Workshops for designated nurses safeguarding children

1. To provide an opportunity to explore the roles and tasks of the designated professional in their settings

2. To examine how they will take up these roles and tasks within their workplace

3. To examine how their supervisory and management responsibilities for child protection work will be discharged within their setting

4. To discuss case management and the dilemmas faced by designated professionals

The Workshop for Designated Nurses will provide an opportunity to discuss and explore the task and role of the Designated Nurse as laid out in the ‘Safeguarding Children and Young people: roles and competences for health care staff Intercollegiate Document’ of March 2014 - that is at all times and in relation to the roles and responsibilities works as a member of the safeguarding/child protection team across the health community.

1. Lead and support all activities necessary to ensure that organisations within the health community meet their responsibilities to safeguard and protect children and young people
2. Advise and support all named professionals across the health community
3. Be responsible to and accountable within the managerial framework of the employing

The key areas for exploration in the Workshop is to look at how the designated nurse takes up the role in relation to:

• Inter-agency responsibilities
• Leadership and advisory role
• Clinical role
• Co-ordination and communication
• Governance: policies and procedures
• Monitoring serious case reviews/case management reviews/significant case reviews
• Supervision
• Personal development

Learning is based on the participant’s own practice as a designated professional and focuses on four inter-related functions of the designated:

1. Ensuring the implementation of Trust tasks and policies in relation to child protection
2. Focusing on staff practice in child protection work
3. Facilitating staff’s professional practice in relation to child protection work
4. Managing inter-agency relationships and demands

Learning is also based on the struggle to mediate effectively and creatively between these four functions.

Participants will have the opportunity to reflect and work on the issues and feelings engendered by the clinical work entailed in child protection work.

• The sharing of best practice
• The support of colleagues in taking up the role
• The provision of a ‘thinking space’ to examine dilemmas in the role and task
• Greater understanding of the under the surface dynamics that are inevitably in play in safeguarding work

These workshops will provide a reflective space in which participants will be able to present their own work and dilemmas as it connects to child protection. The task of the workshops is to work as a problem-solving group for the presenter’s dilemma or issue and from this the participants will be encouraged to test out new ways of working.

Dr David Lawlor, Director, Centre for Social Work Supervision and Consultancy formerly Head of Social Work at the Tavistock & Portman and Named Professional for Child Protection, Organising Tutor of the MA in Child Protection and Professional Partner Research and Consultancy The Tavistock Institute of Human Relations

Workshop for Designated Nurses will meet on Monday mornings from 9.30am – 12.15pm on the following dates:

12 October 2020

17 November

14 December

1 February 2021

1 March

29 March

10 May

7 June

28 June

26 July

£850