About the New and Developing Social Workers team
We are a team of Advanced Social Workers (ASW) and Practice Educators (PE) who are passionate about supporting the next generations of social workers to qualify and embed their learning in practice. We support student social workers on their placements in training and Newly Qualified Social Workers (NQSWs) undertaking their Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE). We recognise that the learning journey continues after this year, and our focus is to have the right support in place to enable social workers to learn, grow and develop in their early careers.
It is important to note that the ASYE Year for Adult Social Care is run differently and therefore, please contact Surrey Adult Social Care Academy by email at surreyasc.academy@surreycc.gov.uk for more information on this programme.
Assessed and Supported Year in Employment programme (ASYE)
Surrey children's services continues to operate a successful ASYE scheme as recognised by our recent Quality Assurance visit from Skills for Care in Autumn 2023, who found "there is a robust and well thought through ASYE programme which has ownership from the pinnacle of the organisation to those on whom it impacts, the assessors, NQSWs, children and families." "Your ASYE programme achievements should be celebrated".
The ASYE programme for NQSWs is designed to help you make the transition from a qualifying educational course to the world of professional social work in your first year of employment. The expectation is that the knowledge and skills gained through your course will be consolidated in the first year of practice, and that specialist knowledge and skills will be developed in relation to the employment setting and people with whom you work.
Support for Newly Qualified Social Workers (NQSWs)
Our goal is to provide you with a supported and protected year in which you can 'find your feet' in the social work setting with all its complexities and challenges. We will support you by providing protected workloads, increased supervision and bespoke learning and development opportunities.
Our Academy ASWs will play a vital role in supporting, training and assessing NQSWs to successfully complete their ASYE. The Academy run regular learning events, and work together with you and your team manager to support and monitor your development, as evidenced through your ASYE portfolio. Separating out the Assessor role from that of Team Managers means that you will have an increased support network during the programme.
Assessment during your ASYE
The emphasis is based on direct evidence of your work and progression. The key documents required over the year will be based around your work completed, direct observations of practice, feedback from families and professionals, supplemented by critical reflection pieces you as a NQSW. The assessment framework is set out nationally and makes use of the post qualifying standards for social work (Knowledge and Skills Statements for child and families) and Professional Capabilities Framework (PCF) for NQSW level. You will have review meetings at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months with the ASYE Assessor writing the reports. At the end of the programme, a final recommendation is made (to pass or not) and the portfolio moderated by an internal panel who make the final decision. Passing from NQSW into Qualified Social Worker is another step on your journey, and we will support you into Post Qualifying Year 2 (PQ2). See the PQ2 section for more information.
Our offer for the ASYE programme
We are passionate about the support and guidance we give that enables you to successfully complete your ASYE. We listen to feedback from stakeholders and so are continually developing our programme therefore the offer may vary slightly from year to year, however, please see the 2023 to 2024 offer below to give you an idea of what your ASYE with us might look like:
- ASYE Academy Induction programme and Team Induction.
- Allocated Advanced Social Worker who will be the ASYE Assessor, in addition to the Team Manager.
- Monthly ASYE Learning Events with activities focused on the Post Qualifying Standards Knowledge and Skills Statements (KSS).
- Two days a month Protected Development Time (one day to attend the learning event and another to complete portfolio evidence and independent study).
- Action Learning Sets.
- Graduated Supervision offer, with increased support in first six months and monthly one to one or group reflective supervision with the ASYE Assessor (in addition to line manager supervision).
- Advice and Guidance from Surrey's Quality Practice and Performance Service (Practice Standards team).
- Protected staged workload, increasing in volume and complexity over the year.
- Access to Community Care inform (CCinform), Research in Practice (RIP) and Care Knowledge learning platforms.
- Access to Surrey Safeguarding Children's Partnership training programme.
- NQSWs will have access to a secure SharePoint hub which simplifies the electronic storage of the ASYE portfolio, allowing collaborative working with your ASYE Assessor and Team Manager. The hub also has a variety of up-to-date resources from learning events, useful links, and supporting information to aid learning and development within the organisation.
Feedback on Surrey Children's Services ASYE programme
In September 2023, Skills for Care's completed a quality assurance review of our ASYE programme. We are proud to share the positive feedback they gave below:
The NQSW experience is central to the ASYE:
"NQSWs are active participants, throughout the life of the programme, rather than passive recipients. From the moment of onboarding, the wellbeing of NQSWs is prioritised as they are made aware of the support structures available to them."
"The NQSWs reported positive aspects of the programme which included support from their Assessors and teams, protected time for learning, reflective space, training with other organisations, the ability to be autonomous in their learning and practice and provision of access to Community Care Inform, Care Knowledge and Research In Practice."
"The ASYE coordinator actively acts on feedback to change and refresh the offer."
