Learning Network North Blog
This blog provides updates on events, conferences and meetings members of the Learning Network North team have participated in or have facilitated (as and when appropriate). The blog entries do not form an exhaustive list of events / conferences / meetings we are contributing to but are intended to provide an overview of the kind of work and initiatives we are engaging with.
Moving Moray Forward (Wed 16 Mar 2011) posted by Jan Foster.
Leadership Motivating & Inspiring !!
The conference took place on Friday 28th January 2011 at the Eight Acres Hotel , Elgin and featured local and national speakers.
Download documents and presentations from the event.
Flyer (pdf)
Programme (pdf)
Speakers' profiles (pdf)
Workshop Leaders' profiles (pdf)
Workshop One - Leading Together (pdf), Leading Together Linked Reports (pdf)
Workshop Three - Citizen Leaders' presentation (pdf)
Download the Conference Report (pdf)
Did you attend? Take part in a short post event survey at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/V63PBRR
Administrators Local Area Network (Mon 14 Mar 2011) posted by Carolle Smith.
March 2011
This has been the second round of networking themed sessions for administrative staff from all sectors employed in social services in the North. The previous sessions focused on presentations from the various colleges advising people on courses available to them to further their individual skills bank. This round of workshops comprised of input from representatives from recruitment agencies and college employability staff.
We hoped that by inviting debate on topics around recruitment it would encourage individuals to consider their own personal and employability skills, think about how they might sell themselves if the opportunity for promotion arises or indeed as many of our staff are facing redundancy or the end of service contracts, gain some knowledge to help them promote themselves in the employment market.
We were very lucky to have three enthusiastic and highly motivated speakers talk to each group. June Crombie from Global Recruitment in Inverness, Andrew Burton from Aberdeen Appointments Agency/ Continuum Training and Brian Currie, Employability Officer from Moray College Elgin. The Network is hugely appreciative of all our speakers who have given of their services completely free of charge.
A number of common themes came from all three sessions:
CVs
Should be up to date, contain a good personal statement and help you stand out from the crowd. These should be simple, clarify breaks from employment, contain specific dates, perhaps laid out differently to attract attention and basically sell you in that initial stage of the process. The groups saw examples of CVs and in Moray, a very helpful handout on the preparation of CVs.
Interview tips
Check out the format of the interview before the day
Check out where it is and arrive early
Prepare in advance, know a little about the company and what it does
Dress appropriately and make sure your handshake is firm; first impressions stick!!
use good eye contact and think about your non verbal communication
Think about possible questions you maybe asked and practise your responses in advance
look at behavioural questions on the internet and think about how you might approach these
Some companies use competency based interviews and questions, this can be difficult for you to put over any other information you may wish to impart,think about this before you go
Always ask a question yourself as this demonstrates interest
Remember interviewers need to know what is different about you that makes you different from the other candidates
The groups also looked at the future of the Administrative Network and what future sessions might cover; it was agreed that organisations need to see the value for the employee as well as personal benefit to those attending.
Some of the topics suggested for the next sessions were; Customer Care (who is your customer and what are the challenges), Continuous Learning Framework ( a tool for staff learning and development), File audit, accessing and weeding files, Data Protection training (Information sharing), Time Management
Dates for next meetings - (venues tba)
Aberdeen – Thursday 26th May 2011
Inverness – Tuesday 7th June 2011
Elgin – Wednesday 15th June 2011
TLAN Thursday 27 January 2011 (Fri 11 Feb 2011) posted by Carolle Smith.
The Aberdeen group met at Woodhill House. This was the meeting which was postponed in November due to snow.
The group heard presentations from Myra Stewart, VSA and from Carolle Smith, Moray Council, Anita Parker who was to be presenting was unfortunately unable to manage. The theme was supervision skills and how organizations’ approach this aspect of staff development and some of the resources used in training and development. Myra told the group about the HNC Level Health and Social Care Supervision Award which they are running for the second time just now, is recognised at SCQF level 7 and provides 16 credits. It is aimed at senior staff, those at supervisor or front line manager level. The tutorials could be offered as stand alone units.
The programme focuses on encouraging staff to critical evaluate their work and becomemore analytical and reflective in their role. It comprises of two HN units focusing on the supervision of staff and on the supervision of staff in the protection of people. It is outcome based and outcomes include the principles of supervision, communication skills and leadership styles. The organizational structure and the role of seniors in managing resources as well as the code of conduct, code of practice and workforce regulations, CPD etc. The programme is linked to VSA's supervision and annual staff appraisal programme. Candidates have a significant amount of experiential learning as well as five days of tutorials covering the subjects. Myra said that the biggest change for the organization was a cultural one. Encouraging supervisors to see themselves as front line managers had been a challenge and the development of reflective practitioners was a bonus. She stressed the importance of buy in from senior management.
