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Scottish Social Services CouncilThe Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) is responsible for registering people who work in social services and regulating their education and training. Set up as part of a drive to raise standards in social services, their role is to increase the protection of people who use social services, to raise standards of practice and to increase public confidence in the sector. Information about the SSSC can be found here or by accessing their website.
Sector Skills AgreementThe Scottish Social Services Council, as part of the Sector Skills Council, Skills for Care and Development (SfCD), commissioned research during autumn and winter 2006 with employers and service users into current skill gaps and future skills needs in the social services sector's workforce. The SSSC has also been gathering data on current education and training provision for the social services sector in Scotland. The research forms part of a five-stage process known as the Sector Skills Agreement (SSA). SSAs are being drawn up in all employment sectors across the UK as part of the drive to improve workforce skills levels and improve services. The SSA will map out what skills employers need their workers to have and how publicly funded training can be better directed towards the sector's skills needs. The process of completing the SSA will take until December 2007. If you would like more information on the SSA please contact Daniel Stoddart or visit the SSSC website where you can also access the findings from the research. Qualification of Housing Support WorkersAt the Unit's recent regional events providers were asked to submit information on how many of their staff members currently hold qualification(s) that would meet the SSSC’s registration requirements. 31 providers with a total of 2230 staff members gave information and it showed that a considerable number of housing support workers will have to undertake qualification over the next few years.
The cost of providing training varies around the country and many providers are unsure of the costs they may face. Providers have found that some training providers are reluctant to give an indication of fees as the cost of providing a course depends on a variety of factors including how many people are going to undertake the qualification at any one time. This uncertainty has made it difficult for housing support providers to estimates costs and plan for the future particularly given the uncertainty many face around Supporting People funding. Skills Sets for staff working in housing support rolesSkills Sets for housing support workers have been developed by the SSSC in conjunction with employer representatives, the Scottish Centre for Excellence, SQA Care Scotland and City & Guilds Scotland. The Skills Sets are available for SVQ level 2, 3 and 4. There are a large number of SVQ units and sometimes it can be difficult to know which ones are most useful and relevant to people in their work. The Skills Sets group together the most useful units (for certain areas of work) which makes it easier to choose the ones to do. You can request copies of the housing support skill sets or any of the above skill sets by contacting the SSSC on 0845 60 30 891 or at enquiries@sssc.uk.com National Occupational Standards for Commissioning, Procurement & ContractingSkills for Care and Development (SfCD)is developing National Occupational Standards for commissioning, procurement and contracting. SfCD is the Sector Skills Council for social care, children’s and young people's workforces within the UK. It is an alliance of five organisations: Care Council for Wales, The Children’s Workforce Development Council, Northern Ireland Social Care Council, Scottish Social Services Council, Skills for Care. The work on the National Occupational Standards for Commissioning, Procurement & Contracting is being carried out by New Directions Consulting Ltd. There are currently no National Occupational Standards (NOS) which focus specifically on this area of work. The decision to develop the standards reflects the key role of commissioning, procurement and contracting in delivering planned changes in services. The draft standards are under consultation until Tuesday 31 July 2007. The standards must reflect the needs of the sector, so the views of everyone involved in the contracting, commissioning and procurement of social services are essential. You can view the consultation documents here. Regional Events 2007Questions and answers dealt with by Wendy Johnston from the Scottish Social Services Council at the Supporting People regional provider events in winter 2007Inverness event January 2007
Aberdeen event in February 2007
Dumfries event in February 2007
Qualification and Registration of Workers in Housing Support Services - 25 September 2006 - Housing Support Qualification Advisory Group - brief noteStaff from the Unit participate in the SSSC's Housing Support Qualifications Advisory Group which meets to develop a housing support qualification for registration with the SSSC, which is both recognised within the sector and which equips staff to support and assist people to remain in their own home. The group met for the last time on 26 September 2006. At this meeting it was agreed that over the previous year the group had:
Future updates on the qualification and registration of the housing support workforce will be available from:
Housing Support Qualification Advisory Group - Qualification and Registration of Workers in Housing Support Services - 29 August 2006Staff from the Unit participate in the SSSC's Housing Support Qualifications Advisory Group which meets to develop a housing support qualification for registration with the SSSC, which is both recognised within the sector and which equips staff to support and assist people to remain in their own home. The group last met on 29 August 2006 and discussed a number of issues. 1. Consultation on modern apprenticeshipsThe Scottish Executive is currently considering the future of modern apprenticeships and is consulting with stakeholders about the way forward. It was suggested at the meeting that this consultation may be very important to providers of housing support as modern apprenticeships have been a key way for staff to access training and career progression. More information can be found on the Scottish Executive's website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2006/08/11114908/0 2. Skills sets for workers in housing support services (SVQ levels 2, 3 and 4)Skills sets have been developed and they should be published by mid-November 2006. The SSSC will use the mailing list developed during the period of consultation to promote the leaflet as well as other networking agencies such as the Supporting People Enabling Unit and the Voluntary Sector Social Services Workforce unit. 3. Development of Housing Support HN UnitsPrior to the meeting the advisory group had presented Care Scotland's qualification support group with their proposals for content of new HN Units for housing support. These would be optional units, available for selection by HNC Social Care candidates. It is hoped that that they will be ready by autumn 2007 and that the Scottish Executive will help with funding for consultation and development of distance/ e learning materials. In the future it may be valuable to develop a unit on homelessness, which is something the advisory group would welcome. 4. The future of the advisory groupThose present looked over the advisory group's work plan and agreed that the work was largely completed. Therefore the next meeting should be the final meeting of the advisory group. Housing Support Qualification Advisory Group - Qualification and Registration of Workers in Housing Support Services - 26 June 2006Staff from the Unit participate in the SSSC's Housing Support Qualifications Advisory Group which meets to develop a housing support qualification for registration with the SSSC, which is both recognised within the sector and which equips staff to support and assist people to remain in their own home. The group last met on 26 June 2006 and discussed a number of issues. 1. Draft Skills Sets for workers in Housing Support ServicesA sub committee of the Advisory group met earlier in the month to draft a housing support skills set for SVQs at level 2, 3 and 4. The advisory group looked over the suggestions and was happy to endorse the work of the sub-committee and Wendy Johnston will work with the SSSC communications team to get the information printed up into leaflets. 2. HNC in Social CareWendy Johnston has been working with local colleges to come up with ways that the current HNC in Social Care could be revised to incorporate the needs of the housing support workforce. The group agreed that the best solution was to develop a HN unit on housing support, which would be available before registration starts. This would allow the housing support workers to get the information they need without developing a new qualification. It was suggested that the HN unit should include information on Supporting People policy as well as information on the rights and responsibilities of tenants. The group was informed that setting up a new HN unit can be done quite quickly. The key thing is to have:
It costs about £500 to get someone to write an HN unit and the SSSC is currently investigating funding options. Wendy Johnston has taken advice and guidance on the technicalities of taking this forward and has found that the business development teams within local colleges are keen on this development. However, the frontline staff (who would actually be doing the work) are more reluctant as they already feel under pressure with their current workload. It was agreed that the sub-committee would met again to push this work forward as the group was confident that these issues are not far from being resolved. 3. Additional Qualification for registrationThe following qualifications were considered by the group at the April meeting:
After that meeting two further qualifications were put forward for inclusion:
All these qualifications will be considered by the Chief Executive of SSSC, for inclusion in the list of qualifications required for registration of workers in housing support services, in August 2006. 4. Costs of qualifying the housing support workforceThe SSSC is keen to assess how much it will cost to qualify the housing support workforce as this information could highlight to Scottish Executive the need for funding for education. However, it is a major exercise which the SSSC will not be able to pursue until after the work on HN units and other qualifications has been completed. Housing Support Qualification Advisory Group brief note of meeting on 9 May 2006Staff from the Unit participate in the SSSC's Housing Support Qualifications Advisory Group which meets to develop a housing support qualification for registration with the SSSC, which is both recognised within the sector and which equips staff to support and assist people to remain in their own home. The group last met on 9 May 2006 and discussed a number of issues. 1. Housing support training and qualificationThe group discussed qualifications currently available in housing, health and social care. There was general agreement that there are aspects of housing support which are not covered by these courses. In particular issues to do with:
The group agreed that it is important that those working in housing support have a good grasp of these (and other) issues. There was some discussion within the group about qualifications in Scotland. The group was informed that within the UK context, Scotland is a small community with a limited number of people interested in working in the social sector. The Scottish Executive is aware of this and is keen to promote a system that allows people to transfer amongst sectors and also encourages inter disciplinary working. Therefore specialised courses are becoming less attractive as people and employers prefer courses with a generic core with options to specialize when needed. The group noted this and agreed that it would be better to add to courses currently available rather than devising a new course on housing support. 2. HNC in Social CareThe group was advised that it would be possible to write a number of units on housing support which could be incorporated in the HNC.