"Equality, Diversity and Inclusion is progressing and becoming richer, with thought as to how it connects to the organisation as a whole."
ASYE celebration event
We enjoy celebrating the achievements of our NQSWs who have passed their ASYE programme through an annual event. Coming together to recognise the hard work and achievements from the first year in practice is important and we want our staff to feel valued as they enter their Post Qualifying year 2 (PQ2). Read about our September 2023 celebration event.
Post Qualifying Year 2 (PQ2)
We recognise the transition following the ASYE brings its own set of learning and development needs. As such in 2022 to 2023 we piloted a small programme of activity, from which we further developed our offer in PQ2 implementing this in January 2024. The aims of our programme are;
- To further promote the development of social workers in their early careers, by continuing a level of dedicated support after ASYE into Post Qualifying year 2 (PQ2).
- To enable staff who have received a high level of support to complete their ASYE, to transition into their second year in post qualifying practice, offering support as work becomes greater in volume and complexity and to enable best practice for children, young people and families.
- To enable equitable support to be offered to all social workers in their post ASYE year in Children's Services.
- For line managers to have clarity on their responsibilities for enabling social workers in their PQ2 to undertake the development needed, through a fixed programme of activities that the social worker should have cover and/or reduced workload to be able to attend.
- To build towards the Early Career Framework (ECF) set out by the social care review; Stable Homes, Built on Love Department for Education (DfE) 2023. Indications from the DfE are that the initial period for all newly qualified social workers will be extended to two years with an offer of further training and development for another three years.
- To support the retention of staff and reduce turnover of social workers for children, young people and families.
2023 to 2024 PQ2 programme
One day per month protected development time for PQ2 social workers enabling monthly group meetings supported by an ASYE Assessor, a Buddy Down programme (with NQSW completing ASYE in year below), or participation in developing learning content for new NQSW cohort and a Buddy Up Programme for staff to access to one to one support around specific pieces of work that might be new to them in PQ2. Ongoing access to academy support in this year is recognised as valuable.
In addition to the one day of protected development time mentioned above, the programme would also offer:
A six month 'reunion and career development' event providing an opportunity to reflect and think forwards about career progression options, to explore pathways to Senior Social Worker roles and agree actions professional development ongoing.
The programme will be evaluated in Autumn 2024 to inform next steps.
Student Social Workers
We work in partnership with a number of Universities, supporting different training pathways to social work qualification. Within Surrey Children's Services we run a degree apprenticeship scheme for internal staff. We also support external university students by offering first and final placements within a variety of children's teams. For students on final placements with us in the Spring, we hold a recruitment information session outlining our ASYE programme. We hope you will apply to join us in the Autumn as Newly Qualified Social Workers!
Student placement programme
Our student placement programme is designed to support you to gain valuable learning opportunities working with children, young people and their families. Whatever your experience prior to placement, whether you are completing your first or final placement with us, our goal is to provide you with the support and guidance you need to adapt, learn and develop and to help you evidence meeting the required standards for student assessment.
Arrangements
Our student coordinator will work together with your university placement coordinator to identify a developmentally appropriate match within a team in Surrey Children's Services. These vary across the spectrum of support for children, young people and families, from early help to targeted/intensive support and through to statutory interventions. Please note, due to the complexities of organising placements, students are unable organise their own placement in Surrey Children's Services. Due to the large geographical area across which services are delivered within Surrey, all students are required to hold a valid United Kingdom Driving licence.
Assessment
During your placement, you will be assessed by one of our qualified Practice Educators (PE) who is a registered Social Worker with Social Work England. With guidance, you will produce evidence of your learning and your PE will undertake a holistic assessment using the domains of the Professional Capabilities Framework (PCF) and for final placements, have some consideration of the Post Qualifying Standards in Child and Family Social work (these are known as the Knowledge and Skills Statements (KSS) for child and family practitioners). Your Practice Educator, Onsite Supervisor and University tutor will work together with you and provide regular feedback to support progression during your placement.
Practice Educators (PE)
Our Practice Educators (PE) are committed to student development and enabling you to learn and grow throughout your placement. Your PE will support you to link theory to your practice and understand the relevant legislation, agency policies and procedures. They will also encourage you to consider the emotional impact of your work, support you to reflect on your practice, provide feedback, identify strengths and areas for development, and develop action plans.
Your Practice Educator may be onsite and based in the same team as you, or offsite and based in another team, or working independently. If an offsite PE is used you will also be allocated an Onsite Supervisor (OSS) who will work closely with your PE to ensure a holistic and joined up approach to your placement. The PE may at times be a Surrey member of staff undertaking their Practice Educator qualification and as such would be supported in their learning journey by an experienced Practice Assessor.
