Children’s Workforce: Core
Competencies
Literature Snapshot – July 2012
Prepared by
Centre for Social Research and Evaluation
Prepared for
Child, Family and Community Policy
Contents
Literature Snapshots
1
Introduction
2
Introducing core competencies for the children's workforce
2
Learning from the UK
3
Core competencies and related initiatives for the children's workforce
4
Other relevant information to consider
7
References
Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
10
Literature Snapshots
This literature snapshot is one of a number of time-limited research scans
commissioned by Child, Family and Community Policy to inform the development of the
White Paper for Vulnerable Children. The snapshot provides a narrative review of
literature that focuses on a general topic of interest. It does not seek to weigh up a body
of focused scholarship in order to make a definitive judgement about the strength
of evidence in support of particular programmes and practices.
The information in this snapshot is limited to a single literature search across reputable
online information sources, government websites and other printed materials.
Parameters for the literature search
The Ministry of Social Development’s Knowledge Services searched both peer reviewed
literature, international government agencies and the Ministry’s document management
system (EDRMS) for information about core competencies and minimum standards in a
workforce for children. The search focused on the United Kingdom’s “Common Core of
Skills and Knowledge for the Children’s Workforce” and its implementation; other
jurisdictions were also included.
The search results were limited. The following Literature Snapshot provides a
description of practice and commentary in this area, not a review of evidence per se.
Methodology
The keywords used in various combinations for the search were: lead, professional,
integrated, care, case coordinator, case manager, children, budget, common,
assessment, framework, key, worker, whänau, and ora. Searches for “key workers”
returned results primarily concerning either the UK mental health service, or results for
social work practices that fell outside the scope of the search.
The databases used for the search were: Knowledge Services Catalogue, Gale
Academic OneFile, Campbell Collaboration, ChildData, EBSCOHost, Social Care
Online, ProQuest, Google/Google Scholar, and Austrom.
Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
1
Introduction
This literature snapshot summarises documents relating to the development and
implementation of core competencies for the children’s workforce (ie people who work
with children). It draws mainly on literature from the UK, which is the only jurisdiction to
have taken this step toward including core competencies for a children’s workforce.
Material from the US, Canada and Australia is also included.
Introducing core competencies for the children's workforce
The Common Core of Skills and Knowledge for the children and young people’s
workforce in the UK describes the skills and knowledge that everyone who works with
children and young people is expected to have. It is important to note that in the UK, as
in some other jurisdictions, all social workers are required to have a social work degree
or a recognised equivalent qualification. The workforce includes those who work with
children and young people all the time as well as those who work with children and
young people as only part of their job or role. It includes both paid staff and volunteers.
The Common Core was developed through a partnership of service user, employer and
worker interests (Department for Education and Skills, 2005).
Six areas of expertise of the Common Core of Skills and Knowledge offer a single
framework to underpin multi-agency and integrated working, professional standards,
training and qualifications across the children and young people’s workforce. The six
areas covered by the Core are:
•
effective communication and engagement
•
child and young person development
•
safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child
•
supporting transitions
•
multi-agency working
•
sharing information.
As part of the planning process, research was undertaken to map qualifications and
training developments across the children and young people’s workforce to inform the
development of an Integrated Qualifications Framework (IQF) which would incorporate
the Common Core. At that stage (2005), awareness of the Common Core of Skills and
Knowledge in the social care sectors was patchy. Some participants perceived conflict
with the National Health Service Core Skills initiative in terms of failing to match the
Common Core and the Core Skills and conflicting priorities for workforce development.
There was concern about who the Common Core was aimed at – those in children’s
services or all those working with children (Johnson et al., 2005).
The IQF was implemented in 2010. It applies and is available to all people who work
with children and young people, across the whole children’s workforce. It supports other
areas of workforce reform in ensuring that different sectors work together to develop
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Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
integrated approaches to qualification development. The Framework allows for
continuing professional development, progression and mobility, and ensures the
Common Core is embedded comprehensively within qualifications (Department for
Children Schools and Families, 2008).
Learning from the UK introduction and implementation of the
Common Core of Skills and Knowledge for the Children's
Workforce
A 2008 review (Department for Children, Schools and Families, 2008) reported that
many local areas were using the Common Core extensively in the development of job
descriptions, in provision of training and development, in work induction and in
workforce development strategies. The Common Core was also used to inform the
review and development of National Occupational Standards.
