Scottish Social Services Council Strategic Plan 2017 2020

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Scottish Social Services Council
    Strategic Plan 2017 – 2020

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SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
SSSC STRATEGIC PLAN 2017-2020

1. ABOUT THE SSSC
The Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) is the             •   promote and regulate the learning and
regulator for the social service workforce in Scotland.            development of the social service workforce
                                                               •   are the national lead for workforce development
Vision
                                                                   and planning for social services in Scotland.
Our work means the people of Scotland can count on
social services being provided by a trusted, skilled          Strategic outcomes
and confident workforce.                                       1. The right people are on the Register
                                                               2. Our standards lead to a safe and skilled social
What we do
                                                                  service workforce
We protect the public by registering social service
                                                               3. Our resources support the professional
workers, setting standards for their practice,
                                                                  development of the social service workforce
conduct, training and education and by supporting
their professional development. Where people fall              4. Our stakeholders value our work
below the standards of practice and conduct we can
                                                              Values
investigate and take action.
                                                               Integrity
We:
                                                               Commitment
 •    publish the national codes of practice for people
                                                               Accountability
      working in social services and their employers
                                                               Pride in what we do
 •    register people working in social services and
      make sure they adhere to our codes of practice           Listening and engaging
                                                               Creativity and learning

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2. OUR PLANS FOR THE NEXT THREE YEARS
In 2017, the SSSC will mark its 16th birthday. In the    work education, launched the new Codes of Practice
last 16 years we have seen significant changes in the    and widely consulted on and publicised our new
social service sector and the SSSC. We will continue     thresholds for fitness to practise referrals.
to review how we work and adapt to the changes.          The biggest change, which has been welcomed, is our
However we will never lose sight of our role in          move to a fitness to practise model, as opposed to
protecting people who use services and strengthening     a conduct model, of regulation. This will allow us to
the professionalism of the workforce.                    focus on the cases where there is the greatest risk to
This strategic plan for 2017-2020 sets out our           people who use services.
strategic priorities for the next three years. We will   Now more than ever, it is important that workers
begin this period with over 100,000 people on the        across social services have the knowledge and skills
Register and by 2020 we expect to have over 150,000      to provide high standards of care. We will develop
registered.                                              resources to support workforce development, working
We will work to ensure that people who use social        in partnership with key stakeholders, focusing in
services, social service workers and their employers     particular on the actions set out in the Scottish
are confident in the service we provide and value the    Government’s ‘Social Services in Scotland – a shared
work of the SSSC.                                        vision and strategy 2015–2020’ and the wider
In the period of our last strategic plan we have seen    strategic context set out in that strategy, digitally
growth in all our areas of work. The number of people    enabled learning, leadership development and career-
registered, using our learning resources, reading        long learning.
our newsletter, attending our events and the SSSC        Our strategic plan is based on delivering our
has also grown. And the growth in the Register has       legislative functions. It is also informed by
meant us carrying out more investigations.               research with our customers, recent feedback from
In the last year, we completed our review of social      consultations and discussion forums. This feedback

                                         SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
has highlighted a number of additional areas of focus             need to maintain our focus on ensuring that the
for us over the next three years.                                 qualifications remain fit for purpose.
 •   In our recent consultations it was apparent that         •   Many of our stakeholders, in particular
     a small but significant number of registrants                registrants, see us solely as a regulator and
     misunderstood their relationship with their                  seem less aware of our role in workforce
     regulatory body. We will communicate our role                development. The tools and resources we
     more clearly and consistently so that registrants            produce must be focused on improving
     better understand their relationship with us.                practice and address the changing needs of the
 •   We will clearly demonstrate the benefits of                  profession.
     registration and its role in increasing the             In the last three years we have started to address a
     professionalism of the workforce and its core           number of the issues identified and we will give them
     purpose of the protecting people who use                greater priority over the next three years.
     services.
 •   Our regulatory function is viewed by some as
     legalistic with little focus on protecting people
     who use services and insufficient support for
     workers and witnesses. We need to better
     understand these views and identify where
     improvements are needed to address these
     concerns.
 •   Qualifications and standards are an integral
     part of professionalising the workforce. We
     reviewed the Code of Practice in 2016 as part of
     ensuring that we have the right standards. We

