Innovation case studies in adult social care further & higher education

Social care needs training solutions which are effective, not too expensive to implement, and which build on existing good practice.

We asked employers and trainers for 'real life' innovative examples from social care that we could share with other providers.

Our first series of case studies (numbers 1 to 14 below) in 2007 looked at innovation in the further education (FE) sector. We collected case studies that show work which is 'breaking the mould' in the conception or delivery of training.

Some of the case studies are about new processes for delivering established types of training, such as NVQs. It is hoped that these processes, particularly ideas for partnership work, can show how training can be employer-driven.

Other studies in the series show the development of new types of training altogether. Skills for Care stresses that new training should be based on National Occupational Standards and/or the Skills for Care knowledge sets, which are the basis of our sector's qualifications framework.

This aids the 'portability' of training and qualifications, enabling labour movement within social care and between publicly-funded services (so social care can recruit skilled workers). Portability gives social care's skills the recognition and funding required to compete in the wider economy.

A second set of case studies published in 2008 (numbers 15 to 23 below) included innovations in higher education, as well as some more FE examples.

Skills for Care thanks all the authors of these studies, and Liz Langston of Hertfordshire Adult Care who helped us select them.

To make copies of any of these case studies please print from the electronic .pdf editions downloadable below, which can be used also as email attachments.

• 1a FE college & employer partnership on electronic NVQ assessment
• 1b FE college & employer 'care cadet' apprenticeships
• 2 Innovations in dementia training & support
• 3 Developing deputies: a college-plus-university programme for deputies to registered managers
• 4 Regional strategy & policy for the safe handling, management and administration of medications
• 5 Embedding IT in the care sector
• 6 Briefing employers to support worker learning in the workplace
  
• Studies 7, 8 and 9 were not published.
  
• 10 Bridging the FE/HE gap: access to higher education for social care students and employees
• 11 Tomorrow's workforce: work placements for young people
• 12 'Move On' skills for life in literacy and numeracy
• 13 Training workers & public (nutrition, Nottingham)
• 14 Employer engagement in developing a foundation degree in social care management.
• 15 Collaborative research with men with learning difficulties
• 16 Integrating safeguarding adults into the social work degree
• 17 Safeguarding adults module
• 18 From old to new in PQ
• 19 Opportunities for Involvement: Training carers and people who use services to be actively involved in the training & education of social workers
• 20 A model for developing Post Qualifying Leadership and Management Pathways
• 21 Online assessment of Common Induction Standards
• 22 Housing and Social Work - Inter-professional learning
• 23 Learning through work in social care setting

Each case study is a two-page .pdf file.