It was great to hear Sara Wells talk about the reality of working as a newly qualified social worker in her new team.
She was an excellent advocate for better links between universities and the workplace. I hope that some of the managers listening were persuaded of the importance of ensuring improved personalised support plans, regular supervision and mentoring schemes in the first two years of work following qualification.
Both of the workshops I attended were excellent. Professor Sue White was especially responsive to delegate’s questions on “Research in Practice”. She was refreshingly honest about her experience of the practical difficulties of completing research projects, including instances where sponsors do not value the results as much as they should.
Keith Brown made “Carry on learning” particularly entertaining. He is a good role model for maintaining a sense of humour when working within difficult work environments. He made a good case for not continuously changing post-qualification systems too much.
Marcus Bell, Director of the Workforce Group at the Department for Children, Schools and Families, presented statistics confirming that many staff work unpaid overtime. The Social Work Task Force will offer no magic solution to this problem.
I enjoyed sharing my experiences with others at the conference, and picked up copies of a research briefing from the SCIE stand to read on the return journey.
Thanks GSCC!
Jan
Jan Constable won the SWC competition for a free place at this years GSCC conference.
