XX Social Work Education Partnership

MEMORANDUM OF CO-OPERATION

Between

(Names of partner agencies and HEIs who intend to be members of this partnership) Aims and outcomes of partnership.

The overarching aim of the partnership is to improve outcomes for service users and carers through the provision of high quality qualifying and other social work education.

This will be achieved by:

 Ensuring appropriate quality and quantity of social workers to support local workforce planning at strategic and operational levels by :

o Managing numbers of social work students taking into account resources and organisational pressures; o Joint planning and participation in the recruitment of high calibre students; o Developing high quality practice placements and arrangements for developing practice skills; o Developing relevant and current practice-related taught and practice curricula o Using robust suitability and assessment processes o Developing and delivering Practice Educator programmes

 Ensuring the quality of the workforce through ASYE and CPD by:

o Agreeing priorities for PQ/CPD taking into workforce needs and new developments in policy and practice o Joint participation in the support of newly qualified social workers o Enhancing outcomes for service users and improved service delivery through the delivery of high quality PQ/CPD

 On-going monitoring and evaluation of the quality of the learning experience of social workers on placement, in practice and at university/college, at qualifying and post qualifying levels by:

o Joint evaluation of social work and PQ/CPD programmes, with mechanisms for influencing and revising content and assessment of programmes.

 Ensuring the involvement of other stake-holders across the whole spectrum of education and training for social workers, including:

o The users of services and carers. o Students on programmes and practitioners undertaking CPD/ASYE

 Developing opportunities for shared research and promoting the evidence base for social work decisions

2 Priorities and targets for the period of the agreement.

This agreement will cover a three year period, from September 2012 to September 2015. Within that timescale the priorities for the partnership will be:

1. To continue to deliver, manage and quality assure the existing BA (Hons) Social Work programmes currently offered at the Universities.

2. To design a new degree in Social Work, in line with the recommendations of the Social Work Reform Board, the College of Social Work, the requirements of the HPC, and the QAA Benchmarking Statement for Social Work.

3. To ensure there are a sufficient number of appropriately qualified Practice Educators.

4. To develop agreed mechanisms for supporting and assessing qualified social workers in their first year of practice (ASYE), including, where appropriate, the role of the University and College in supporting agency partners in this work.

5. To develop mechanisms for recognising activities undertaken by agency partners at the University/College (for example, interviewing prospective students, teaching and assessing students) within agency CPD frameworks.

Management of the partnership.

There will be an annual, strategically led meeting of the Social Work Education Partnership (SWEP), which will be referred to as ‘The Board’. The Board will receive and approve annual monitoring reports and an Action Plan, prepared by the appropriate operational groups of the Partnership. Membership of the Board will include: o strategic managers of children’s and adults’ services from each agency partner o Heads of School from the University and College. o the Leads for both qualifying and post-qualifying social work education at the University and College. o the Practice Learning Co-Ordinators from the University and College. o the Chair of the SWEP Practice Learning Group. o user and carer representation. o student representation

At an operational level there will be a Programme Management Board (PMB) which will meet three times per year to oversee the management of agreed partnership work. It will receive reports from its sub-groups. Membership of the PMB will include: o Heads of School at the University and College (who will chair the PMB) o operational agency staff who will normally be those with lead responsibility for placement co-ordination. o the Leads for both qualifying and post-qualifying social work education at the University and College. o the Practice Learning Co-Ordinators from the University and College.

3 o Chairs of the sub-groups of the Programme Management Board (Practice Learning, Admissions and Selection, Curriculum Development, ASYE, CPD and Research). o user and carer representation o student representation.

There will be the following sub-groups of the Programme Management Board.

Practice Learning Group.

This group will be responsible for the management, delivery and quality assurance of appropriate placements for BA Social Work students. Membership will include representatives from agency partners, the Practice Learning Co-ordinators from the University and College and user/carer representation. The PLG will meet as often as required (normally once per month during the academic year). The membership of the PLG will also meet as a Practice Assessment Panel, which will meet as required in order to quality assure students’ assessed placement work. This group will also co-ordinate the development of Practice Educator programmes.

Admissions and Selection Group.

This group will be responsible for the development and implementation of appropriate selection processes in order that high calibre entrants are selected to the BA (Hons) Social Work. Membership will include the Admissions Tutors from the University and the College, representatives from agency partners and user and carer representative. The ASG will meet a minimum of three times per year.

Curriculum Development Group.

This group will be responsible initially for developing curricula for the new degree in social work in readiness for validation for a September 2013 start. Subsequently the CDG will be responsible for reviewing and revising the curriculum of the BA in Social Work, within the framework of the validated degree. Membership will include all members of the teaching teams at the University and College, representatives from agency partners, as well as service user and carer and student representation. The group will normally meet at least once per year, though there will need to be more frequent meetings in order to develop the curriculum of the new degree.

