Core knowledge and skills – SW/SSW
Core knowledge and skills
- Direct work
- Identity / Diversity
- Abuse and neglect
- Legal and court work
- Permanence, adoption and fostering
Relationship based practice depends on purposeful, effective relationships with children and families, which are both authoritative and compassionate. We should be able to demonstrate a high level of skill in evidence based, effective social work approaches which support change in the children and families we work with. A wide range of knowledge and skills needs to be applied to help build family relationships, resources and resilience so that the welfare of the child remains paramount.
PCF: Professionalism, Values and Ethics, Diversity and equality, Rights and Justice Knowledge, Intervention and Skills, Critical Reflection
KSS/PQS: 1, 2, 6, 7
Essential
- Life Story Work: an introduction – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
Professional
- De-escalation and diffusion: working with difficult and dangerous behaviours – 1 day course (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Life Story Work: in practice – 1 day course (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Working effectively with men in families – 1 day course (ESCC Learning Portal)
Advanced
- Observing, communicating and engaging with children and young people (CPD module at University of Sussex; on campus; January 2026 start date; 30 credits)
How to apply
Deadline for applications is Friday 4th July 2025. Complete the University of Sussex CPD application form and return to Social Work Education Team
Webinar
- Life Story Work – Single Source
- Case work
- 1:1 supervision
- Direct work with children (ESCC Single Source)
- Child development (ESCC Single Source)
- Digital toolkit – Child development apps (ESCC Single Source)
- Participation toolkit (ESCC Single Source)
- Neglect and child maltreatment (ESCC Single Source)
- Life story work (ESCC Single Source)
As a social work professional you will be engaging with children and families from a range of ethnic and cultural backgrounds and must ensure your practice does not discriminate against issues of race and culture. Factors that impact on identity, such as differences and challenges for LGBTU children and young people, migrant and refugee families, families from BME communities and traveller families will need to be recognised and may be relevant to your assessment or decision making.
PCF: Professionalism, Values and Ethics, Diversity, Knowledge, Critical Reflection
KSS/PQS: 1, 2, 6, 7
If there is no link to course information please email the Training and events team.
Essential
- Equality and diversity – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Cultural awareness in the workplace – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Social model of disability – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Trans awareness – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Awareness of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Racial, Ethnic and National Equality – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Introduction to Neurodiversity – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Anti-racism – half-day course (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Exploring inclusive practice in your team: racial, ethnic, national and religious diversity – 1 day course (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Microaggressions – 1 day course (ESCC Learning Portal)
Professional
- Working with trans and gender questioning children and young people – half-day course
- Safeguarding, risk planning and intervention – half-day course
- Making sense of autism – half-day course (ESCC Learning Portal)
- The empowerment approach: neuroinclusive brain-based support for families – Single Source
- Neurodiversity at work awareness – Single Source
Webinars
- Autism insight – Single Source
- Inclusive practice and supervision – Single Source
- Anti-racist organisation – what does it mean for you? – Single Source
- White fragility and White privilege – Single Source
- Becoming an anti-racist in practice and in work – Single Source
- Experience of Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children and how we can address discrimination in practice – Single Source
- Anti-racist organisation – what does it mean for you? – Single Source
- How do we sustain change in direct practice following Black Lives Matter – Single Source
- Self-directed learning
- Case work
- 1:1 supervision
- Group supervision
- Equality and diversity (ESCC Single Source)
- Neurodiversity (ESCC Single Source)
Consider being part of the Voice of the Child Practitioner group which undertakes activities throughout the year to ensure children and families’ voices are fed back in order to improve practice. Email the Principal Social Worker for more information.
As a social work professional we must be able to recognise the risk indicators of different forms of harm to children including sexual, physical and emotional abuse and neglect and understand the impact of cumulative harm. Social workers should be aware of harmful practices in specific communities such as female genital mutilation and enforced marriage. Social workers should understand the principle of ‘good enough parenting’ within the historical, cultural, political and social dimensions of parental abuse and neglect, the relationship between poverty and social deprivation, and the impact of stress on family functioning.
PCF: Values and Ethics, Diversity, Rights and Justice, Knowledge, Intervention and Skills, Professional Leadership
KSS/PQS: 3, 5, 6, 7, 10
If there is no link to course information please email the Training and events team.
