Introduction
Welcome to the training section of Devon Safeguarding Children Board
The following pages will provide information about multi-agency safeguarding training for all practitioners who work with children in Devon.
Safeguarding is the responsibility of all, not just those agencies/individuals who work within the child protection field or with vulnerable children as a part of their work.
The training programme we offer aims to increase participants’ knowledge and skills in the field of Child Protection. Working Together to Safeguard Children 2010 states clearly that;
“4.3 Research for the Department of Children, Schools and Families and the Department of Health 65 has shown that inter-agency training is highly effective in helping professionals understand their respective roles and responsibilities, the procedures of each agency involved in safeguarding children and in developing a shared understanding of assessment and decision-making practices. Further, the opportunity to learn together is greatly valued; participants report increased confidence in working with colleagues from other agencies and greater mutual respect.”.
[65] Carpenter et al (2009) The Organisation, Outcomes and Costs of Inter-agency Training to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. London: Department for Children, Schools and Families
The training provided by DSCB is designed to compliment the training provided on a single agency basis. It aims to improve working relationships between agencies, in order to promote high quality service provision and better outcomes for children and young people. The training programme also reflects changes in policy and practice, and local needs.
Allocation of Places
A percentage of places on each course are reserved for DSCB partner members. However there are also places put aside for voluntary and other organisations on each course.
The following groups set out the target audience for each of the DSCB courses we offer. These groups ensure practitioners with a similar level of responsibility for safeguarding children and promoting their welfare learn alongside each other.
Course Principals
Individual agencies are responsible for ensuring that their employees are competent and confident in carrying out their responsibilities to safeguard and promote children’s welfare.
Please note: All DSCB training courses are Child Protection focussed, it is therefore an integral duty of the trainer to address any concerns about a delegates practice. There is an expectation that this will be at the time of training in the first instance and / or, if required, the concern passed on to the DSCB Workforce Development Manager to process accordingly.
To ensure effectiveness we ask all delegates to complete an evaluation form on completion of the course. Data is then monitored by the workforce development manager to consider feedback and make any appropriate adjustments. Periodically we look at different ways of evaluating effectiveness and would ask all delegates to be active participants, responding as required.
Please be aware that the time scales required for refresher child protection training is variable across organisations – delegates need to ascertain what their organisation requires. The expectation, unless otherwise stated is every three years.