However, the review also found that the Common Core did not seem to be sufficiently
embedded in some parts of the workforce, such as the health sector, or the police, who
may only come into contact with children as an occasional part of their job. The authors
concluded that in order for the Core to fulfil its potential and remain relevant to the
needs of the whole workforce, it should:
•
be clear about the responsibilities of everyone in the workforce in relation to
safeguarding children and young people
•
support partnership working with children, young people and their families
•
support people in the workforce in developing the skills, behaviours and knowledge
necessary to provide effective support to the most vulnerable children and young
people.
The review suggested that more work be done to identify whether the Common Core
could, or should, incorporate the Children’s Workforce Network’s Statement of Values
for the Children’s Workforce (Department for Children Schools and Families, 2008).
The revised Common Core (Children’s Workforce Development Council, 2010) explicitly
states that it applies to “those who work with children and young people all the time as
well as those who work with children and young people as only part of their jobs. It
includes both paid staff and volunteers”. It also refers to common values shared by
practitioners and acknowledges the rights of children and young people and their
families. Each of the six skill areas is covered in more detail in the review. No review
has yet been undertaken of the revised Common Core or its implementation. The
Children’s Workforce Development Council was disbanded on 31 March 2012 and its
functions transferred to the Teaching Agency and the Children's Improvement Board. At
this point the status of Common Core and the IQF is unknown.
Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
3
Core competencies and related initiatives for the children's
workforce
Post-qualifying social work education and training in the UK
In 2005, the General Social Care Council (GSCC, 2005) set specialist standards and
requirements for post-qualifying social work education and training, including standards
for children, young people and their families. These standards acknowledge the
Common Core, and note the need to take “full account of the knowledge and skills
needed to work effectively with a range of additional and complex needs”. The
standards are intended to enable employers, post-qualifying students and users of
services to know that those who have obtained a recognised post-qualifying qualification
will have clearly demonstrated competence in a number of key areas.
Overarching professional standards for social workers in England
The Social Work Reform Board (2010) has developed a set of overarching professional
standards for social workers in England to support and inform the national career
structure. The framework is expected to relate to and influence:
•
education and training by providing a foundation for developing the curriculum for the
social work degree
•
continuing professional development
•
employment organisation and structure
•
performance management and appraisal
•
regulation and registration requirements.
The proposed framework covers nine areas which should be relevant, to a greater or
lesser degree, to all social workers and social work students, no matter their level of
experience or the settings they work in. The nine areas are:
•
professionalism
•
values and ethics
•
diversity
•
rights, justice and economic wellbeing
•
knowledge
•
critical reflection and analysis
•
intervention and skills
•
contexts and organisations
•
professional leadership.
Child health workforce competence framework in England
A separate competence framework has been developed in England for the children and
young people’s health workforce. It details five core competencies for the workforce, the
functions that underpin them and levels of competence required to deliver particular
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Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
levels of service. The competencies relate to supporting health and wellbeing;
safeguarding; assessment planning, intervention and review; communication,
engagement and relationship building; knowledge management; and service
development. It makes no reference to the Common Core of Skills and Knowledge
developed for the children’s workforce (Smith et al., 2011).
Common Core of Skills, Knowledge and Understanding and Values:
Scotland
Scotland has begun developing its own Common Core of Skills, Knowledge and
Understanding and Values for the children’s workforce in Scotland. The intention is that
it will be valid for everyone working with children, young people and families, including
volunteers, unqualified employees and those qualified at any level in the workforce. The
Working Group notes that “implementation will take a variety of forms and be led by a
variety of national and local organisations” (The Scottish Government, 2011a). The
consultation wanted the draft Common Core to have:
•
a clearer emphasis on children’s rights and the UNCRC1
•
children, young people and their families as active participants in services and
decisions affecting them
•
a strengths-based approach
•
understanding of adversity and vulnerability
•
understanding of equality, diversity, cultural differences and disability
•
knowledge of child development, including attachment and brain development
•
reflective practice
•
social and emotional skills – “self awareness, self management, social awareness”
•
ability to manage risk.
Respondents to the consultation also made suggestions on particular areas covered in
the draft Common Core and proposed ways to implement it once it is finalised (The
Scottish Government, 2011b). The key suggestions were:
Strategic management
•
A senior champion should be created in an area to ensure uniformity and progress
around implementing the Common Core.
•
The Common Core could form part of organisational strategic plans.
•
The Common Core could be incorporated into Professional Standards.
