We need your help...

We are inviting groups that work with children and young people to help us shape our work. If you would like to hear about opportunities as they arise please complete our database form to join our update list of groups.

Step up to social work - help us decide

We're looking for children and young people who have experience of working with a social worker to help us select people to train as social workers.

Our Step Up to Social Work programme is recruiting 200 people to train as social workers. We want to make sure we select the best candidates.

Our contractors Penna are designing the recruitment process for us and we want to make sure this is based on what children, young people and families tell us.

We've already gathered some comments at the start of the design process to tell us what children and young people feel makes "the perfect Social Worker" and have incorporated this information into the key behaviours that candidates need to demonstrate potential of in order to be successful. 

We are now in the process of designing the specific elements of the assessment centre and would like to present our ideas to a group of children and young people to gather their feedback on our proposals for both the exercises that will be included and their involvement at the assessment centres.

What's involved?

In order to gather this feedback our Occupational Psychologists would like to run a focus group with 6-10 individuals consisting of:

• Brief introduction to the Programme and the work completed to date
• Find out what experience children and young people have, if any, of involvement in Social Worker recruitment.
• Talk the individuals through our ideas for the assessment centre, including how children and young people can be involved.
• Gain specific feedback on the exercises that are going to be included in the assessment centre.

We will arrange a time, date & place to suit your group.

How to get involved

If you are working with a group of children and young people who may be interested please contact Victoria Smith by Friday 12^th March. Email victoria.smith@penna.com call 01625 417322. 

What children, young people and parents / carers say

We are appealing for stakeholders to help create two separate databanks that will record what parents and carers and children and young people think about the workforce.

Both databases will create an information bank of existing research to avoid duplication of work. The resources will also help to identify gaps in consultations with these key stakeholders, as well as shape future children's workforce research and policy development. Find out how you can contribute to our databases.

Join our updates list

If you would like to hear about opportunities to get involved please complete the participation opportunities updates form so that we can contact you whenever these opportunities come up. Your details will not be used for any other purpose or passed to any other parties.

Get in touch

Or you can email us with questions, suggestions or ideas at us@cwdcouncil.org.uk