Welcome to the social care sector and a career in social care that offers challenging and rewarding opportunities to work with adults, children, young people, families and older people.
You have joined the largest workforce within the NI Health and Social Care sector and your role is vital to ensuring the people you support receive the care and support they need.
Registration with the Social Care Council
You are now a registrant of the Social Care Council, the regulatory body for social care practitioners and social workers in Northern Ireland. As a registered social care practitioner (registrant) you are required to work to the Standards of Conduct and Practice which are binding on all social care practitioners.
To maintain your registration with the Social Care Council and to evidence that you are meeting your Standards of Conduct and Practice you must undertake and record a minimum of 90 hours of continuous learning and development during each registration period (every 5 years for social care workers) – this is called Post Registration Training and Learning or PRTL.
NB: It is vital that you keep a record of all your learning and development as you can be called for PRTL Audit.
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Continuous Learning and Development
Continuous learning and development is the ongoing improvement of skills, competencies, capabilities and knowledge throughout your career and can be achieved in various ways for example:
- Through life, learned experience and work
- Having conversations/listening, observing, reading, questioning, mentoring and coaching (this can be with your peers and/or managers).
- Undertaking qualifications
- Attending in-house and other training
- Undertaking digital learning for e.g. Learning Zone and SCIE
- Supervision/one-to-ones
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Induction – Why is this important?
All new social care practitioners entering the workforce must undertake induction. This is the first step along your continuous learning and development journey.
What is Induction?
It sets out the first things a new practitioner needs to know to allow you to do your job safely and effectively within the first three to six months of starting work.- It is a way to check your knowledge and understanding of your new role and responsibilities.
- It should help support you to identify your strengths and what additional learning you will need to improve your practice.
NB: You will be supported by your employer to complete your induction.
NB: The NISCC has developed guidance and a digital resource to support your induction – see Induction Programme for Social Care Practitioners below.
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Social Care Workforce Reform
Changes are happening to support the social care workforce. The Northern Ireland Social Care Council was commissioned by the Department for Health in 2021 to develop:
- a continuous professional learning framework,
- career development pathway,
- qualification-based register for social care practitioners.
This will mean there will be a new practice framework – Care in Practice to support social care practitioners develop professionally. As part of this new framework, when you begin to work in social care you will have the opportunity to undertake a new work-based entrance level qualification – the Level 2 Certificate in Safe and Effective Practice.
See Social Care Workforce Reform for more information on what is happening including work underway to review the current suite of Health and Social Care diplomas that is taking place within Northern Ireland.
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Learning Zone Resources
The Social Care Council have developed a range of digital learning resources to support your continuous learning and development journey. Go to Learning Resources to find out more.
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More Information and Guidance
Click on the tiles below to access digital guides providing more information about registration with the Social Care Council, the Standards and induction.
See Associated Resources for quick access to key guidance documents including: Standards for Conduct and Practice for Social Care Practitioners, Induction Programme for Social Care Practitioners and Evidence Workbook.