•
The Common Core should not stand alone and should be incorporated into all
existing competency frameworks and Codes of Ethics.
1 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
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Operational management
•
The Common Core should influence the content of recruitment literature and job
specifications.
•
The Common Core should be part of shared induction across disciplines.
•
All local training should include the Common Core.
•
The Common Core could be included in quality assurance processes.
•
Inspections could be used to help implement the Common Core.
•
Organisations should maintain regular communications with members and
stakeholders through newsletters and websites.
•
Organisations should incorporate team meetings and development days.
Day-to-day working with children, young people and families
•
The Common Core should be used in supervision, performance review or appraisal.
•
Student placements should be incorporated in a variety of services.
•
Ongoing communication with children, young people and families will help them
understand what the Common Core should mean for them (The Scottish
Government, 2011b).
No further information is available.
Competency standards: US
The National Association of Social Workers in the US has set competency standards for
family practice, child welfare and mental health, but because each state sets and
controls its own competency standards, the national standards have only limited
application (Worrall, 2005).
Some states, such as Pennsylvania, have developed their own competency-based
training and education system, based on the Competence-Based In-Service Training
model developed in Ohio. Pennsylvania has used the model for both its certification and
leadership programmes. The adoption of a consistent philosophy, a common universe
of competencies, and common programme elements has made integration of the two
programmes possible (Breitenstein et al., 1997).
California has developed Common Core Curricula for child welfare workers. Its aim is to
achieve consistency and equity in the application of best and evidence-based practice in
all 58 California counties. It is based on five principles:
•
fairness and equity
•
family and youth engagement
•
strength-based practice
•
outcomes-informed practice
•
evidence-based practice.
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Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
The Curricula have three categories of content areas:
•
Two content areas have standardised information and standard delivery. Both relate
to child maltreatment identification.
•
Five content areas have standardised information with detailed instructions on
delivery. They cover: a framework for practice in California; child and youth
development in a child welfare context; critical thinking in child welfare assessment;
family engagement in case planning and management; and placement and
permanency.
•
Fourteen topics have standardised competencies and learning objectives. They
cover cultural issues, substance abuse, domestic violence, mental health issues,
values and ethics and procedural matters.
The Common Core is expected to be completed by all newly hired child welfare workers
within two years (California Social Work Education, 2012).
Another viewpoint: Sweden
Bergmark and Lundstrom (2007) question the value of a common core of knowledge
and skills for social work. They note that there have been numerous attempts to
establish the components of such a common core of knowledge, which usually
encompasses values, purpose, knowledge, theory, methods and skills. In their view,
most of these “textbook enumerations have a normative character and deliver an ideal
picture of what social work ought to be rather than what it is”. They argue that empirical
studies reveal a more complex picture, which makes it more difficult to establish a
common core. They also note that social work is characterised by an eclectic tradition
with many theories imported from various fields existing side by side.
Other countries, including Australia and New Zealand, have minimum professional
standards for social workers, but have not adopted a wider common core approach.
Other relevant information to consider
All the Core Curricula and frameworks mentioned above have been developed through
a collaborative consultative process, involving employers, employees, educators and
service users. The recent Scottish consultation, for example, drew responses from local
authorities (employers), representative bodies and individual respondents, voluntary
sector service providers, National Health Service and healthcare representative groups,
education and training providers, regulatory and professional bodies, and trade unions.
Worrall (2005) concludes that the construction of a competency framework in New
Zealand, should:
•
incorporate the Treaty of Waitangi with specific Treaty competencies identified
•
include cultural appropriateness and culture-specific frameworks
•
be based on consultation with stakeholders, particularly practitioners
•
be tiered to cater for all levels of an organisation or target group
Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
7
•
identify core competencies that give cohesion across all levels
•
identify core values of the profession to act as a basis for competencies
•
have clearly and stringently defined competencies, with clearly articulated
assessment benchmarks and strategies
•
include a relationship between competency attainment and salary structures.
The UK Common Core has been operationalised through the IQF. The Introduction to
the 2010 version notes that:
It is understood that the use of the common core will vary by sector and role,
and that different organisations will find the most appropriate ways of giving
expression to all the six areas of expertise ... Not all practitioners will be
regularly involved in supporting transition, for instance, but all will need to
understand at least the most important aspects of each of the six areas of
expertise in the common core work as a whole (CWDC, 2010).
