The Victorian Residential Care Learning and Development Strategy

1. The Victorian Residential Care Learning and Development Strategy Presentation to The Association of Children’s Welfare Agencies Conference 14 -16 August 2006 Making a Difference through Collaboration: How Victoria Walks the Talk

2. Overview of presentation • Background • What is the Residential Care Learning and Development Strategy • Achievements and outcomes • What we have learnt and how creating positive futures for our children and young people

3. Who Are The Young People? The young people are clients of Protective Services and present with complex and multiple behaviours and emotional difficulties which may include: • Extremely challenging behaviours at home, in placement, school and community such as: • Substance abuse • Suicidal tendencies • Aggression • Chronic running away, prostitution, association with paedophiles • Emerging or diagnosed psychiatric or psychological disorders • Constant escalating offending • Sexual offending • Estranged or non existent family, significant other, peer or community relationships • Require long term care and substantial support.

4. As at 31 March 2005 (DHS 2005) Age HBC Resi Care Total 0-4 896 7 903 5-11 1580 59 1639 12-14 762 105 867 15+ 755 175 930 TOTAL 3993 346 4339 Children and young people in out of home care by age and placement type

5. What Is Residential Care? • Residential care is provided by rostered residential workers who are paid employees (variety of staffing & funding models). • Up to 4 young people usually aged 12 – 18 in a house in the community • Residential services are targeted primarily at high needs / high risk young people unable or unwilling to be placed in other less intensive models of out of home care • Units staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year • Residential services are predominantly provided by community service organisations • residential care should be the last option in the continuum of out of home care.

6. Attributes of Residential Care Workers • Residential care workers need: • knowledge and skills to rebuild the whole of a young person’s life who has perhaps experienced 15 years of mistrust, abuse and / or neglect – “we cannot change the young person’s behaviours overnight!” • Clarity, understanding and respect by other systems and services about their specialised role and responsibilities • passion, commitment, life experience, common sense, sense of humour, the ability to manage complex individual and group behaviours; • the ability to nurture, have fun and celebrate and create positive life long memories for these hurt, damaged and angry young people. • the strength & commitment “to never, ever give up on a young person and their family – no matter what!” • “Whatever workers, managers and organisations do for young people and their families, they need to do for each other – or they will not survive” • Relevant knowledge, skills, experience, collegiate and community support, supervision and training are paramount to successful outcomes for all involved.

7. Workforce Issues • Research identified significant risk and occupational health and safety issues • Implementation of minimum standards for residential care • Increasing complexity of young people’s behaviours requires individualised responses • Recruitment & retention of experienced and committed workforce • Developing a supportive learning culture for worker development & support • Relevant training that assists industry in preparing workers for this intensive work • Succession planning – ageing workforce • Need to recruit mature age workers

8. Why A Learning & Development Strategy? Historically • Acknowledgement of the need for a training strategy for this highly specialised field • Need for dedicated funding for cross sector training • No specific qualification for residential care workers.

9. Why A Learning & Development Strategy? • Dissatisfaction from the field in respect to available generic training/qualifications ability to appropriately train residential care staff: • Lack of focus on younger children, on managing challenging adolescents in a community based residential context • Lack of competencies for the range of out of home care settings and • An over emphasis on common competencies from marginally related occupations • Recognition that focus has been on developing individual skills and organisational learning strategies – now moving to develop learning sector where organisations share and support each others learning.

10. Key Aim The development of a competent and appropriately trained residential care workforce that is supported to provide a high standard of care and to improve outcomes and life opportunities for children and young people in out of home care.

11. Goals • The development & maintenance of a skilled and stable workforce • Provision of high quality training, supervision and support to workers • Development of appropriate pre-service and in-service qualifications relevant to the field • Commitment to and development of a lifelong learning culture in the workplace

12. Funding Overview • In the 2001/2002 Victorian State Budget, $7.5 million of additional resources was allocated to improve residential care services for children & young people placed in out of home care. • From this 1.5% ($430,000) recurrent funding (now indexed to over $450, 000) was set aside to develop a training strategy to strengthen residential care services in recognition of the link between staff competency and client outcomes. • Unexpended resources are carried forward • Management of strategy moved to Centre for Excellence for Child and Family Welfare in 2005 • employed of full time senior project officer to support strategy

13. Learning And Development Strategy Reference Group Current Membership • The Centre for Excellence in Child & Family Welfare • Berry Street Victoria • Menzies Inc • The Salvation Army Westcare • Anglicare Victoria • MacKillop Family Services • Berry Street Victoria • Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (VACCA) • Department of Human Services: Office for Children, Child Protection and Family Support & regional representatives.