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3. STRATEGIC OUTCOMES AND STRATEGIC
PRIORITIES
Outcome 1    The right people are on the Register
Priority 1   Build our relationship with registrants
             and employers
Priority 2   Our fitness to practise process is
             proportionate and accessible
Outcome 2    Our standards lead to a safe and skilled
             social service workforce
Priority 3   Social service qualifications and
             standards meet the needs of learners
             and employers
Outcome 3    Our resources support the professional
             development of the social service
             workforce
Priority 4   We work with Scottish Government and
             other partners to deliver the actions in
             ‘Social Services in Scotland a shared
             vision and strategy 2015-2020’
Outcome 4    Our stakeholders value our work
Priority 5   A customer focus throughout the
             organisation
Priority 6   High standards of governance

                                        SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
STRATEGIC PRIORITY 1                                        STRATEGIC PRIORITY 2
Build our relationship with registrants and                 Our fitness to practise process is proportionate
employers                                                   and accessible
We will work to make sure our registrants value their       This work has started with our move to a fitness to
registration. We will do this by developing MySSSC,         practise approach. Ensuring that we receive the right
engaging with the workforce and employers and               referrals so that resources are focused on where
providing better targeted information and resources         action is required is an important part of maintaining
to registrants.                                             a proportionate model.
Our work between 2017-2020                                  Our work between 2017-2020
 •   MySSSC becomes a one stop shop and                      •   Work with employers and registered workers to
     registration is more personalised for the                   help them understand when and how to make a
     individual.                                                 referral.
 •   Our learning resources are developed based on           •   Work to improve the support received by social
     the intelligence we hold and market research                service workers, employers, complainants
     with registrants and employers.                             and witnesses during the fitness to practise
 •   We manage the registration of the new groups                investigations and hearings.
     – support workers in care at home and housing           •   Introduce paperless hearings and develop
     support.                                                    MySSSC to facilitate correspondence with
 •   We achieve efficiencies in our processes by                 workers and employers.
     developing our online offering through MySSSC.          •   Further reduce the time it takes to conclude a
                                                                 case.

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STRATEGIC PRIORITY 3
Social service qualifications and standards meet             for social services and across social care and
the needs of learners and employers                          health services.
We provide support, guidance and advice to education     •   Ensure that our digital learning expertise,
and training providers to make sure the quality and          capacity and capability is scaled up both
standard of education and learning are maintained            internally within the SSSC and with our strategic
and enhanced. We have links with higher education            partners, to ensure that our work in this area is
institutions, further education colleges and other           future proof and sustainable.
providers to ensure compliance with SSSC rules and       •   Contribute to the work of the National
requirements. The period of this strategic plan will         Occupational Standards Governance group in
see us working in partnership to implement a number          the development of the transition plan and five
of the recommendations of the Review of Social Work          year strategic plan.
Education.                                               •   Implementing the agreed recommendations of
Our work between 2017-2020                                   the Review of Social Work Education.
 •   Promote the revised Codes of Practice so that       •   Supporting the agreed workforce
     they are used and understood by registrants             recommendations arising from significant
     and employers.                                          policy developments such as the Scottish
 •   Work in partnership with learning providers             Government’s review of the care system.
     to review the quality assurance and approval        •   Reviewing post-registration training and learning
     process to ensure it is proportionate and               (PRTL) to provide a more effective framework
     effective.                                              for maintaining and improving practice and
 •   Work in partnership with Skills Development             strengthening development of the workforce.
     Scotland and others to develop career pathways

                                       SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
STRATEGIC PRIORITY 4                                          STRATEGIC PRIORITY 5
We work with Scottish Government and other                    A customer focus throughout the organisation
partners to deliver the actions in ‘Social                    Most people have very little choice about whether
Services in Scotland: a shared vision and                     they have contact with the SSSC. But our aim is
strategy 2015-2020’                                           that if they did have a choice of regulator they
Our work between 2017-2020                                    would choose the SSSC. This is linked to all aspects
 •   Working together with our strategic partners             of our work but we must improve how we collect
     to further embed and implement the Social                customer insights, the experiences people have when
     Services Leadership Strategy and Step into               dealing with us and have consistency throughout the
     Leadership.                                              organisation.
 •   Implement the SSSC Learning Strategy and                 Our work between 2017-2020
     seek opportunities to strengthen our capacity             •   Make better use of intelligence (feedback,
     to support wider development of the workforce                 complaints, surveys) to inform our decisions.
     in addition to the qualifications required for            •   Improve how we evaluate the impact of what
     registration.                                                 we do and demonstrate the difference we make.
 •   Continue to work with Scottish Government and             •   Develop and implement our Digital Strategy.
     other stakeholders in supporting areas of policy          •   Upskill our staff with digital skills to better serve
     and legislation that impact on the capabilities               our customers.
     and knowledge needs of the workforce such as
                                                               •   Develop and implement a customer care
     self-directed support, carers, dementia, early
                                                                   programme for all staff.
     years, community justice and end of life care.    
                                                               •   Implement a quality management framework.