The HNC would be suitable for those wishing to register at supervisor level. But is a higher qualification than is needed to register at worker level. 3. SVQThe group was advised that SVQs are work based qualifications. Courses have a generic base which employers, staff and assessors can apply to their particular organisation. There may be enough flexibility within the current SVQ units to cover the needs of the housing support workforce. The group was informed that the time and cost implications (and the over specialisation) of creating a new SVQ for housing support were such that a new SVQ2 in housing support should not be considered unless there was absolutely no other option. 4. Skills SetThe group was informed that the diverse nature of service provision within the social sector means there are over 200 SVQ units in Health and Social Care. It can be intimidating and overwhelming for people when they first look at the lists of units available. To help navigate the SVQ systems there are skills set. These skills sets group together related SVQ units and makes it easier for people to find the type of unit they might be interested in. Wendy Johnston of the SSSC presented a group of SVQ units which she believed would be a good starting point for anybody interested in housing support. The group welcomed this draft skills set at Level 3. 5. Way forwardIt was agreed that three providers with Wendy Johnston and Keith Quinn of the SSSC would form a sub group to review the current HNC in Social Care and identify any gaps related to housing support. Following that meeting (on 30 May 2006) local colleges could be approached to find out who would be interested in devising new housing support units. In addition this group will review the current SVQs to make sure that they do cover the housing support workforce's needs. The group will also draft the skills sets available for SVQ 2 and 4. The sub group will report back to the full group at its next meeting on 26 June 2006. Housing Support Qualification Advisory Group brief note of meeting on 25 April 2006Staff from the Unit participate in the SSSC's Housing Support Qualifications Advisory Group which meets to develop a housing support qualification for registration with the SSSC, which is both recognised within the sector and which equips staff to support and assist people to remain in their own home. The group last met on 25 April 2006 and discussed a number of issues. 1. Group membershipThe group was pleased to welcome a representative from the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations who has knowledge of current practice in sheltered housing. 2. QualificationsA number of qualifications were submitted to the group for review (to see if they meet the SSSC's criteria for registration purposes). The group agreed that some of the qualifications be recommended to go on the SSSC's list of qualifications required for registration while others would need to be augmented with some SVQ units to comply with the SSSC's need for all qualifications to include an element of observed practice. The group noted that some qualifications undertaken by housing support staff are very specialised and held only by a few people. For example, one qualification in the management of travelling people sites is held by 6 people. However, if these qualifications meet the SSSC criteria they can go on the list of qualifications suitable for registration. Providers should be confident that the SSSC expects a number of specialised qualifications to be submitted and the SSSC reviews each qualification in accordance with its criteria (not on how widely the qualification is held) and the needs of the sector. There was some discussion within the group about the availability of individual modules with SVQ qualifications. Some providers have found that while their staff member need only complete 3 modules to augment their qualification (and meet SSSC requirements for registration) some colleges insist that people register for the full SVQ as this is more cost effective for the college. The group was also informed that funding for modern apprenticeships is under review. There is some concern amongst providers that this may affect the availability of subsidised places for SVQs. The group was clear that it is not in a position to influence college fees but considered it important to be aware of the current climate in training for housing support staff. 3. RecommendationsThe group agreed to meet on 9 May 2006 to resolve the issues and questions around qualification for housing support staff and produce recommendations for the SSSC to consider. Report on the housing support seminars which investigated the registration and qualification of the workforce in ScotlandIntroductionCurrently positions in housing support are unregulated. However, over the next five years all staff working within housing support will have to register with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) and to be accepted onto the register will have to hold appropriate qualifications. The Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) announced the qualification framework that housing support staff will be subject to in order to register and maintain registration with the SSSC in 2005.The SSSC Council met in March 2006 and confirmed that the housing support register will open towards the end of 2009. It is anticipated that managers and supervisors will be registered first with support workers being invited to register from the end of 2010. The prospect of the SSSC registration requirements is causing employers/providers some concern. Issues highlighted include:
In response to these concerns the Supporting People Enabling Unit (SPEU), Voluntary Sector Social Services Workforce Unit and the Scottish Social Services Council jointly hosted and organised a series of seminars which encouraged providers of housing support to come together and discuss the issues. The Objectives of the seminars were to:
Summary of events
Each event included:
Group DiscussionsThe time spent in group discussion gave providers a valuable opportunity to share concerns and also items of good practice/solutions. In total 11 groups met and were asked to focus on the following questions:
What follows is a summary of the key issues raised and debated: ResourcesWhen discussing organisational resources the groups identified three main factors:
How resources are being used at the moment
Gaps in what is being done and what needs to be done
How existing resources might be used to assist with these gaps and what needs to be done at an additional cost?
Further support and assistance needed from the organisations represented today?