14. RC Process for non-qualified staff based on CS&H ITB Model Identify and accredit appropriate pre and in service qualification Assessment & Workplace Training to CSOs: 60 staff trained, TAA04 course planned Develop learning materials for core CSTP modules (Orientation and Legal and Ethical Framework completed 2005) Map LAC to competencies and RCC staff involved in using LAC Support Deliverly of LAC Training Priority training to meet gaps in Cert IV (Prot Care) Scholarships for Cert IV (Prot Care) Scholarship scheme for qualified staff TRAINING PLAN PRIORITIES Ongoing Currently being developed Not commenced Completed

15. The Journey So Far - Achievements • Developed competency profiles for residential care workers, supervisors & caregivers in Victoria • Input into 2002 national review of the Community Services Training Package (CSTP) to meet requirements of Victorian workforce - new qualification relevant to out of home care – residential care workers and care givers – Certificate IV in Community Services (Protective Care) • Significant numbers of staff have engaged in the Cert IV in Community Services (Protective Care) – over 240 enrolments

16. Achievements • Development of a common framework for learning • Creation of a sector wide learning culture • Annual RCLDS training forum • Practice forum in 2006 with 150 workers • Learning needs analysis • 3 year training plan • Customised training in identified priority areas • Training delivered to high percentage of workers • accessible locations • motivational

17. Achievements –TAFE/DHS/RTO Network • Collaborative network of providers of Cert IV Community Services (Prot Care), industry and DHS representatives • Promotes links between residential care and training providers • Supports teacher network across private RTOs and TAFES for this qualification to develop a common learning and assessment framework • Ensures delivery of preferred packaging for Victoria • Develops and shares resources to support professional development of trainers • All trainers offered PD in LAC, RCC, Effective Conflict Management, Supervision Skills • Supports field placements and sessional teachers • Identifies and addresses emerging and ongoing issues in training for residential care

18. AchievementsLearning materials development Two competencies for Cert IV in Community Services (Prot Care) • Orientation to protective services and out of home care for children and young people (CHCCHILD5A) • Work within a legal and ethical framework (CHCCS301A) • Training customised to Vic Out of Home Care Sector (Resi, home based care, kinship care and Aboriginal care) • Materials provided to every CSO and RTO/TAFE in state • EOI for further 6 core competencies released in 2006, specialist unit in working with Aboriginal clients

19. What have we learnt • Importance of • long term planning • having shared vision and commitment • Need to meet needs of diverse organisations (size, complexity, culture, values, stages of organisational development ) • Need to consult with both organisations and staff at service delivery level • Building sector wide learning culture is critical • Critical to develop training that is relevant and customised to the field • With consistent effort and input we can change the system

20. Future Plans • Complete training resources for Cert IV in Community Services (Prot Care) • Further development of a rural training strategy • Expanded training in priority areas • Support RCC processes and gap training • Work with TAFES and RTOs to further improve quality and relevance of training to the sector • Input as sector into review of CSTP • Develop higher education scholarship scheme • Support ($) Resi workers participation in training • Evaluation of training undertaken and impact of strategy to date to commence in 2006 • Establishment of further three year training plan

21. We have made a difference by: • Improving outcomes for children and young people by promoting consistent messages • Collaborating as equal partners - consistently • Facilitating communication across the sector • Developing a common understanding of training and learning needs • Enabling improved consistency and quality of training • Moving beyond the learning organisation to a learning sector • Organising our successful first statwide forum for residential workers “More than just a roof over their heads” • Incorporating young consultants from CREATE into resi training as equal partners. • Listening to the voices of resi workers, making it more possible to listen to the voices of children!

22. Creating positive futures for children in out of home care

23. Contact Details For Further Information Centre for Excellence in Child & Family Welfare - Michael White - 03 96141577 www.cwav.asn.au michael.white@cwav.asn.au DHS - Edith Loch - 03 9616 8097 edith.loch@dhs.vic.gov.au Salvation Army Westcare - Glenys Bristow (03) 9312 3544 Glenys_Bristow@aus.salvationarmy.org Menzies Inc - Maree Baird (03) 9784-9700 coordinator@menzies.org.au

24. THANK YOU We thank you for taking the time to share our journey and sincerely hope you enjoy this conference.