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STRATEGIC PRIORITY 6                                     4. OUR STRATEGIC MEASURES 2017-2020
High standards of governance                               •   Registrants believe that registration with the
In implementing this strategy over the next three              SSSC provides positive benefits to them.
years we will continue to ensure good governance and       •   Cases referred to SSSC Fitness to Practise meet
planning to make the best use of all our resources.            the thresholds. This will allow us to focus on the
Our work between 2017-2020                                     high risk cases.
 •   Put in place a financial strategy that addresses      •   We see an increase in the number of people
     the sustainability of the SSSC.                           participating in and being represented at Fitness
 •   Implement paperless financial transactions.               to Practise hearings.

 •   Ensure our staff are competent to deliver our         •   We see a decrease in the average time it takes
     priorities and manage risk.                               to conclude fitness to practise cases.

 •   Have in place an online performance and               •   The SSSC is recognised as an organisation that
     governance system.                                        contributes to social service workers having the
                                                               skills needed for their jobs.
                                                           •   Social service workers report that our learning
                                                               resources have improved their practice.
                                                           •   Our customers are satisfied with the service
                                                               they receive from the SSSC.
                                                           •   External audits provide evidence of good
                                                               corporate governance and effective use of our
                                                               resources.

                                         SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
5. OUR WORK AND THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT OUTCOMES

                                                                                                              Scottish
   Our strategic             Our strategic             Our strategic          The difference we
                                                                                                            Government
     outcome                  priorities                measures                  will make
                                                                                                             outcomes
Outcome 1                 Priority 1               Registrants believe that   Registrants understand    We have improved the
The right people are on   Build our relationship   registration with the      and value the role of     life chances for children,
the Register              with registrants and     SSSC provides positive     the SSSC in enhancing     young people and
                          employers                benefits to them           their professionalism     families at risk

                                                                                                        Our public services are
                                                                                                        high quality, continually
                                                                                                        improving, efficient
                                                                                                        and responsive to local
                                                                                                        people’s needs

                          Priority 2               Registrants believe that   People who use services   Our public services are
                          Our fitness to practise  registration with the      are protected and         high quality, continually
                          process is proportionate SSSC provides positive     receive high quality      improving, efficient
                          and accessible           benefits to them           services from a safe      and responsive to local
                                                                              and skilled workforce     people’s needs
                                                   Cases referred to the
                                                   SSSC Fitness to Practise Our stakeholders
                                                   meet the thresholds      recognise that we
                                                                                                        We live our lives safe
                                                                            have a vital role to
                                                   We see an increase                                   from crime, disorder
                                                                            investigate and take
                                                   in the number of                                     and danger
                                                                            action in respect of
                                                   people attending and
                                                                            workers who pose a
                                                   represented at Fitness
                                                                            risk to people who use
                                                   to Practise Hearings
                                                                            services
                                                   We see a decrease
                                                   in the average time
                                                   it takes to conclude
                                                   fitness to practise
                                                   investigations

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OUR WORK AND THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT OUTCOMES

                                                                                                          Scottish
    Our strategic          Our strategic           Our strategic          The difference we
                                                                                                        Government
      outcome               priorities              measures                  will make
                                                                                                         outcomes
Outcome 2               Priority 3              The SSSC is recognised    We will work with         Our children have the
Our standards lead      Social service          as an organisation that   partners to ensure        best start in life and are
to a safe and skilled   qualifications and      contributes to social     that qualifications and   ready to succeed
workforce               standards meet the      service workers having    standards continue
                                                                                                    We realise our full
                        needs of learners and   the skills needed for     to evolve to meet the
                                                                                                    economic potential
                        employers               their jobs                changing needs of
                                                                                                    with more and
                                                                          people who use services
                                                                                                    better employment
                                                                                                    opportunities for our
                                                                                                    people

                                           SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
OUR WORK AND THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT OUTCOMES