Worrall (2005) notes that competency measures for working specifically with vulnerable
children and their families are largely subsumed under generic professional competency
standards. She also points out that assessing competency can be difficult in the
absence of clear assessment frameworks.
Benefits
Proponents of a Common Core refer to the promotion of shared values, language and
understanding across different parts of the workforce, thus improving practice (Welsh
Assembly Government, no date; The Scottish Government, 2011a). The CWDC (2010)
believes that the Common Core provides a common platform of understanding across
the children’s workforce. It reflects a set of common values for practitioners that
promotes equality, respects diversity and challenges stereotypes. The Common Core
also acknowledges the rights of children and young people, and the role parents, carers
and families play in helping children and young people.
Proponents also recognise that a Common Core can:
•
create opportunities for more flexible jobs, where appropriate, with workers able to
work across different parts of the children's sector, knowing they have a core of
skills, knowledge and understanding that they can bring with them to a new
profession
•
make recruitment for certain roles easier for employers, creating a large pool of
potential employees to choose from and providing employees themselves with many
more career opportunities than they currently have
•
create opportunities for employers and education providers to rationalise and
prioritise their education, training and development resources, eg focusing on filling
any gaps in core skills and knowledge
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Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
•
create opportunities for education providers to rationalise the content of
qualifications, stimulating more opportunities for articulation between qualifications or
shared modules for different professions
•
provide a common basis for organisations to re-assess their organisational
procedures, practices and cultures
•
encourage the application of best practices aimed at improving outcomes for children
and families, by training strategies that progress from knowledge acquisition to
building and demonstrating skills
•
encourage inclusion of community partners, whenever possible, in order to share
responsibility for child safety, permanency, and wellbeing
•
ensure the workforce is equipped to intervene early, tackle inequalities and build the
capacity of individuals, families and communities (California Social Work Education
2012; The Scottish Government 2011b).
No research was found on any specific benefits to children and their families as a result
of the introduction of core competencies.
Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
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References
Bergmark, A. and Lundström, T. (2007). Unitarian ideals and professional diversity in
social work practice—the case of Sweden. European Journal of Social Work, 10(1), 5572
Breitenstein, L., Jones Kelley, K., Rycus, J. and Sites, E. (1997). Pennsylvania’s
comprehensive approach to training and education in public child welfare. Public
Welfare, 55(2):14
California Social Work Education (2012). California Common Core Curricula for child
welfare workers. Retrieved on May 18 2012 from
http://calswec.berkeley.edu/CalSWEC/CCCCA_About_Core.html
Children’s Workforce Development Council (2010). The common core of skills and
knowledge: At the heart of what you do. CWDC: Leeds
Department for Children, Schools and Families (2008). 2020 Children and Young
People’s Workforce Strategy. DCSF: London
Department For Education and Skills (2005). Common Core of Skills and Knowledge for
the Children's Workforce. DFES: London
General Social Care Council (2005). Specialist standards and requirements for postqualifying social work education and training: Children and young people, their families
and carers. GSCC: London
Johnson, S., Dunn, K. and Coldron, J. (2005). Mapping Qualifications and Training for
the Children and Young People’s Workforce: Short Report 4 - Common Core of Skills
and Knowledge: Characteristics of qualifications and issues in the field. Sheffield Hallam
University: Sheffield
Smith, L., Hawkins, J. and McCrum, A. (2011). Development and validation of a child
health workforce competence framework. Community Practitioner Vol. 84 No.5
Social Work Reform Board (2010). Building a safe and confident future: One year on.
Overarching professional standards for social workers in England. SWRB: London
The Scottish Government (2011a). Consulting on the common core of skills, knowledge
& understanding and values that should be common to everyone working with children:
Summary of Responses Scottish Executive: Edinburgh
The Scottish Government (2011b). A Consultation on the Common Core of Skills,
Knowledge and Understanding and Values for the Children’s Workforce in Scotland.
Scottish Executive: Edinburgh
Welsh Assembly Government (no date) Introduction to the Common Core of Skills
Knowledge and Understanding for the Children and Young People’s Workforce in
Wales. Retrieved from www.wlga.gov.uk/download.php?id=1633&l=1 May 18 2012
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Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
Worrall, J. (2005). An Analysis of New Zealand and International Competency
Classification Frameworks in the Social Service Workforce Supporting Vulnerable
Children and Families. Ministry of Social Development: unpublished
Core Competencies: Literature Snapshot
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