• 
  Use professional and organizational supervision and support to research, critically analyse, and review the knowledge and evidence base of own practice; (D72)
  
• 
  Implement a range of social work models, methods and programmes which are knowledge and/or evidence based to develop and improve own practice; (D73)
  

Levels:

• 
  Supervision minutes
  
• 
  Tuning-in and evaluation
  
• 
  Learning log
  

A19

Work to agreed standards of social work practice and ensure own professional development

• 
  Exercise and justify professional judgement; (D74)
  
• 
  Use professional assertiveness in justifying decisions and uphold professional social work practice values; (D75)
  
• 
  Work within the ethical principles and standards underpinning social work practice; (D76)
  
• 
  Critically reflect upon own practice and performance; (D77)
  
• 
  Use supervision, consultancy and professional support, and take action to meet continuing professional development needs; (D78)
  
• 
  Meet relevant standards of practice and work in a lawful, safe and effective way; (D79)
  

Levels:

• 
  Service User feedback
  
• 
  Significant interviews
  
• 
  Supervision minutes
  
• 
  Direct observations
  

A20

Manage complex ethical issues, dilemmas and conflicts

• 
  Identify and assess issues, dilemmas and conflicts affecting own practice; (D80)
  
• 
  Devise effective strategies to deal with ethical issues, dilemmas and conflicts; (D81)
  
• 
  Act in circumstances of uncertainty and ambiguity and critically reflect on, and learn from, the outcomes; (D82)
  

Levels:

• 
  Supervision minutes
  
• 
  Tuning-in and evaluation
  
• 
  Process records
  
• 
  Learning log
  

A21

Contribute to the promotion of best social work practice

• 
  Contribute knowledge of best practice within own team, organisation and other networks to inform policy review and development; (D83)
  
• 
  Use supervision, together with other organisational, professional and information systems, to inform courses of action including where practice falls below required standards and to promote best practice; (D84)
  
• 
  Work with colleagues in related professions and contribute to team and service developments(D85)
  

Levels:

• 
  Supervision minutes
  
• 
  Presentation to team meeting/Student group
  
• 
  Evaluation of practice
  

• 
  Prepares adequately before contact – reviews agency notes and liaises at a multi-disciplinary level when appropriate
  
• 
  Takes account of relevant information, e.g. socio-demographic, physical, intra-personal, interpersonal etc.
  
• 
  Can set objectives for initial contact/assessment
  
• 
  Understands the legislative framework within which the agency operates
  
• 
  Demonstrates progression from random use of theory to being able to choose those most applicable to each situation and individual. Psychological, sociological and social policy perspectives should be evident as the placement progresses
  
• 
  Is concerned to understand service users’ beliefs, values and cultural contexts as well as their personal resources, and the potential significance of these for the work in hand
  

• 
  Demonstrates awareness of difference (e.g. of power, race or gender, values or aims) and any potential impact
  
• 
  Demonstrates ability to respond in an appropriate and timely fashion to referrals
  

• 
  Establishes initial contact and the reason for contact. Is able to introduce self, clarifying role and function including any statutory / legal mandate for contact
  
• 
  Agrees agenda with service user and negotiates the objectives for the initial interview
  
• 
  Presents information in a clear, user friendly manner, appropriate to the person and the situation
  
• 
  Is able to respond flexibly to new information that would inform the assessment
  
• 
  Assesses and plans in co-operation with service users and other appropriate parties
  
• 
  Demonstrates the use of a range of interpersonal skills to illicit appropriate information from the service user, carer and groups to inform the assessment process.
  
• 
  Shows progression from skimming the surface to more in-depth information gathering
  
• 
  Can help service users to identify strengths, needs, risks and resources
  
• 
  Is able to identify the risks as well as the needs within the assessment
  
• 
  Demonstrates ability to balance needs and risks
  
• 
  Can develop or revise an assessment in response to new information
  
• 
  Can link available resources to assessment outcomes
  
• 
  Can convey an analysis and justification of their assessment in supervision
  

• 
  Seeks advice when appropriate to make informed decisions throughout the assessment process
  
• 
  Completes assessment as per agency requirements, which includes clear recommendations / course of action, which also includes the views of the service user. This should then be used to underpin the care planning process
  
• 
  Demonstrates an understanding of the impact of similarities and differences between self and service user
  
• 
  Demonstrates knowledge of the individual within a social context
  
• 
  Shows understanding of the impact of beliefs, values and cultural context on assessment process
  
• 
  Shows ability to work within legislative and policy requirements
  
• 
  Demonstrates self-awareness in relation to impact of self on service users
  

• 
  Demonstrates minimal or no preparation prior to contact - does not make use of available information from agency notes or discussions with other members of own team or wider multi-disciplinary team
  
• 
  Unable to locate the service user within their social context
  
• 
  Lacks clarity about initial contact and fails to set objectives
  
• 
  Very limited knowledge of the agency legislative and policy framework
  
• 
  Continually uses the same theory or randomly selects largely irrelevant theory
  
• 
  Shows little or no understanding of the service users’ beliefs, values or cultural context nor acknowledges their personal resources
  
• 
  Shows limited ability to develop awareness of AOP perspectives and their impact
  
• 
  Does not develop ability to prioritise work and respond appropriately to referrals
  

• 
  Avoids or delays making contact with people
  
• 
  Fails to develop a sound knowledge of the statutory / legal context of the agency
  
• 
  Lacks clarity about their role and function and is thus unable to explain this appropriately to others
  
• 
  Doesn’t encourage or enable the service user to contribute to the agenda
  
• 
  Uses jargon rather than user friendly language
  
• 
  Withholds information or overloads people
  
• 
  Sticks rigidly to referral information rather than acknowledging and responding to new information
  
• 
  Does not show ability to work in partnership to assess and plan
  
• 
  Unable to use a range of skills to gather appropriate information to inform the assessment process
  
• 
  Works at a surface level thus the work tends to be shallow and simplistic
  
• 
  Doesn’t encourage or enable the service user to participate
  
• 
  Neglects to identify strengths and resources, instead showing an over reliance on needs and risks unnecessarily
  
• 
  Is rigid and unresponsive to new or changing information or circumstances
  
• 
  Fails to identify and use appropriate resources linked to assessment outcomes
  
• 
  Unable to analyse assessment
  
• 
  Is generally unclear and unpersuasive when trying to present assessment
  
• 
  Does not seek advice when appropriate or makes decisions which are beyond their competence level or role
  
• 
  Unable to meet the acceptable standard within their agency in terms of completing assessment
  
• 
  Fails to consider or acknowledge the potential impact of differences and similarities between self and service users
  
• 
  Is unable to present the service user’s situation within a social context
  
• 
  Does not acknowledge the beliefs, values or cultural context of the service user
  

• 
  Limited or no self-awareness and no consideration of impact of self on others