Assessed and Supported Year in Employment Offer for Newly Qualified Social Workers
Plymouth has always been an early adopter of innovation for newly qualified social workers and our current Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE) is no exception. The Plymouth Principal Social Worker (PSW) was a member of the National Champions Group for ASYE, helping to create a high quality and effective developmental programme and more recently, early adoption of the Knowledge and Skills Statements (KSS).
We love to celebrate our success and our councillors, directors and mayors show their appreciation by helping us host award ceremonies.
What can you expect as a Newly Qualified Worker?
For newly qualified social workers (NQSW) we use a specific role profile. This ensures that we can give you the right amount of protection (e.g. a protected caseload) when you start your career which has sufficent training and development time alongside learning in direct practice.
Our NQSW year is academically accredited and is delivered in partnership with Bournemouth University. This ensures that you have access to an extensive resource library whilst you continue to develop your knowledgge and skills in your first year of employment. This academic component is fully funded by the Academy of Social Work. We also provide you with paid study time, and support from a suitably qualified practice educator to assist you in completing acadmic delements of the programme.
J is a Team Manager with us who started out as a student on placement in Plymouth. J always has students and NQSW’s in her team, because she is passionate about helping the profession grow. Here is what she said in 2018:
“Plymouth have a real sense of strong investment in their workers, I started as an ASYE and moved through the career pathway to Team Manager. The dedication and support offered, specifically around CPD is a strength of Plymouth”.
What makes our programme stand out from others is the dedicated support, training and development we ensure you receive. All of our workers are passionate about development and supporting others so you will find a welcoming culture. You will be allocated a buddy and your Practice Educator will ensure you have a tailored development plan to help you work towards meeting the Governments statutory CPD framework for childrens social workers, namely the Knowledge and Skills Statements (KSS). You will receive regular action learning, which provides an opportunity to meet with peers and learn from each other in a supported way. We believe that our training programme is exceptional. You will receive extensive and varied training whilst you learn.
Working with your managers, we will ensure your workload allows you the time to make use of these opportunities
Family Support Worker – Newly Qualified Social Worker Pathway
Not every student is able to have a placement with Plymouth childrens services. We recognise that each NQSW therefore comes with a range of experiences from their qulaifying education programme.
For successfully appointed NQSW’s who have limited placement experience of statutory childrens social work we offer a three month paid position as a family support worker. This usually occurs in the period between finishing your university studies and the point at which you become registered with Social Work England. This can bridge the knowledge and skills gap between finishing taught elements of your programme and when you can take up employment as a qualified, registred social worker, providing opportunity to earn whilst you learn in a statutory setting.