Carolle described Moray Council's programme of workshops for seniors/frontline managers and also for all frontline staff. The courses have been adapted to meet the needs of staff groups. The seniors’ session runs over two to three sessions with a few months gap between them to enable staff to put in practice what they have learned.
The senior workshop focused on the challenges which managers face on a regular basis and how they resolve them, this can include disciplinary issues, team dynamics, staff who are not performing as they should be and a whole range of issues, how to motivate people in the present economic climate and many other aspects of people management. Carolle highlighted some of the exercises which she used in developing staff confidence and ability as well as some of the theories which focus on games people play, issues surrounding leadership and the management role. Much of the workshop exercises are based on those devised by Tony Morrison and are readily available in most social work training team libraries.
The second workshop was for frontline staff. Individuals should be accountable for their practice this is emphasized in the workshops and also the fact that supervision is everybody’s responsibility not just that of the senior member of staff. This workshop also looks at the definition, principles and benefits of effective supervision, the organisational policy/ procedure, the benefits of contracts, and all aspects of recording. It also focuses on stress management and the early warning signs of stress.
Carolle would be happy to share any materials with people if they require email learningnetworknorth@aberdeenshire.gov.uk
Date and time of next meeting; Tuesday 15 March 2011, venue and times to be confirmed
The “hot” topic for debate - Risk assessment training and balancing people’s rights. Joyce Ferguson to be approached to present Aberdeen City’s model and Matthew Carter from Turning Point Scotland agreed to present.
Administrators Local Area Network Blog; Winter 2010 (Thu 16 Dec 2010) posted by Carolle Smith.
Over the past few weeks, the first Administrators Local Area Networks met in Aberdeen, Inverness and Moray. Despite the weather conditions there was a good turn out particularly so in Aberdeen and Moray.
We were delighted to have heads of department from our three local colleges in attendance at all three sessions. They talked to administrative staff about what courses were available to them which might help them develop their knowledge and skills base, and about funding opportunities which could assist them if they were earning under £18,000 per annum.
Robert Laird, from Aberdeen College talked about how the role of the administrator has changed over the years and how Aberdeen College have been carrying out some research into this. He said that training and education has changed accordingly. The focus is now about employers asking for a piece of work to be done, not necessarily describing how it should be done. Also that admin staff were now seen as essential components of the management team and that being an administrator was more of a career rather than just a job!
We also heard about the importance of succession planning within organisations so that staff could see opportunities ahead and be encouraged to stay. Admin staff essential components of the team and by embracing new technology and processes, they can help drive efficiencies and should be encouraged to do so.
Staff with an HNC or above could join the Institute of Professional Administrators which is a group that looks at highlighting good practice, offers networking opportunities and assists people with their Continuous Professional Development. Corporate membership is an option for larger organisations.
Robert said there had been a huge reduction in day release students due to the recession biting. However the number of students attending evening classes has gone up.
All the representatives from the colleges spoke about the HNC in Administration and Information Technology (level 7 award) and the Professional Development Awards (level 7 and 8). The HNC can be done over two years on a day release or evening basis and costs about £1200, however the units can be done separately at a cost of around £90 each.
Nicola Macdonald and Irene Donaldson from Inverness College provided the group with similar information from their department of Business and Technology with regard to the HNC and PDA. They supplied hand outs on the breakdown of the courses as well as information on the Certificate in Management and in Book Keeping (Sage 50 Payroll 2010) proved to be a popular addition to their curriculum for social services staff.
Jackie Andrews from Moray College emphasised the fact that whilst basic admin skills never change much, technology and computer packages do! She spoke about developing a skills set and about the importance of PDA for staff and employees. She also talked about the HNC, HND and SVQs for administrative staff.
Jackie said she felt there was a need for admin staff to develop an identity as a group and that this recognition improves their professionalism. She advised people that a new prospectus would be available in January and that the local authority get discounted rates for block bookings.
All of the college course leaders who came and talked to the groups said they were happy for anyone to contact them directly for advice or information on which units, PDAs or courses might be relevant to their particular needs.
Since the three initial sessions, we are delighted to report that a number of people who attended the sessions have already enrolled for courses on offer at the colleges as a result of the workshops.
What happens now?
Each of the three groups felt there were advantages in forming a network in their local area; whether it was to share examples of good practice, learn about new computer packages or about more efficient ways of working. The issue of CPD came up as being of importance to staff as was highlighted in the initial summary of the on line questionnaire for administrators. People want to have some career progression and need goals to aspire to within their workplace.
