Keeping the Promise implementation plan

Creating The Right Scaffolding

In the previous section we set out our vision for how we will ensure that when and where our children enter care they have the support and love and stability they should have. In achieving this and our ambition to keep families together where it is safe to do so it is imperative that we have the correct structures and services available to help. The Promise refers to this as 'the Scaffolding' and tells us that our children, families and the workforce must be supported by a workforce that is there when it is needed.

The scaffolding of help, support and accountability must be ready and responsive when it is required and this section sets out the actions we will take to achieve this.

Chapter 11 Taking A Strategic Approach To Change

As we have stated throughout this Plan, improving outcomes for children and families requires transformational change across Scottish Government policy areas, national and local public authorities, communities, and Third Sector delivery partners. We have a clear understanding of the action needed (the 'what') and the values, principles, and approaches which make a positive difference (the 'how'). While presented slightly differently in different contexts, our key principles remain based on the Christie Commission findings (2011) on the reform of public service delivery:

• Wellbeing as holistic, interconnected, and contingent on rights being upheld;
• Shifting resources towards prevention and early intervention;
• Service design and delivery which families experience as joined-up;
• Child and family centred practice which builds on strengths, and is rights based trauma- informed, inclusive and collaborative.

As The Promise has told us, the current care system does not operate consistently across the whole of Scotland. It is experienced differently across the country and, at its worst, it can perpetuate the trauma many children have already experienced. The Promise is clear that children, families and the workforce must be supported by a system that is there when it is needed. The scaffolding of help, support and accountability must be ready and responsive when it is required.

For the required changes to be made, the standards of care must be consistent across providers and these must continue to be subject to independent scrutiny and accreditation that values what children and families value.

What The Scottish Government Is Doing To Support Change

National Social Work Agency

Social workers have a key role in ensuring that we keep The Promise. A skilled, stable and valued social work workforce that holds human rights, advocacy and empowerment at its heart and is able to provide holistic support for children, young people and their families is crucial. Currently, there is no single national body tasked with having oversight and leading social workers' professional development, education and improvement. In this regard, the Independent Review of Adult Social Care 2021 recommended the establishment of a National Social Work Agency.

'Establishing a national organisation for training, development, recruitment and retention for adult social care support,including a specific Social Work Agency for oversight of professional development. The current role, functions and powers of the Scottish Social Services Council should be reviewed and appropriate read-across embedded for shared and reciprocal learning with the NHS workforce.'

This was explored further in 2021 as part of our public consultation on the National Care Service. Analysis of the consultation responses showed strong support for the establishment of a National Social Work Agency that would invest in the social work profession. The consultation proposals included:

• scaling up good practice and improvement by establishing a Centre of Excellence to inform and direct social work improvement and development;
• improving pre- and post-social work qualifying education, training and development. Establishing a national framework for social work learning and professional development and advanced practice;
• considering a national approach to terms and conditions to reward the attainment of knowledge, qualifications and skills.
• shaping a new culture which puts people at the heart of the way social work is practiced in Scotland, so that their care and support isholistic and enables them to have the lives they want to lead;
• creating a national lead on workforce planning and data to allow the National Care Service to respond dynamically to emerging needs and to inform longer-term planning across the sector.

We will consider establishing a National Social Work Agency and a profession based approach to strengthen work on transitions (children-adult) and promote consistency of support. If progressed it will be important that this would be developed by working with stakeholders across the sector and with engagement with those with lived experience in order to ensure from initial design stage through to implementation and evaluation that the voice of lived experience is at the heart of any changes we make.

Children's Hearing System Redesign

We are committed to ensuring that the Children's Hearing System and the courts can facilitate child friendly justice that upholds children's rights and enables their effective participation. To support this, the Hearings System Working Group has been set up to consider the redesign process for the children's hearings system and Sheriff David Mackie has been appointed to chair this work.

This multi-agency working group is a partnership between Children's Hearing Scotland, the Scottish Children's Reporter Administration and The Promise Scotland. It will facilitate a process that will have the needs of children and families with lived experience of the children's hearing system at its heart. We will consider the group's findings carefully when it is expected to report in 2023.

Should legislation be required to deliver the re- design process, we are committed to introducing legislation in this parliamentary session.

The Children's Hearing System

Following the recommendation of the Kilbrandon report in 1964, The Children's Hearings System began operating on 15 April 1971. It exists to protect the safety and wellbeing of children and young people in Scotland and takes an integrated and holistic approach to care and justice, in which the child's best interests are the paramount consideration. The main principle being that children and young people who offend, as well as those who require care and protection, should equally be considered as 'children in need'.

The Children's Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011 set out significant reforms designed to modernise and streamline the children's hearings system through a number of structural reforms. However, The Promise is clear that there must now be a more active consideration of underlying structures so that the children's hearings system is best placed to truly listen and uphold the legal rights of children and their families.

Accountability and Governance

The Promise is clear that if Scotland is to shift its practice to support, prioritise and nurture relationships, then we must shift our accountability structures. Part of this relates to inspection. We are committed to ensuring regulation and scrutiny centres on listening to children about how they are cared for, their ability to thrive and measures the things that matter to children, young people and their families.

A new, holistic framework for inspection and regulation that values what children, young people and families value, will be scoped and developed by 2024, coordinated with the main regulators, the Care Inspectorate and the Scottish Social Services Council.

We will also ask the Strategic Scrutiny Group to look at how coordinated scrutiny can support changes to Keep The Promise.

The accountability systems that hold the system to account for the decision it makes about children and their families have become too complex.

The Promise makes clear that the governance landscape around the various boards, networks and groups that sit around the care system must be rationalised to enable effective and accountable shared working around the lives of children and families.