                                                                                                                   Scottish
   Our strategic              Our strategic             Our strategic           The difference we
                                                                                                                 Government
     outcome                   priorities                measures                   will make
                                                                                                                  outcomes
Outcome 3                  Priority 4                Social service workers     Lifelong learning            Our children have the
Our resources support      We work with Scottish     report that our learning   is at the heart of a         best start in life and are
the professional           Government and other      resources have             professional, confident      ready to succeed
development of the         partners to achieve       improved their practice    and valued workforce
                                                                                                             We have improved the
social service workforce   the outcomes in ‘Social                              Our resources can            life chances for children,
                           Services in Scotland:                                support that learning to     young people and
                           a shared vision and                                  meet different learning      families at risk
                           strategy 2015-2020’                                  styles, different learning
                                                                                                             We realise our full
                                                                                environments and
                                                                                                             economic potential
                                                                                recognise the learning
                                                                                                             with more and
                                                                                we all bring to our
                                                                                                             better employment
                                                                                careers
                                                                                                             opportunities for our
                                                                                                             people

                                                               13
OUR WORK AND THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT OUTCOMES

                                                                                                           Scottish
   Our strategic            Our strategic           Our strategic           The difference we
                                                                                                         Government
     outcome                 priorities              measures                   will make
                                                                                                          outcomes
Outcome 4                Priority 5              Our customers are          As a public body we      Our public services are
Our stakeholders value   A customer focus        satisfied with the         rely on stakeholders     high quality, continually
our work                 throughout the          service they receive       valuing the work we      improving, efficient
                         organisation            from the SSSC              do and believing we      and responsive to local
                                                                            are a transparent and    people’s needs
                                                                            efficient organisation

                         Priority 6              External audits provide
                         High standards of       evidence of good
                         governance              corporate governance
                                                 and effective use of our
                                                 resources

                                             SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
OPERATIONAL PLAN 2017/18

6. OPERATIONAL PLAN 2017/18
The operational plan sets out how we will work                     The operational plan sets out an overview of our
towards our strategic outcomes and focus on our                    work and helps us define, organise and monitor it
strategic priorities during the financial year 2017/18.            throughout the year.

Working towards our strategic outcomes and strategic priorities – year one (2017/2018)
Outcome 1: The right people are on the Register

                              Activity in                                       Operational
 Strategic priority                                     Lead officer                                  Strategic measure
                              2017/18                                            measures
Priority 1               Project 1a: Research       Head of Strategic       Projects remain on        Registrants believe that
Build our relationship   phase - understanding      Communications          target and resources      registration with the
with registrants and     registrants and                                    delivered on time         SSSC provides positive
employers                developing resources                                                         benefits to them
                                                                            Projected registrations
                         Project 1b: Open the       Registration Manager    vs actual registrations
                         register for new groups
                                                                            Average time to
                         Project 1c: Develop        Registration Manager    complete application
                         telephone system for                               process
                         a better customer
                         experience

                                                              15
OPERATIONAL PLAN 2017/18

Outcome 1: The right people are on the Register

                              Activity in                                    Operational
 Strategic priority                                    Lead officer                                Strategic measure
                              2017/18                                         measures
Priority 2               Project 2a: Help          Head of Fitness to    Projects remain on        Cases referred to FtP
Our fitness to practise  employers and             Practise              target and resources      meet the thresholds
process is proportionate registered workers                              delivered on time
                                                                                                   A decrease in the time
and accessible           understand when and
                                                                         Projected referrals vs    it takes to conclude
                         how to make a referral
                                                                         actual referrals          fitness to practise cases
                        Project 2b: How to
                                                                         % of hearings where
                        support participants
                                                                         worker attended
                        engage with the process
                                                                         % of hearings where
                        Project 2c: How to         Head of Corporate
                                                                         representative attended
                        increase representation    Governance and
                        at hearings                Hearings              % of cases closed
                                                                         per month as below
                                                                         threshold

                                                                         Average months taken
                                                                         to close a case

                                                                         Projected hearings vs
                                                                         actual hearings

                                            SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
OPERATIONAL PLAN 2017/18

Outcome 2: Our standards lead to a safe and skilled social service workforce

                               Activity in                                      Operational
 Strategic priority                                      Lead officer                                 Strategic measure
                               2017/18                                           measures
Priority 3                Project 3a: Contribute     Head of Learning and   Projects remain on        The SSSC is recognised
Social service            to the review of           Development            target and resources      as an organisation that
qualifications meet the   National Occupation                               delivered on time         contributes to social
needs of learners and     Standards led by Skills                                                     service workers having
                                                                            % of UK qualification
employers                 Development Scotland                                                        the skills needed to do
                                                                            referrals resolved within
                          (SDS)                                                                       their jobs
                                                                            28 working days
                          Project 3b: Review
                                                                            Average time to
                          Post-Registration
                                                                            complete PRTL process
                          Training and Learning
                          (PRTL)