It was agreed that whilst some groups of staff may have more in common than others; in general there were common themes which run across the administrative role.
For the next sessions, people felt they would like to look at specific tools, problem solving, how to prepare a good CV, what new skills can be passed on at this group and how to get the most out of the supervisory relationship.
Lastly, it was agreed that it would be useful to clarify what the group is about and what people want to get from it.
Dates of future sessions will be published shortly.
Link to survey monkey report; http://data.learningnetworks.org.uk/news/518/admin+survey+report+final.pdf
“Coping with Dementia; Everyone’s Business” (Mon 1 Nov 2010) posted by Carolle Smith.
Thursday 28th October 2010, Inverness
A member of the LNN team attended this excellent day in the Highlands with a view to exploring the opportunities for similar events to be held elsewhere in the north in the future.
The main theme of this particular event was to “To promote the value of early diagnosis of dementia and the importance of post-diagnostic support”.
A number of partner organisations planned and delivered the programme; NHS Highland, the Dementia Services Development Centre from the University of Stirling, NHS Scotland and Alzheimer Scotland.
The highlights of the day were some very personal stories from some of the people who were present, a lady living in a rural area who has dementia and the challenges she faces and carers who look after a loved one who has dementia.
The input from the Scottish Dementia Working Group was also of great interest to attendees and some of the people who participated with Health Scotland in the making of a DVD to support carers were there too. The DVD was launched at this event, and is available nationally to support individuals.
Another highlight of the seminar was an interactive play which centred round early signs of dementia and the dilemmas for family members and for the person themselves.
Karen Watchman from Stirling University, talked about key issues in early diagnosis and this theme was continued in one of the afternoon workshops with input from three medical staff.
The other workshops looked at self directed care and personalisation and how NHS Highland are redesigning their services to support people better. One of the particularly exciting initiatives being the Cognitive Stimulation Groups which have had as much success in trials as medication in treating dementia symptoms.
A first class example of partnership working with 180 attendees mostly from the Highland area. The plan is to deliver another session next year on a different theme.
October e-Bulletin now available (Fri 29 Oct 2010) posted by Jan Foster.
Visit our news page and download the latest LNN e-Bulletin now.
Administrators Local Area Network (Wed 27 Oct 2010) posted by Jan Foster.
Following the Workforce Planning, Data & the Administration Role event in Aberdeen we have recently been gathering views from individuals and organisations on the possibility of establishing an Administrators Network in the north of Scotland.
Download the Survey Summary Report. (pdf)
Initial feedback confirms real enthusiasm for the establishing of a Local Area Network.
Three sessions have been arranged to enable us to share the results of our survey with you, discuss ideas and ultimately agree how best to proceed.
If you work in the social care sector as an administrator or provide clerical support and are interested in finding out more about what such a network would mean for you and how you can contribute we would be delighted if you could join us at one of the events.
Use the links below to register online.
Aberdeen City Local Practitioner Forum (Tue 26 Oct 2010) posted by Jan Foster.
The Impact of Parental Mental Health on Children & Young People
Fri 1st October 2010, Aberdeen
This event held at Robert Gordon University was an excellent example of ‘Getting it Right for Every Child’ and demonstrated the importance of multi-agency working underpinning professional social work practice.
Information and presentations that were shared at the event can be accessed at Aberdeen City Local Practitioner Forum's webpage.
For more information about the Aberdeen City Local Practitioner Forum, please contact Anneliese Stellmach t. 01224 557879 e. ASTELLMACH@aberdeencity.gov.uk or Norman Mackinnon t. 01224 551351 e. NMACKINNON@aberdeencity.gov.uk
Get Connected and Lead (Fri 22 Oct 2010) posted by Jean Gordon.
Focus Group, Inverness (Mon 4th October)
‘Community Action and Leadership’ is a new award that is being developed by Lead Scotland to enable people with disabilities and carers to develop their ability to plan, influence, inform and evaluate local decision making.
Staff from Lead Scotland hosted a meeting at the Spectrum Centre in Inverness to give service users, carers, service providers, and other interested parties in the Highlands an opportunity to comment on their plans for the qualification; it was stressed that the award is still very much ‘a work in progress’. The award will be offered to 65 participants across Scotland, and it is hoped that 20 people from the Highlands will be able to undertake the qualification.
The group was given information about the award, including its aims, approach, and the proposed content of its four study units: Self awareness and identity; Active citizenship; Challenging discrimination and Promoting Inclusion; and Influencing Change in the Community.
