"The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows"
Events this week
Aug 22 - National Take Your Cat to the Vet Day 2023
Aug 25 - National Banana Split Day 2023
Aug 26 - National Dog Day 2023
Legislation/Regulation of the week
Employment Rights Act 1996
The Employment Rights Act (ERA) 1996 set out the rights of employees in situations such as dismissal, unfair dismissal, parental leave, and redundancy.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 60 mins)
Videos of the week
Panorama: Lucy Letby: The Nurse Who Killed
Lucy Letby has been convicted of murdering and harming babies. So what turned a likeable nurse into a serial killer? For the first time, Panorama hears from a family whose child died, a friend who’s stood by her and a doctor who tried to raise the alarm. Reporter Judith Moritz reveals evidence of a cover-up by hospital bosses and asks whether some babies’ lives could have been saved.
(Watching this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 60 mins)
Safeguarding & ED & I
Online child grooming crimes hit record high - as figures reveal social apps where it's happening
The NSPCC has said the number of offences show why the Online Safety Bill's "ground-breaking protections" are so needed - despite opposition from tech giants over privacy and security concerns.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
Substance misuse
Foundations has published a report evaluating the impact of Family Drug and Alcohol Court (FDAC) proceedings in England and the effect on family reunification. The report examined data from 13 FDAC sites, nine local authorities (LAs), and 40 interviews with professionals and parents. Findings include: children with a primary carer in FDAC care proceedings were more likely to be reunified with their primary carer than children with a primary carer in non-FDAC care proceedings; a higher proportion of FDAC than comparison parents had ceased drug or alcohol misuse by the end of the proceedings; and children in FDAC sites had lower probability of being placed in LA care compared with non-FDAC care proceedings.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
Connected technology: MPs call on Government to tackle growing problem of tech-enabled domestic abuse.
The Government must make tackling ‘tech abuse’ a priority, MPs say today, amid a warning that the use of smart technology and connected devices in facilitating domestic abuse is becoming a growing problem.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
Child deaths in care
The Times has published a news story reporting that 450 children looked after by local authorities died in care between 2011 and 2021 in the UK. Findings from a Freedom of Information (FOI) request show 400 looked after children died in regulated care placements and 50 children died in unregulated accommodation.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
#WakeUpWednesday: What Parents and Carers Need to Know about Online Financial Scams and Exploitation
Around two-thirds of UK internet users have encountered at least one online scam. While it’s often assumed that online scams most frequently target older, less tech-savvy victims, the age group which actually experiences the highest level of digital fraud is the under-25s.
With that fact in mind, it’s even more crucial that we try to prepare today’s young people to avoid potential pitfalls once they’re old enough to begin conducting their own financial transactions online. Today’s #WakeUpWednesday guide has some top tips that could help.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
Health & Safety
‘Tech can improve health and safety – but the human touch will never be redundant’
Technology has improved the speed and efficiency of almost everything around us – at home and at work – and health and safety compliance management is no different. There is no doubt that tech is transforming our sector in a hugely beneficial way.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
What is wellbeing – and what is it to you?
It’s safe to say that debate about the meaning of wellbeing and its place in the modern world of work is still fertile. However, to some extent, I find the ongoing lack of agreement frustrating, not least because it constitutes an unnecessary blockade in the pursuit of better work for all. Personally, I consider wellbeing to be the principal aspiration of work. After all, if you strip the term of its conceptual baggage for a moment, you are left with a word that captures the very essence of what it means to be human: being well.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
Care worker told ‘you have no friends’ was constructively dismissed
A care home worker who was told ‘you have no friends’ by a manager after she complained her health and safety concerns were not being taken seriously was constructively dismissed, an employment tribunal has found.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
What is Breast Flattening and Breast Ironing?
Breast flattening is an age-old tradition, practiced in certain parts of Africa. The pounding and massaging of a girl’s breasts to delay breast development. In the UK it is child abuse. Read this guide to find out more.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
Red flags warning issued on what parents should look out for to keep their children safe online
While the UK patiently awaits the Government’s Online Safety Bill to come to fruition, tens of thousands of grooming crimes have been recorded by police. The Bill was initially due to be rolled out this autumn, but has encountered a number of delays and amendments since it was proposed in the form of legislation.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
Wider Curriculum
‘Why we’re providing therapy for parents in pre-proceedings’
Therapy for parents in care proceedings often happens too late to make a difference. One authority has had success offering it at pre-proceedings.
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
‘I wanted nothing to do with social workers – until one gained my trust’
BASW officer Rebekah Pierre reflects on how the last social worker she ever had helped her find her way to social work
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
Self-harm and learning disability: the role of grief
Responses to self-injury by people with learning disabilities often focus on environmental triggers but research shows that emotional distress is often key, necessitating a trauma-informed response, says Beverley Samways
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
Are social workers’ families happy about their career choice?
With families of NQSWs worried about the impact of public perceptions of the profession, we asked readers for their views
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
‘There is no justification for agency and permanent social workers having very different pay’
ADCS says DfE locum rules are needed to tackle high costs and damaging practices of some agencies
(Reading this can be counted towards your 20% off the Job learning – Approx. 30 mins)