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OPERATIONAL PLAN 2017/18

Outcome 3: Our resources support the professional development of the social service workforce

                              Activity in                                       Operational
 Strategic priority                                      Lead officer                              Strategic measure
                              2017/18                                            measures
Priority 4               Project 4a: Carry out       Head of Learning and   Projects remain on     The SSSC is recognised
We work with Scottish    an audit of our learning    Development            target and resources   as an organisation that
Government and other     resources                                          delivered on time      contributes to social
partners to achieve                                                                                service workers having
                         Project 4b:Work with
the actions in ‘Social                                                                             the skills needed to do
                         Social Work Scotland,
Services in Scotland                                                                               their jobs
                         Iriss and other partners
a shared vision and      on delivering ‘Enhancing                                                  Social service workers
strategy                 Leadership Capability                                                     report that our learning
                         of Scotland’s Social                                                      resources have
                         Services 2017-2020                                                        improved their practice

                         Project 4c: Implement
                         the Palliative Care
                         Framework with
                         National Health Service
                         Education Scotland
                         (NES)

                         Project 4d: Scope the
                         workforce requirements
                         for criminal justice
                         social workers

                         Project 4e: Deliver
                         workforce requirements
                         from the Carers Act

                         Project 4f: Economic
                         value of the social
                         service workforce

                                             SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
OPERATIONAL PLAN 2017/18

Outcome 4: Our stakeholders value our work

                           Activity in                                     Operational
 Strategic priority                                  Lead officer                             Strategic measure
                           2017/18                                          measures
Priority 5            Project 5a: Develop        Head of Performance   Projects remain on     Our customers are
A customer focus      ‘the SSSC way’ of how      and Improvement       target and resources   satisfied with the
throughout the        we work                                          delivered on time      service they receive
organisation                                                                                  from the SSSC
                      Project 5b: Develop
                      and implement
                      a customer care
                      programme for our staff

                      Project 5c: Implement
                      a quality framework for
                      the SSSC

                      Project 5d: Review our
                      business intelligence
                      systems

                      Project 5e: Develop
                      and implement a
                      business intelligence
                      framework

                      Project 5f: Implement      Head of Strategic
                      our Digital Strategy       Communications

                                                           19
OPERATIONAL PLAN 2017/18

Outcome 4: Our stakeholders value our work

                           Activity in                                      Operational
 Strategic priority                                 Lead officer                               Strategic measure
                           2017/18                                           measures
Priority 6            Project 6a: Develop       Head of Performance     Projects remain on     External audits provide
High standards of     and implement an          and Improvement         target and resources   evidence of good
governance            online performance and                            delivered on time      corporate governance
                      governance system                                                        and effective use of our
                                                HR Manager
                                                                                               resources
                      Project 6b: Training
                      needs analysis of all
                                                Head of Finance
                      staff

                      Project 6c: Paperless
                                                Director of Corporate
                      financial transactions
                                                Services
                      Project 6d: Develop
                      a financial strategy
                      that addresses the
                      sustainability of the
                      SSSC

                                          SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
7. OUR RESOURCES –
   SSSC DRAFT BUDGET 2017/18                                 Postgraduate bursaries

                                                                    Supplies & services
Draft Budget by Expenditure Type
					                                                                             Staff costs
   £ 000 %
Staff costs               9,854     50
Accommodation costs         767      4
Administration costs      1,477      7
Transport costs             221      1
Supplies & services       2,412     12
Postgraduate bursaries    2,655     14
Practice learning         2,352     12
Gross expenditure        19,738    100

                                              Practice learning

                                                  Transport costs

                                                     Administration costs

                                                         Accommodation costs

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OUR WORK AND THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT OUTCOMES

Scottish Social Services Council
Compass House
11 Riverside Drive
Dundee
DD1 4NY
Telephone: 0345 60 30 891
Fax: 01382 207215
www.sssc.uk.com
Email: enquiries@sssc.uk.com
Facebook: /theSSSC
Twitter: @SSSCnews
Instagram: @SSSCnews
YouTube: /SSSCtv

                                            © Scottish Social Services Council 2017
        SSSC Strategic Plan 2017-2020
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