Nov 22 - Signs Of Safety Training
The Care Agency will deliver training on the Signs of Safety model from 23rd to 25th November.
Over the next three days, there will be over 60 participants from different disciplines including the Department of Education, the Gibraltar Health Authority, the Royal Gibraltar Police and Youth Service.
This working model seeks to provide professionals from various disciplines the tools to better improve the outcomes for children and their families. In this respect, Ms Agnes Gault, Signs of Safety Consultant Trainer, will deliver an Initial Introductory Awareness session, which will be followed with a further two days of training specifically aimed at the key professionals who are directly involved in Child Protection cases.
The Signs of Safety model is an innovative strengths-based, safety-organised approach to child protection casework. It was developed during the 1990s in Western Australia by Andrew Turnell and Steve Edwards, in collaboration with over 150 West Australian child protection workers. This programme is employed in other jurisdictions such as the USA, Canada, UK, Sweden, Netherlands, New Zealand and Japan.
In July, the Head of Children's Services, together with the Reviewing Officer, attended the Signs of Safety Gathering in Norwich, UK. This conference brought together four hundred professionals who are already using the Signs of Safety Model in their Children’s Services across the globe.
A further five-day intense training course will be delivered on the Signs of Safety in February 2017.
The Care Agency is confident that the Signs of Safety model will help Children’s Services to continue to improve upon their work with parents and families so as to ensure that service-users’ strengths are maximised. Such work is an integral part of any care or support plan. Through this initial stage in the implementation of Signs of Safety, the Care Agency continues to develop its multi-disciplinary work with the different professionals and persons involved in safeguarding and child protection.
Minister for the Care Agency, Neil F. Costa, said: “As Minister for Health and Care, I am delighted to endorse the Signs of Safety model as an approach to better improve the outcomes for children and their families. The Care Agency is certain that this model will bring together all parties involved in working with children and will continue to ensure accountability and quality assurance in child protection work to achieve the best outcomes for children.”
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