The Social Worker Investigation Training (SWIT) had been identified by the Section Manager of the Assessment & Support Team as requiring review and revision. The training had been in the current format for a number of years and it was agreed that it needed to be updated to deliver more relevant training on current practice issues.

The training was delivered over 5 days to 18 staff. Social workers from Conwy and Denbighshire including the Disability Service attended. For the first time since the disbanding of the Joint Investigation Training (JIT) the invite for the training was extended to colleagues from the North Wales Police and officers from the Onyx team also attended. The Onyx team is a newly formed team working with Children who are at risk of Child Sexual Exploitation.

The training was aligned to the Social Worker process as per the All Wales Child Protection Procedures 2008 and the categories of Physical, Sexual, Neglect and Emotional Abuse. The training was delivered by a number of professionals within their respective field, including an Independent Social Worker (previous Head of Children’s Services) focusing on Neglect and Emotional Abuse; Community Paediatrician discussing physical abuse illustrated by pictures of different scenarios and comparing non-accidental with accidental injuries; Police Officers specialising in On line abuse and; a service user who has experienced years of domestic abuse delivering her story in a powerful and heartfelt manner.

For the first time we provided a short scenario enacted by the Drama Group from Llandrillo College, which had a significant impact on the audience.  Following the presentations the attending staff had the opportunity to demonstrate their interpretation of the learning.  This was done with the help of the drama students who returned later during the course to act out realistic child protection scenarios.

The feedback provided was excellent and the investment in refocusing the SWIT has provided an effective learning tool.

Children’s Services receive a high volume of referrals which do not meet the threshold for a service from Family Support & Intervention. In addition there have been delays in providing services for those meeting threshold due to insufficient information within the original referral.  It was therefore felt by the managers of the Assessment & Support Team that an investment was needed into delivering training direct to Education and Health staff in order to improve the appropriateness and the quality of information received.

Three training events per service were organised, targeting 180 staff. The training provided information and examples of when to make a referral and how to make a good quality referral to Children’s Services. The training clarified the distinction between a Child in Need referral and a Child Protection referral and provided examples of good referrals and insight into the poor quality of some of the referrals received. The training explained the threshold to receive a service from Children’s Services and also allowed the opportunity to develop positive working relationships with colleague from other agencies.

Feedback from these training events has been very positive and as a result we are receiving better quality referrals which provide the information that allow our managers to make informed decisions without unnecessary delays.  Data from 2016/2017 should provide the evidence to the effectiveness of the training delivered and whether it has had the desired outcome.

Within the media Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) has had a great deal of attention over the past 12 months.  As the ‘front door’ service within Children Families & Safeguarding, we must ensure that we provide a service with highly skilled staff who are up to date with their knowledge on current trends and practice development. Within Conwy and particularly Assessment and Support & Family Intervention Teams it was recognised that our staff should receive enhanced training on CSE in order to respond effectively to the growing concern.

Staff generally can access basic awareness training but in Conwy we recognized the need to provide families with an effective service particularly with the increased risk presented to children through social media.  The aim is to continue to upskill the workforce to provide direct intervention to the children who are at risk of CSE. We undertook research to identify and commission an organisation that delivered a 2 day bespoke training package.  We specifically targeted practical skills, tools and knowledge to engage with and work with children and their families who are at risk of CSE.

The training was focused on delivering suggestions on interventions to assist the direct work undertaken by social workers and also intervention workers in their engagement with the most vulnerable children and young people.   The feedback was extremely positive and we aim to commission the training again in order to provide the opportunity to additional professionals unable to attend the first event. The tools provided have increased the skill base of our workforce to enable effective support to families and reduce risk.  The resources are also being shared with other professionals.  Whilst it is too early to report on measures or tangible outcomes, this training forms an important element of a developing multi-agency framework to meet this challenge.