Continuing Professional Development - Shared objectives
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
It's easy to talk about integrated working, less easy to do it without training. Karen Faux reports on a new course.
While integrated working is recognised as being essential in the drive to place children at the heart of services, more training is required to give practitioners a clear understanding of how they can share resources and work with colleagues from other services.
A new level 3 scheme is now being trialled by the Children's Workforce Development Council in partnership with Skills for Care and Development. 'Integrated Practice: A Programme of Learning for Early years and Childcare Practitioners' represents 20 hours of learning across two units. It is designed by children's charity 4Children and awarding body Edexcel to be a relatively short, but effective, learning module for every type of practitioner.
'The move towards integrated working can only be realised if professionals involved in delivery have a clear picture of how they interact in the broader framework of children's services,' says 4Children chief executive Anne Longfield.
Edexcel says the programme is part of a wider move to develop credit-based qualifications that will eventually sit on the Integrated Qualifications Framework. Sue Parr, senior business manager at Edexcel, says, 'This project is being carefully managed and there are not a vast number of places on it. However, once it is evaluated, and if it proves successful, it will be rolled out nationally.'
The range of topics across the two units includes health and safety, safeguarding children, integrated working and community skills. The course looks at different uses of terminology and language, examples of good practice in partnership working and shared protocols and signposting methods, including the Common Assessment Framework.
'It will help practitioners to understand the principles of integrated working through taught and setting-based study,' says Ms Parr. 'They will learn how different professionals work towards shared objectives. It will also help the learner to adopt a reflective approach to practice.'
Ms Parr reports that the response from local authorities in England has so far been positive, with strong recognition of the programme's ability to tackle key areas of joined up working in a way all practitioners can relate to.
Further information:
The Integrated Practice programme is available to employers and local authorities. See www.edexcel.org.uk.
