Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
CWDC continues to work with Skills for Care on the next stages of implementation of the Continuing Professional Development Strategy and Career Pathways Toolkit which was launched at the October 2006 ADSS conference.
The continuing professional development (CPD) of social care workers beyond their induction and initial training is an area of crucial importance for social care organisations and their staff, and for people using the services. This has been noted in successive white papers, green papers and training strategies, in both children's and adults' services, and in policy development concurrent with the publication of this strategy.
The CPD documents have been approved by the boards of Skills for Care and the Children's Workforce Development Council as the CPD strategy recommended to social care employers for their workers. It defines CPD as an ongoing and planned learning and development process that contributes to work-based and personal development. By enabling workers to expand and fulfil their potential, CPD ensures continuing confidence and competence, particularly in ever-changing environments. And that means better quality experiences for people who use social care services.
This CPD strategy applies to the whole social care workforce, across all its organisations and settings. It applies to all workers and managers in social care, including social workers, and encompasses all types of learning at all levels. It includes, but is more than, 'training', ‘qualifications', ‘registration', and ‘post-registration training and learning'. It reflects a social development model, which values and promotes greater recognition of all work and roles within social care, paid and unpaid, and which enables flexible career pathways.
Offering the right CPD is key to employers' ability to attract and keep staff, and to help them value the work they are doing-a principal reason for working in social care.
The October 2006 launch of social care's CPD strategy is marked by four documents, available to download by clicking the links below:
- CPD Strategy : Executive summary booklet [84kb]
- CPD strategy [785kb]
- CPD framework [677kb]
- Employer's Guide to CPD [379kb]
In addition, there is a short video (on DVD) for employers to show to staff. Copies of the DVD are circulating for employers to obtain, e.g. from Skills for Care regional offices and from employer associations, and so on.
If you would prefer printed copies of the main publications, packs containing the strategy, framework and employer's guide are available to purchase at £7.50 (cost price) from Skills for Care's bookshop at the Social Care Association, call 0870 770 2469.
Further guides and assistance to help employers to implement the CPD strategy are planned.