Introduction to the A&R Team Lien Watts, Lyse Hurd, Laura - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Introduction to the A&R Team Lien Watts, Lyse Hurd, Laura Sheridan and Julie Long

• A&R set up early in BASW’s history. Intro by • Became official with 8 members of staff. Lien Watts • Now with 15 members. • Are in all four countries of the UK. • Northern Ireland • Wales • Scotland • England

• The Social Workers’ Union (SWU) is a certified trade union since 2011. BASW/SWU • A&R represent on behalf of Relationship SWU, but are employed by BASW. • Qualified and registered social workers • Trade Union roots • Reps also have management and/or supervisory experience.

A&R – Who we are and what we do • Team of representatives that cover the UK. • Individual A & R officers covering specific UK regions. • We carry out representation as BASW representatives. • We also work as Trade Union officials on behalf of the Social Workers Union.

BASW and SWU BASW SWU • Provide advice to members • Certified Trade Union via our duty system • Officers of a certified trade union such as SWU cannot be • Represent at regulatory refused access to provide bodies representation at disciplinary • Can (and do) provide and grievance procedures. representation with • Advisable that members add employment issues SWU membership to their existing membership if they • However, employment don’t have it already. representation not guaranteed with BASW as • Contact membership on 0121 not a Trade Union 622 8401.

• Our team provide advice and representation with employment issues. What is the • Key point of contact for our service is A&R team via our duty system. • We provide advice on employment and what do issues and representation in formal employment proceedings we do? • Advise and represent with regulatory body proceedings. • Advise members on employment rights: what to expect at meetings, how to formulate statements for these processes and what evidence to submit. • Represent members in formal hearings.

Covid 19 and our Service • We are very much here and continue to advise and represent our members. • All work being carried out remotely. • Attending meetings via telephone conference or video link. • Existing grievance / disciplinary processes halted or slowed down. • COVID 19 specific advice on duty and with members we are representing with other issues. • Employers struggling with the concept of home working – people being told they have to have a ‘presence’ in the office. • Our team have been keeping track of the government guidance and saving it , in case it is needed further down the line. • Ever changing situation – we are responding and advising accordingly.

• Northern Ireland Social UK Regulatory Care Council Bodies • Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) • Social Work England • Social Care Wales

Regulatory Body Function • Ensure that social workers: • have the right skills and qualifications to work to high professional standards • capable of delivering high quality services that the public have confidence in. • Most referrals come from patients or service users, followed by referrals made by employers, former employers or the police. • Primary function is protection of the public • All regulatory bodies are holding meetings remotely during pandemic. • They are still open to receiving complaints and registered • Social workers are still expected to respond to their regulators within a given time frame

• Process followed involves complaints from whatever Fitness to source being initially Practise investigated. Proceedings • Usually consider whether there is a case to answer. • If there is, the case is referred to the appropriate Committee. • After investigation a panel of the relevant regulatory committee will be convened to hear the case.

• Support and represent members through initial referral through to FTP hearings. How do A&R • We encourage our members to contact support? us when they are required to respond to their regulator. • The A&R Service have produced a number of factsheets which contain helpful advice about how to respond to a complaint. • Initial response is important to ensure that the investigators have all the information they require to ascertain if any case has a ‘realistic prospect of success’ if the evidence was to be tested at a hearing. • We support and represent many members in FTP final hearings.

The FTP process is not necessarily about addressing the allegations but how you respond to those allegations. Recognise and admit mistakes and provide mitigation and remediation. Being fit to practise means being competent, respectable, honest & trustworthy, being able to work with service users and others and being in sufficiently good health to practice.

Fitness to Practise Proceedings • A&R officers represent at the hearings and assist members to prepare their statement of case prior to the hearing. • A registrant is not required to give live evidence - we encourage members to do. • At the final hearings, if it is held that fitness to practise is impaired, the regulators have a range of sanctions open to them. • These include no sanction, a caution, conditions of practice, suspension from the register or a striking off order

• Increase in calls to our duty Duty advice system at the beginning of the lockdown mostly dealing with and changes coronavirus. during • Getting to grips with new government guidance and COVID 19 policies.

Themes Social workers being made to attend offices or do visits Some members still being Carers are struggling to without reasons that adhere forced into situations where provide care duties as well to government guidance or there is no PPE or as performing their without a proper risk inadequate PPE. substantive duties. assessment. Members are potentially IR35 and Umbrella being redeployed or asked companies’ roles during the to do alternate roles pandemic. without training.

BASW/SWU Concerns for BAME Social Workers • Despite making up 14% of the population, 35% of intensive care patients with Covid-19 are BAME. • Similar disproportionate infection rates within staff in NHS and social care. • There have been many theories posed about this. • Official enquiry is planned and must be robust. • Imperative employers protect BAME social workers in a similar manner as the NHS has committed to do.

When Lockdown Ends We anticipate that many of you will have continuing concerns about returning to the office. The current advice is that, where you can work from home, even after the lockdown ends, the government will be expecting you to do so. There will be an increase in relation to your service user contacts. There are bound to be moves toward more service user contact, which most of you will welcome, however, risk assessments are vital here. We will continue to be available for advice and representation throughout this pandemic.

Website: https://www.basw.co.uk/social- Contact workers-union/opt-swu us… Phone: A&R Leave a Service: (0121) 622 message for a call back. 8413