Assessment and accreditation process for practice leaders

This contract refers to the development of a robust, reliable and valid process to assess c.200 practice leaders in English local authorities against the six statements in the knowledge and skills statement (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/knowledge-and-...). We expect this process will include a number of different elements (such as role plays, written exercises and in-depth interviews) to assess practice leaders and a process to draw on feedback from staff, peers, managers and other key stakeholders.

Successful completion of the assessment will lead to accredited status. This contract supports the social work reform programme to secure improvements in the quality and leadership of children’s social work.

The Government has set out an ambition for all child and family social work practice leaders to be assessed and accredited by 2020. The Chief Social Worker drafted the knowledge and skills statements for child and family frontline social workers, practice supervisors and practice leaders setting out what they should know and be able to do.

Practice leaders are qualified social workers with the day-to-day operational responsibility across the whole local system for child and family social work practice, for child and family practitioners and practice supervisors. They are typically referred to as the Assistant Director of Children’s Social Care or Director of Family Services.

As the most senior qualified and experienced social workers in an organisation, they are in a unique position to lead and to improve practice. We are separately intending to establish a development programme for future practice leaders.

Completion of that programme is expected to lead to participation in the assessment process to be procured through this exercise. Bidders will need to be able to display expertise in senior leadership assessment and expert professional social work knowledge within its development proposals.