Continuing Professional Development Pathway

Access the Continuing Professional Development Pathway here.

The purpose of the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Pathway is to increase consistency and success in recruiting, developing and retaining social workers whose work improves the experiences and outcomes for older people, their carers, families, networks and communities.

The Pathway sets out the kind of learning and development that will help social workers gain the capabilities in the Statement. The Pathway will raise awareness for social workers and those who support them (employers, educators, managers, policy makers etc.) about the importance of social workers continually learning.

The Pathway highlights the kind of support that is needed for social workers to develop. It will help social workers to get the development opportunities to become expert in social work with older people, and will help to foster leadership in learning and development.

The Pathway also highlights the importance of recognising social work expertise. This will contribute to social workers being and feeling valued, to higher morale and retention, and therefore to better services for older people and their families.

The development of specific capabilities for social work with older people should happen as part of the continuing professional development that all social workers do.

  • All students can use the Pathway to consider how to acquire the capabilities at Qualification.
  • All social workers in the Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE) in adults services can use the Pathway to consider how to acquire the capabilities at End of first year of qualifying level. Social workers doing ASYE in children’s services who encounter older people in their work may also find them useful.
  • All social workers in adults services can use the Pathway to consider how to acquire the capabilities at Social worker to experienced social worker level.
  • This is where particular knowledge, skills and values relating to older people are most required.
  • All advanced practitioners, managers and educators in services that include older people can use the Pathway to consider how to acquire the capabilities at Advanced social worker level.
  • All strategic practitioners, managers and educators in services that include older people can use the Pathway to consider how to acquire the capabilities at Strategic social worker level.

This website is included as a learning and development opportunity at each stage of the Pathway.

 

Use the drop down menu on the Professional Development tab to:

Find Useful Links for further information about working with older people