Step Up to Social Work Trainee

“The level of support I get is helpful for managing the inevitable anxiety”
 

We are now just over half way through the Step Up course, having completed the first placement and compiled a portfolio of evidence. Two of our academic courses have also been completed: Law and Social Policy and Psychosocial Approaches to the Life Course with exams, presentations and assignments under our belt.

University is on its summer break, so for the next month we are immersed in our second and final placement full time. All of the step-up students have been given placements in one of the statutory teams. For Somerset, these are the Safeguarding, Assessment or Children Looked After (CLA)  teams. I am in a CLA team and I’m hoping to get some experience of direct therapeutic work with young people, assessment work with families and some experience of court work.  I have planned for this through supervision and in the development of my Learning Agreement.

I feel like we’ve come so far in the first half of the course, on top of the placement and academic work we also have regular skills days run by practicing Social Workers or qualified professionals in their area which really help to integrate theoretical knowledge with practice while learning in a safe space.

However, putting myself in the position of doing important work which has such an impact on young people and their families still feels a little daunting. I am able to cope with this by remembering that we have covered these roles well within academic and skills-based tuition and also through shadowing opportunities. In addition, qualified Social Workers remain involved in the cases and carry overall responsibility. Plus this kind of work is planned for and supported within Supervision.

The level of support I get is helpful for managing the inevitable anxiety which will be evoked at times. It is also helpful to talk things through with the other Step Up students, and in Somerset we have a regular peer supervision group. One of the best resources is the informal Facebook group we have formed which gives us all quick access to a wide range of information and resources through sharing or posting questions.

 

Step Up to Social Work Trainee