Assessed and Supported Year in Employment Group.

This group will be responsible for agreeing the roles and tasks of agency and educational partners in relation to supporting and assessing newly qualified social workers in their first year of employment. Membership will include representatives from the partner agencies and the University and College, and user and carer representatives. The group will meet a minimum of three times per year.

4 Continuing Professional Development and Research Group.

This group will be responsible for developing mechanisms for accrediting agency partner involvement in Partnership activities as formal CPD activity. Opportunities for developing and implementing post-qualifying courses and research will be included within the remit of this group, taking account of the resources available and the priorities of individual organisations. Membership will include representatives from agency partners, the University and the College and users and carers. This group will meet a minimum of twice per year.

Roles and responsibilities.

Partner agencies will:

 assist the University and College in planning for and participating in the recruitment and selection of high calibre students to the BASW

 contribute to the teaching (including skills teaching) of students on the BASW

 contribute to the teaching and assessment of students on the BASW in relation to Readiness for Practice.

 provide sufficient suitably qualified and experienced staff to act as Practice Educators students on the BASW

 release staff to engage in Practice Educator programmes

 provide suitably qualified and experienced staff to attend the meetings of the SWEP Board, Programme Management Board and its sub-groups and to undertake the work arising from membership of these groups.

 provide placements for agreed number of students in each academic year for the period of the Memorandum.

 support the Practice Learning Group by encouraging Directorate teams to build planning for providing work-based learning into team plans

 work with University staff in the use of quality assurance tools that will be used to manage and quality assure placements and practice learning.

 provide feedback and contribute to action planning following evaluation of placements, together with completion of agreed remedial actions within agreed timescales.

 ensure that strategic level staff are available to attend the annual Board meeting.

 provide opportunities for academic staff to engage in practice experience where appropriate

5 The University and College will:

 deliver the BA (Hons) Social Work in the manner described and to the standards required by the course approval documentation and by the HPC and College of Social Work.

 ensure that all staff responsible for the delivery of the taught components of the Social Work award are suitably qualified in Social Work and/or appropriate academic disciplines.

 ensure that all social work qualified staff are registered with the HPC

 ensure that all staff have the opportunity to undertake operational/ practical experience within a period of 3 years, as identified by CPD and arranged at appraisal

 ensure all staff who undertake placement visits are CRB checked

 ensure that all placements meet with agreed Health and Safety standards

 provide suitable premises for the delivery of onsite teaching by University/College and agency staff

 provide suitably qualified and experienced staff to contribute to the assessment of students’ practice portfolios and to attend the meetings of the Practice Assessment Panel

 offer opportunities for practitioners to develop skills in delivering teaching sessions to students

 administer payments for Placements accurately and efficiently at the end of placement periods

 ensure that processes are in place for addressing student Suitability issues.

 provide a Practice Learning Co-ordinator to liaise with agency Practice Learning Organisers and placement providers.

 ensure that University and College staff are allocated time to attend the various meetings associated with the Programme Management Board and its sub-groups and undertake the work arising from membership of these groups.

 deliver Practice Educator programmes

 provide staff to engage in supporting and assessing newly qualified social work staff in their first year of employment, as appropriate and required.

 provide documentation to agency partners in order to allow agency staff activity within the programme to be used as evidence of CPD.

6  release staff to undertake or support any research activity agreed by the Partnership.

 ensure that Heads of School are available to chair meetings of the Board and the PMB.

Quality assurance and measures of success.

The University and College will produce Annual Reports in relation to the BA (Hons) in Social Work which will evaluate all aspects of provision and will have an Action Plan to address any issues. These reports will include data on application rates, enrolments, retention, success, achievement and pots qualification destinations.

The University and College will ensure appropriate External Examiners are appointed who will provide an Annual Report.

The University and College, with agency partners, will use a quality assurance tool to quality assure and evaluate practice learning and placements.

The University and College, with agency partners, will devise and use other quality measures as appropriate in relation to jointly managed ASYE and CPD activity.

All the data collected as above will be presented in report form to the Programme Management Board and the Board to be received and approved.

Timescales and review.

This agreement will be reviewed and revised in September 2015 by the Leads at the University and College with agency partners. Any revisions to a new agreement will be approved via the Board.

Any partner wishing to withdraw from the Partnership will need to give notice of an intention to withdraw of 24 months in order to minimise disruption to students on the BA Social Work.

Status of this agreement.

This Memorandum is a statement of intent, and should not be interpreted as a binding agreement. It does not create legal obligations between the parties.

7 Signatories to the Memorandum of Co-operation.

Organisation Name Position Signature Date