Essential
- Introduction to child and adolescent development – eLearning module (this must be completed prior to the professional workshop below) (ESCC Learning Portal)
- Child protection basic training: signs and indicators, recognition and response – 1 day course (ESCC Learning Portal)
Professional
- Child and adolescent development – 1 day workshop (ESCC Learning Portal)
Advanced
- Working with young people at Complex Safeguarding Risk (CPD module at University of Sussex; on campus; October 2025 start date; 30 credits)
- Risk and decision-making: challenges for Children’s Services management and practice (CPD module at University of Sussex; online; October 2025 start date; 30 credits)
How to apply
Complete the University of Sussex application form and return to Social Work Education Team.
Additional learning
- Safeguarding children and young people – eLearning foundation module (ESCC Learning Portal)
- ESSCP: Understanding Neglect for Families and their children; Using the Neglect Toolkit to assess, record and refer families for support – 1 day course
- Neglect Toolkit – ESSCP – launched 2025, includes webinar
Webinars
- Multi-agency Neglect Toolkit Webinar – ESSCP – see ‘Neglect and child maltreatment’ section
- Obstacles to recognition and response to neglect in social care practice: lessons learnt from research – Single Source
- Case work
- 1:1 supervision
- Self-directed learning
- Group supervision
- Critical reflection
- Neglect and child maltreatment – ESCC Intranet – (ESCC Single Source)
- Neglect and child maltreatment – ESCC Intranet – (ESCC Single Source)
- Research on adolescents – (ESCC Single Source)
- Assessing parenting capacity for children on the edge of care
- Children’s needs parenting capacity
As a more experienced social worker/senior social worker you will be leading co-ordinating strategy meetings, conducting section 47 enquiries and undertaking section 47 investigations. In LAC and fostering you will be involved in standard setting enquiries and meetings. You will be taking an increasing role in chairing complex planning meetings, and taking forward child protection meetings and conferences.
Social Workers must be able to decide on the best permanence option, using research to draw evidence-based conclusions and should eliminate drift by identifying the best care arrangement for the child as soon as possible. Social Workers will need to produce high quality case records of the permanence process that are well-considered and sensitively presented, having drawn upon the views and experience of those who know the child.
During this process, Social Workers must be able to also establish effective working relationships with other professionals including agency lawyers, Independent Reviewing Officers and Cafcass and communicate effectively, offering clear rationale for all recommendations.
The Social Worker will support children and families during this transition, supporting the placement and managing disruption and breakdown.
PCF: Professionalism, Values and Ethics, Diversity, Knowledge, Intervention Skills, Critical Reflection
KSS/PQS: 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 10
If there is no link to course information please email the Training and events team.
- Looked after children – half day course
- Case work
- 1:1 supervision
- Group supervision
- Critical reflection
- Fostering and adoption (Research in Practice)
- Contact (ESCC Single Source)
- LAC and adoption (ESCC Single Source)
- Participation toolkit (ESCC Single Source)
Permanence planning (ESCC Single Source)
Social workers must be able to navigate the family and youth justice systems in England and know how to use legal powers and duties to support families, to protect children and to look after children in the public care system, including the regulatory frameworks that support the full range of permanence options.
Social workers need to participate in decisions about whether to progress a case through pre-proceedings or to make an application to the family court, including the order to be applied for, and undertaking the preparation and presentation of evidence.
Social workers recognise the need to seek advice and second opinion as required in relation to the wide range of legal issues which frequently face children and families involved with statutory services including immigration, housing, welfare benefits, mental health and learning disability assessment, education and support for children with learning difficulties.
As social workers, we must take into account the complex relationship between professional ethics, the application of the law and the impact of social policy on both.
PCF: Professionalism, Values and Ethics, Equality and Diversity, Rights and Justice, Knowledge, Intervention and Skills, Professional Leadership
KSS/PQS: 2, 7, 8, 10
- Court work skills – 1 day course (ESCC Learning Portal)
Webinars
- Born intro care: developing best practice guidelines – Single Source
- PLWG Best practice when assessing family and friends as long-term carers – Single Source
- PLWG Guidance and section 20 – Single Source
- 1. Private Law: context, process and the role of workers – Single Source
- 2. Private Law Proceedings: tools and resources – Single Source
- 3. Domestic abuse and Private Law Proceedings – Single Source
- 4. Alienation behaviours by parents and Private Children Act Proceedings – Single Source
- Case work
- 1:1 supervision
- Group supervision
- Shadowing in court cases
- Attending legal consultations
- Proceedings and pre-proceedings (ESCC Single Source)
- Court orders and pre-proceedings(Research in Practice)
- Case law (Research in Practice)
- Social work in a court setting (Research in Practice)