The meeting also gave participants the opportunity to ask questions and to provide feedback that Lead Scotland will use to shape and further develop the award’s content and delivery.
Download The Community Action and Leadership Award information document (pdf)
Developing the Children’s Workforce National Workforce Conference (Wed 8 Sep 2010) posted by Yvonne Leathley.
This event held in Edinburgh on the 30th June was run by the Scottish Government in order to disseminate information relating to a variety of pieces of work and research that have taken place recently.
Presentations covered functional analysis of the workforce and key issues arising from a Danish study visit. Workshops covered these two areas and Getting it Right for Every Child and Flexible Workforce Roles in a schools project.
Round table discussions also explored the Denmark visit, the role of the pedagogy and how this may be utilised in the Scottish workforce.
Read the Conference Report here (pdf)
Presentations from the event will be available here shortly.
Training Local area Network (Tue 7 Sep 2010) posted by Carolle Smith.
The last week of August saw the inaugural sessions of the Training Local Area Network take place in Aberdeen, Elgin and Inverness.
As an introduction to the sessions the theme of Induction was chosen as the main topic. The sessions included a brief summary of the findings of the TLAN consultation earlier this year. This was followed by a presentation on the SSSC’s Preparing for Practice induction guidance and tracking tool.The groups then shared their knowledge and experience on the subject.
More detailed notes of the meetings will be circulated to members of the TLAN.
If you would like to join the TLAN contact: learningnetworknorth@aberdeenshire.gov.uk
OT at RGU with the Care Commsssion (Wed 4 Aug 2010) posted by Yvonne Leathley.
Aberdeen, 18th June 2010
You can now access the Post Event Report (pdf)
This event was designed to consider the opportunities for greater partnership working and engagement in the provision of placements to students undertaking the BSC(Hons) Occupational Therapy award. Colleagues from RGU outlined the course and the opportunities that may exist for students to work in a variety of setting, Edith Macintosh from the Care Commission explained what was happening in other parts of Scotland.
For more information please contact Edith Macintosh Tel: 01382 346492 edith.macintosh@carecommission.com
Information and presentations shared at the event can be accessed below...
Fit for Practice - Care Commission (pdf)
C.O.D.Y Launch (Tue 3 Aug 2010) posted by Yvonne Leathley.
Thursday 1st July saw the launch of new material by the Scottish Social Services Council relating to the Codes of Practice. Aimed at young people, this range of materials, including a DVD have been developed in order to help when raising awareness with your people of what they should expect of the people they work with.
For copies of this highly visual material please visit http://www.sssc.uk.com/cody/
SVQ Assessors & Verifiers Local Area Network (Thu 22 Jul 2010) posted by Jan Foster.
The notes of the last meeting (26th May 2010) are now available in the SVQ LAN's private site in the lnnportal.
Aberdeen City Local Practitioner Forum (Tue 13 Jul 2010) posted by Yvonne Leathley.
Drugs services are changing – get in the know!
25th June 2010 Aberdeen
This event held at Robert Gordon University provided a great opportunity for local practitioners to find out more about how drugs services are provided in the City.
Information and presentations that were shared at the event can be accessed at http://north.learningnetworks.org.uk/show.php?id=730 - Aberdeen City LPF's webpage.
For more information about the Aberdeen City Local Practitioner Forum, please contact Anneliese Stellmach 01224 557879 ASTELLMACH@aberdeencity.gov.uk
or Norman Mackinnon 01224 551351 NMACKINNON@aberdeencity.gov.uk
SVQ Assessors & Verifiers Local Area Network (Fri 9 Jul 2010) posted by Yvonne Leathley.
The SVQ LAN is an open forum for assessors and verifiers in the north of Scotland who meet regularly to consider topics of interest and provide peer support to one another.
At the last meeting held in Huntly on the 26th May three organisations, CSTAC (Aberlour), HiMATS and VSA gave presentations and explanations of the ways in which electronic systems are used to support the SVQs provided by their respective organisations.
The group raised a number of questions and a healthy discussion addressed a number of ways in which support could be given ‘virtually’ to candidates.
The group would like to start an on line community of practice so if you would like to participate, please visit the LNN website and access the LNN portal from there. Notes of meetings are available in the SVQ LAN section of the lnn portal.
The next meeting of this communities of practice group will be in Inverness and will take place in September, keep an eye on the Events Calendar, all assessors and verifiers are welcome. The topic for the meeting has yet to be confirmed, but if you have any ideas of subjects that would be useful for the group please send them to learningnetworknorth@aberdeenshire.gov.uk.