Supervision
All students will receive weekly supervision from a qualified social worker during their placement.
If you are supported by an offsite Practice Educator and Onsite Supervisor (OSS), supervision will alternate with the Practice Educator providing supervision more focused on teaching and learning activities and the Supervisor guiding your day to day work and decision making.
Additional support for student social workers
Support groups
Offsite Practice Educators working within the Children's Academy, run a monthly student group which provides a reflective space for learning and support for students in different placements across the county. When you join a placement team within Surrey Children's, your attendance at the group is expected and will support you in gathering evidence for your portfolio.
Student SharePoint
We have a dedicated SharePoint page for social work students in Surrey Children's Services, with resources for whilst you are on placement. We want to develop this page even further and welcome any ideas from students when they are with us!
New and Developing Social Workers library
We have a variety of books that cover a wide range of areas and themes in social work. Whilst on placement with us, students have access to the library to support learning.
Online learning platforms
Our three learning platforms; Research in Practice, Care Knowledge and Community Care inform, will give you access to a wide range of publications, podcasts, webinars, blogs and policy updates to support learning and development and activities you can complete as evidence within your portfolio.
Routes into Social Work
Below is a summary of the range of entry routes that Surrey Children's Services Academy work alongside. The table includes the funding details and status of each of the programmes.
Name of scheme | Qualification requirements | Funding | Description | When will the scheme be offered? | Status | Where to look for more information |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Degree in Social Work | No degree required 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent. | Self-funded | This takes three years to complete, with the first year being at University. This includes a 70-day placement in year 2 and a final 100-day placement in year 3. | You will need to check with each University. | Independent applications annually | Universities |
| Social Work degree apprenticeship (Social Work trainee) | No degree required 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent. | Apprentice levy | You will learn on the job, attending Chichester University one day a week over three years starting in September 2024. You will complete two formal assessed placements during the programme. On completion qualified social worker. | Children Families and Lifelong Learning (CFLL) are offering 10 funded places for start in academic year 2024. | Applications open 23/02/2024 | Visit the Social Work Degree Apprenticeship SharePoint page |
| Step Up to Social Work | At least 2:2 level degree (in any discipline) plus 6 months direct work experience | Government funded Department for Education (DfE) | This is a government funded programme and takes fourteen months to complete. On successful completion of the course, you will have gained a Post Graduate Diploma in Social Work. Surrey Children's work in partnership with Step Up. | The programme only runs once every two years, dependent on government funding, so if you're interested, make sure you don't miss out on your chance to apply! | Applications closed | |
| Frontline | First or 2:1 level degree | Government funded (DfE) | This is a government funded programme and takes a year to complete. On successful completion of the course you will have gained a Diploma in Social Work. When you become a Newly Qualified Social Worker undertaking your ASYE year, you will be able to complete a Masters with Frontline. | Applications are open on a rolling basis for each cohort, with places assigned on a first-come-first-served basis. | No current partnership with SCC | Please visit the Frontline web page for more information. |
| Post graduate diploma in Social Work | At least a 2:2 degree plus a minimum of two years' experience in social care and approval from your Line Manager and the Academy (you will need to contact the New and Developing Social Workers Manager). Kingston University will accept a degree at 2:2 and possibly below, if you undertake a good interview and have management support. | Limited number of spaces funded by CFLL | Social work experience is required as you will undertake a self-funded recognition of prior experiential learning – Recognition of Prior Experiential Learning (RPEL) module. The first placement is in your own team May-August. You will attend Kingston University for your final year and undertake your final 100-day student placement, in a different team to your own. | We will review post grad options in 2024 for future delivery. A post graduate apprenticeship route has recently been launched by Universities and we are considering what this means for us in CFLL. There are currently no plans for a further cohort of sponsored post graduate diploma in Social Work (PGDIPSW) this year. | Applications closed | |
| Masters in Social Work | Degree required. You will need to check with each University what level of degree they would accept. | Self-funded | Two-year course, in which the first 70-day placement is undertaken in the first year and the final 100-day placement is undertaken in the second year. | You will need to check with each University. | Independent applications annually. | Universities |
| Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE) | Social Work degree required | Programme funded through Skills for Care and run by CFLL | This is a 12-month employment-based programme of support designed to help newly qualified social workers make the transition from a qualifying educational course to the world of professional social work in their first year of employment. | Large intake planned for Autumn 2024. | Applications open Spring 2024. |
Working in Surrey
Surrey is made up of the 11 districts and boroughs outlines in the map below. Students placements and Newly Qualified Social Worker vacancies may be anywhere within our surrey county children's services teams.
Vacancies
View the latest vacancies.
Contact us
For further information, please contact us by email at surreychildrens.academy@surreycc.gov.uk. In the subject of the email, please include what the enquiry relates to.