* National Strategy for the Development of the Social Service Workforce in Scotland: A Plan for Action 2005 – 2010 Scottish Executive Future developmentThe events highlighted how much providers want information about registration as well as the need for further discussion about implementation. It was hoped that future events would be organised so that providers could make a meaningful contribution to the effort to register all housing support staff. Housing Support Qualification Advisory Group – Qualification and Registration of Workers in Housing Support Services – 28 February 2006Staff from the Unit participate in the SSSC's Housing Support Qualifications Advisory Group which meets to develop a housing support qualification for registration with the SSSC, which is both recognised within the sector and which equips staff to support and assist people to remain in their own home. The group last met on 28 February 2006 and discussed a number of issues. 1. Date for opening the housing support staff registerIt is expected that the date for opening the register for workers in housing support services will be announced after the SSSC full council meeting in March 2006. 2. Information retained on people not on the SSSC registerThe group discussed the type of information that the SSSC would retain before the register opens.
3. National Occupational StandardsThe SSSC supplied the group with information explaining the purpose of National Occupational Standards. National Occupational Standards have been developed in most industries. They:
Initially, the standards were used as the basis for qualifications, but wider uses of the standards are now emerging, such as their use in human resource management. Full information on the National Occupational Standards for Housing are available on http://www.assetskills.org/site/AssetSkillsHome/HousingHome/OccupationalStandards/tabid/166/Default.aspx 4. Skill set exerciseThe SSSC is aware that the qualification and registration of the housing support workforce is a complex task as workers are already in post. There will be a variety of pathways to gaining qualification sufficient for registration:
To begin this work each group member agreed to review a job description for a supervisor in a homeless hostel and suggest 4 optional modules that would complement the duties carried out with in that role. 5. Post registration training and learningAfter an individual has gained a qualification sufficient to be accepted onto a register they will be expected to demonstrate that they have undertaken some post registration training and learning (PRTL ) if they are to remain on the register. Consultation on this will be carried out by the SSSC over the coming years. Housing Support Qualification Advisory Group brief note of meeting on 31 January 2006Staff from the Unit participate in the Housing Support Qualifications Advisory Group which last met on 31 January 2006 and discussed a number of issues. The date for opening the register for workers in housing support services is yet to be announced. The group meets to develop a housing support qualification for registration with the SSSC, which is both recognised within the sector and which equips staff to support and assist people to remain in their own home. 1. Access to qualification
2. Qualification of housing support managersThe group recognised that research undertaken in 2005 by the SSSC into the housing support workforce showed that the group with least qualifications were managers. Further research into SVQs has shown the biggest factor affecting participants' experience of completing a qualification is their line manager's attitude towards it. The group recognised that managers in housing support will be expected to gain fairly high level qualifications for registration purposes and some may find this difficult to complete. Members identified that managers should receive support when undertaking qualifications, and that managers have responsibility to ensure the support needs of supervisors and workers are met in the course of their studies. 3. Addition of Qualifications to listThe SSSC has agreed to extend the list of qualifications suitable for registration. Details are available on the SSSC's website: www.sssc.uk.com, select Registration, other workers category. It was noted that some workers with the predecessor HNC in Social Care had been disappointed that their qualification was not recognised for registration. However, the group and consultation respondents had agreed with SSSC's principles, that all qualifications for the register include observed, assessed practice. By accepting 3 additional SVQ units to augment the predecessor HNC qualification, the SSSC hoped to send out a clear signal that it is listening and is willing to work with people to come up with practical ways of moving towards registration. 4. Breadth of housing support workforceRegistration of the housing support workforce may be the widest registration exercise so far and the group are working to allay concerns that it could be possible to miss the needs of whole categories of workers because their specialisms had not been thought of. Roles and responsibilities of people working within housing support had been highlighted through job descriptions made available by Scottish Federation of Housing Associations. This useful exercise gave an indication of the breadth of jobs within housing support, and also highlighted some concerns of providers. 5. Communication StrategyThe group noted that there was considerable interest amongst providers of housing support in the development of qualifications for the sector. It was agreed that the group discussions would proceed on the presumption of openness and collaboration, and group members were encouraged to feedback to colleagues in the sector. Further information on the work of the group is also available from Wendy Johnston, Email wendy.johnston@sssc.uk.com . Further to the meeting the Sector Skills Council announced a series of events called Achieving employer engagement in the sector skills council which will consult with employers and partners on the role of the sector skills council, Skills for Care and Development and the shape of the networks which will support workforce planning and development. Contact 0845 6030891 for more information. EVENT DATES AND VENUES
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