Occupational Therapy - Care Commission event (Thu 8 Jul 2010) posted by Yvonne Leathley.
Aberdeen, 18th June 2010
This event held at Robert Gordon University was designed to consider the opportunities for greater partnership working and engagement in the provision of placements to students undertaking the BSC(Hons) Occupational Therapy award. Colleagues ffrom RGU outlined the course and the opportunities that may exist for students to work in a variety of setting, Edith Macintosh from the Care Commission explained what was happening in other parts of Scotland.
For more information please contact Edith Macintosh at e. edith.macintosh@carecommission.com or t. 01382 346492
Information and presentations shared at the event will be available shortly....
Reflections and visions SIRCC national conference (Wed 16 Jun 2010) posted by Yvonne Leathley.
7th – 9th June 2010 Aviemore.
The conference provided an opportunity to hear from a wide range of speakers and engage in workshops covering a variety of topics. The programme enabled networking and incorporated the celebration of success though the inaugural SIRCC Residential Child Care Awards.
More information can be found on the SIRCC web site at http://www.sircc.org.uk/
Scotland's Dementia Strategy (Wed 16 Jun 2010) posted by Elke Cradden - MHO, Highland Council.
Alzheimer Scotland's Dementia Awareness Week Conference 2010 included the launch of Scotland's Dementia Strategy – Making it Work for People, here's a delegate's perspective...
Glasgow 7th June 2010
As the lucky recipient of a free place at the official launch of the Scottish Government’s National Dementia Strategy, I agreed to provide some comments on the day.
The strategy was introduced by Shona Robison, Minister for Public Health, and the main aims are to provide a more consistent service for service users and carers across Scotland, with an emphasis on early diagnosis. It is hoped that early diagnosis will allow people with dementia and their families and carers to play a more active role in making plans for their future care, either by making use of ‘Advance Statements’ or granting ‘Powers of Attorney’. As a practising Mental Health Officer I welcome this particularly, as I often end up dealing with situations where this has not been possible, or where a crisis has arisen often resulting in hospital admission. In such circumstances it is often difficult to take account of the service user’s wishes and views, and all too often the only option seems to be placement in a care home. A multi-disciplinary ‘Memory Clinic’ offering advice and support after early diagnosis, including advice on how to make best use of options available under the Adults with Incapacity Act and Mental Health Act would be great.
I attended an afternoon workshop on ‘Person-centred non drug approaches to ‘behaviours that challenge (quite a mouthful!), with recommendations that early intervention, a good knowledge of the person’s previous life and their likes and dislikes, coupled with a thorough assessment of triggers and context of ‘behaviours that challenge’ should allow for good managements strategies to be implemented, avoiding the unnecessary use of anti-psychotic medication. This was followed by a very stimulating presentation about the use of Qi Gong (a Chinese exercise/relaxation method using gentle movement and breathing) with people with dementia and their carers run by NHS Grampian. The impact on participants has been evaluated, with positive feedback from all participants, and observable improvements in physical coordination and mobility of people with dementia, who often go on to develop Parkinsonian symptoms. Everyone in the workshop participated in the exercises and seemed to enjoy it greatly.
My lasting memory of the many presentations of the day is the repeated exhortation for ‘agencies to work together’. As a so-called ‘frontline worker’ this left me feeling somewhat irritated, as most of us do this on a daily basis, and have been waiting for those in charge to take serious steps towards achieving this goal. After all, Community Care legislation was introduced in 1993 – why are we still talking about having to improve co-operation 17 years later!
More time for discussion would have been useful, especially to address issues of potential cuts in funding (raised by several members of the audience) or ‘budget challenges’ (a term apparently favoured by politicians and senior managers).
Access Scotland's National Dementia Strategy here
Access presentations from the conference here
Training Local Area Network (Wed 16 Jun 2010) posted by Carolle Smith.
Following the consultation process a Summary Report is now available to read at http://www.learningnetworks.org.uk/show.php?id=82. We will be following through with the recommendations contained in the report in the coming months.
Some advance notice of what we intend to do:
- we are in the process of setting up an on-line secure portal and will be asking for interested participants to get in touch shortly about this. It is hoped this will be up and running early in July
- look out also for dates for the first “Training Local Area Network” (TLAN) meetings which are planned for late August. It is likely that the theme for these initial meetings will be Induction Training and it is hoped that we can prioritise topics for following sessions on those days.
Everyone who attended the initial events in Aberdeen, Elgin and Inverness (as well as those who expressed interest but were unable to attend in person) will shortly receive a TLAN e-bulletin detailing all this and more in the coming weeks, exciting times ahead!!