What is the purpose of the Continuous Learning Framework?

The purpose of the CLF is to continuously improve the quality of outcomes for people who use social services by supporting the people who are delivering these services to be the best they can be.  This involves the workforce themselves being committed to learning and improving their practice throughout their career.  It also involves their employers supporting them to achieve this.  It is a shared commitment.

Who is the CLF for?

The CLF has been developed for everybody who works in social services in Scotland.  This includes social care, social work, early years and childcare, housing support and integrated services.  It also includes people working in the education, training and development of the social services workforce including colleges and universities.  Nor does it matter whether you are employed in the public, private or voluntary sector, the CLF is for you!

Is the CLF mandatory?

No, individuals and organisations do not have to use the CLF but the Scottish Government is keen to see ownership of it across the social service sector as a key resource for achieving the shared vision of a competent, confident workforce which is capable of delivering the highest quality services.

There are lots of initiatives around – why should we make time for a framework that's not mandatory?

The CLF can be used in lots of different ways – small and big.  Although this flexibility is partly because the CLF is not mandatory, the framework has been specifically designed as a tool to support individuals working in social services and the organisations they work for with what they are already doing or planning to do.  So you can use it in whatever way best meets your current needs in your own context. Click here for some examples of the many different ways the CLF is currently being used in practice.

What's in the CLF for me?

Social services workers, managers and employers are using the CLF in a variety of ways to support lifelong learning, improve practice and promote an organisational learning culture.  Click here to find how the CLF can support social service workersc and employers of social service workers.  You can also click here for some examples of how the CLF is currently being used in practice.

How will we be supported to use the CLF?

Scottish Government is providing resources to the Scottish Social Services Council to support individuals and organisations across the social services sector to use the CLF in practice in the way that best meets their own needs.  Find out what support is available. Many of the organisations who are already using the CLF have developed tools to help them and the SSSC is developing further tools to complement these.  For more information on existing tools and resources click here.  During the consultation process people told us that they would like examples that show how others are using the CLF.  Click here for more information.

Can the CLF help me to gain my qualification or is it just for CPD?

The CLF can help you to work towards a qualification in many ways.  For example, being able to reflect on your practice and provide evidence of the impact your learning has had on your practice are requirements for all qualifications relevant to social services.  The CLF can help you prepare for this and support your reflective learning while you are undertaking your qualification.

How does the CLF link with registration and post registration training and learning (PRTL)?

The CLF sets out what social services workers need to be able to do their jobs well.  Section two of the framework is about the qualifications and training they require.  The qualifications required by social services workers are largely set out at a national level by the SSSC as part of the process of registration of the social services workforce.  For more information on the qualifications required for registration please the Scottish Social Services Council website. Once they are registered with the SSSC, the CLF supports social services workers to make informed decisions about their Post Registration Training and Learning (PRTL).  It also helps them to provide evidence of this and in particular to reflect on and then demonstrate the impact the learning has had on their practice.  This is what is required when completing the Record of Achievement.

Do we have to use all of the CLF or can we choose which parts to use?

As the CLF is not mandatory, it can be used in any way which meets your needs – small or large.  If you are a social services worker and you are looking to develop some of the personal capabilities we would suggest that you talk to your line manager about which ones you should choose as your employer may already have expectations according to your role. We would recommend that you only develop a few of the personal capabilities at a time.  If you are a social services employer we would recommend that you start by considering where your organisation is in terms of all of the organisational capabilities before deciding which ones to concentrate on developing.

Why did you include personal capabilities?

The personal capabilities are based on the concept of social and emotional intelligence.  There is strong evidence from research, both within Scotland and internationally, to suggest that the application of social and emotional intelligence to knowledge, skills, values, qualifications and training leads to better performance.  More information on social and emotional intelligence can be found in the references at the end of the CLF document. The need for the personal capabilities was also highlighted by employers through the consultation on the Sector Skills Agreement and the Scottish Government’s Skills Strategy.  Both highlight the need for the workforce to have a range of soft skills, including some of the behaviours and attitudes described in the personal capabilities.

Why do the personal capabilities have four stages of progression?

The personal capabilities are described across four stages of progression – engaged, established, accomplished and exemplary.  This allows social service workers to demonstrate progress and achievement in developing their personal capabilities over time.  It also allows their employers to set minimum standards of practice in relation to the personal capabilities that are required for specific roles.  It is important to stress that the stages of progression relate to each personal capability.  So it is likely that at any given time a social services worker will be demonstrating each of the personal capabilities at different stages of progression.

How do I choose which personal capabilities to develop?

It will usually be up to you and your line manager to decide which personal capabilities you should develop and what stage of progression you should aim for in each.  However, your employer may have identified particular personal capabilities which they expect you to develop to a certain stage of progression for your job role. Your discussions with your line manager should take account of your own strengths and areas for development.  They should also take account of your career plans and what personal capabilities you could usefully develop to help prepare you.

Do you have to aim to be exemplary in all the personal capabilities?

Again it will be up to you and your line manager to decide what stage of progression you should be aiming for in the personal capabilities you are developing.  Your discussions should take account of any expectations your employer has, your own developmental needs and your career aspirations.  It is unlikely that anyone will be exemplary in all of the personal capabilities. What is important is that people using services get the best possible service because the employee supporting them displays the personal capabilities at an appropriate level to meet their needs.  It is also important to remember that performance can go down as well as up and if you are able to evidence exemplary practice for one or more of the personal capabilities, you will need to continue to learn and develop to stay there and things may happen which affect your performance.

I've just started a new job – will I have to start at the engaged stage for all of the personal capabilities?

Almost certainly not!  The stages of progression are not related to the length of time someone has spent in their current job role or in the social services workforce.  Even if you are new to social services you will bring with you previous experience from your personal life and work.  So you may well already be at the established or accomplished stage of progression for some of the personal capabilities. The CLF can be used to support your induction process.  It offers the opportunity for you and your employer to recognise your previous experience and your prior learning as well as to identify what some of your initial learning needs might be.

What if social service workers are not yet able to evidence the 'engaged' stage of progression?

This would suggest that the individual should focus on developing this personal capability as part of their personal learning plan.  With their line manager they should explore what learning opportunities, both external and based in the workplace, they could undertake to support their development.

What about people who aren't yet registered?

The CLF can be used by everyone working in social services in Scotland whether they are required to register at present or not. People who aren’t yet required to register can still use the CLF to support their learning and development and to help them to improve their practice.

Will organisations be given credit for using the CLF in their inspections?

Both the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care (Care Commission) and the Social Work Inspection Agency (SWIA) were involved in the development of the CLF and we have worked with them to make sure that there are links between the organisational capabilities and both the Quality Themes and Standards and the Performance Inspection Model.  However, the CLF is not mandatory and neither the Care Commission nor SWIA will have a role in monitoring its use.

Nonetheless, social services organisations can use the CLF in many ways to support their ongoing self-evaluation and to provide evidence of improvement to the relevant regulatory bodies.  For example, they can use the organisational capabilities to audit and provide evidence for how good they are at planning for the learning and development of their staff and ensuring they have access to learning opportunities to meet their needs.

How does the CLF link with pay and single status?

It is the responsibility of employers to make decisions about pay and conditions. This is not the role of the Continuous Learning Framework.