Supplier for a continuous professional development (CPD) programme on permanence for child and family social workers.

Tender description

The Department made a commitment in Adoption: A vision for change (March 2016) - available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/512826/Adoption_Policy_Paper_30_March_2016.pdf - to develop a continuous professional development programme to enable social workers to develop the knowledge and skills they need to successfully undertake the complex assessment, analysis and permanence decision making we require of them, and progress permanence plans with urgency and skill. The programme is likely to focus on: • improving the quality of permanence assessments of both children and carers; • enabling more robust and evidence-based decisions between different permanence options; • building skills to ensure that court material is well prepared and clearly argued, and developing social workers’ skills in presenting and defending cases in court effectively; • improving the direct work skills necessary to prepare children for permanence and undertake high quality life story work, and training carers in appropriate re-parenting and therapeutic strategies; • commitment to delivering a professional and high quality service where all parties are treated with respect; • ensuring pragmatic and timely matching decisions, where the impact of delay is well understood and there is recognition of how unconscious bias can effect decision making; and • improving the support provided to carers post placement, the diagnosis of support needs and the skills for the commissioning and/ - or delivery of support. We propose to tender for a supplier to develop a CPD programme for child and family social workers involved in achieving permanence. The contract with the supplier will commence in January 2017. In mid-2017 we propose to further tender for a number of suppliers to deliver the CPD programme. We want the CPD programme to be a kite-marked course that includes some sort of test and certification. It will not be compulsory and will not be accredited. Our aim is for a CPD programme that is attractive to social workers and that their employers want them to do. We want to ensure that the programme is sustainable and makes a positive difference in the short and long-term practice of the social workers who attend. The role of the supplier will be to define target audience needs, design the content and delivery mechanism of the CPD programme and potentially refine the programme following an independent evaluation. Indicative timeline: Issue PIN May 2016 Advert placed November 2016 Supplier engagement event 12 October 2016 Contract Award January 2017