To tackle this, we will collaborate with The Promise Scotland to scope a new, holistic framework for governance and accountability. We recognise that this work will intersect with recent and forthcoming reviews and commissions, so we have asked The Promise Scotland to take a leadership role in what will, of necessity, be collaborative work. Once completed, any recommendations requiring legislative underpinning will be considered for inclusion in The Promise Bill for introduction later in this Parliamentary session.

Public Appointments

The Promise Scotland in their Plan 21-24, identify that all public appointments to any of Scotland's Boards and Public Bodies which have an impact on the care system must ensure that the values of The Promise are embedded in recruitment frameworks. We will explore how we ensure that appointments to public bodies that are within the gift of the Scottish Government can reflect this commitment.

Key Actions We Will Take

• We will consider establishing a National Social Work Agency to support the workforce and ensure equality of service and support. This is an opportunity to establish a single national lead that has oversight and leads social workers' professional development, education, terms and conditions, workforce planning and improvement.
• We will take forward a redesign of the Children's Hearings System, building on the recommendations from the review led by Sheriff Mackie, with the aim to bring forward any required legislation by the end of the Parliamentary session. This multi-agency review is a partnership between Children's Hearing Scotland, the Scottish Children's Reporter Administration and The Promise Scotland. It will facilitate a process that will have the needs of children and families with lived experience of the Children's Hearing System at its heart.
• We will collaborate with The Promise Scotland to scope a new, holistic framework for governance and accountability. This work will report by June 2024 and any recommendations requiring legislative underpinning will be considered for inclusion in The Promise Bill.

Chapter 12 Building An Evidence Base For Delivery Of Children's Services

The Promise is clear that Scotland must fundamentally shift the primary purpose of the whole of our care system from protecting against harm to protecting all safe, loving respectful relationships. There must be consistent and holistic support available to children and young people and their families whenever they need it.

On 3 February 2021, the Independent Review of Adult Social Care in Scotland led by Derek Feeley reported its findings. In recommending the establishment of a National Care Service, the report called for "a new narrative for adult social care support that replaces crisis with prevention and wellbeing, burden with investment, competition with collaboration and variation with fairness and equity. We need a culture shift that values human rights, lived experience, co-production, mutuality and the common good."

In 2021, we undertook a national consultation on a National Care Service for Scotland. The Consultation Paper set out questions which went further than the recommendations made in the Independent Review of Adult Social Care, and proposed that social work and social care services for children and young people should be considered as potentially beneficial for inclusion within the scope of the National Care Service. While the majority of respondents to the consultation agreed that Children's Services should be included (75% of individuals and 78% of organisations), key voices, including The Promise Scotland, expressed concern about this proposal.

In order to Keep The Promise, all 80+ conclusions of the Independent Care Review must be implemented, in sequence, at pace and in full.

The National Care Service presents a significant opportunity to drive forward the fundamental shift required to do this, but it is clear there are also risks. The key potential benefits include the ability to address regional and local variation in children's services, improve access to services, improve transitions between services and reduce variation in eligibility criteria thresholds. The key risk is slowing the pace of delivery while structural change is undertaken.

What The Scottish Government Is Doing To Support Change

Exploring the options for the future of children's services will enable us to assess the best way to Keep The Promise and we will take account of the improvement work already being undertaken across Scotland. We will work with The Promise Scotland, COSLA and partners to explore and understand the impact of children's services within the range of delivery models currently in place.

In early 2023, the evidence base will be used to explore application of the best governance, financial arrangements and models of care to assess how Scotland can best Keep The Promise. We will update Parliament on this issue by the end of this Parliamentary year.

Key Actions We Will Take

• We will work with The Promise Scotland to build an evidence base to understand the best governance, financial arrangements and models of care to assess how we can best Keep The Promise.This will explore the options for the future of children's services from an evidence based position and enable us to assess the best way to Keep The Promise. Within this, we will take account of the improvement work already being undertaken across Scotland

Chapter 13 Improving Information Sharing

The Promise told us the challenge faced by many of our care experienced children and young people who need to tell their story again every time they meet someone new who is there to support them. Often within the same service, or the same establishment. But imagine also feeling that you have to tell your story when really you just want to be recognised as the same as everybody else around you. This is a challenge that we know our young care experienced people will go through on a daily basis.

It is crucial that information sharing should not be a barrier to supporting children and families.

The ability of the system to Keep The Promise will depend on the appropriate understanding of the needs of and the personal situation faced by each of our children and young people. Organisations with responsibilities towards children and families should be confident about when, where, why and how to share information with partners, in a way which complies with applicable legal requirements.

While it is important for services to have the right information, it is also crucial that our care experienced children and young people have appropriate control over their information, recognising that decisions about the creation and use of information will require to be taken on behalf of very young children.

Guaranteeing that our children and young people have the rights of their personal story and data is a separate issue from how Scotland shares information about children at risk. Within many Significant Case reviews where the worst has happened to children, it was recognised that key information was not shared with the right people or when it was, it was either overlooked or not received quickly enough for the appropriate action to be taken.

The complexities of striking a balance between privacy and utility will require expert advice to ensure any changes to information sharing are done in a correct and lawfully compliant way. We will work with The Promise Scotland to develop a blueprint for the creation and control of, and access to, information about care experienced people and an initial report of findings will be presented by The Promise Scotland by June 2023.

Key Actions We Will Take

• We will support The Promise Scotland to develop a blueprint for the creation and control of,and access to,information about care experienced people which will empower people to decide who and when key information about them is made available. This approach to developing a blueprint in compliance with applicable law, will empower people to decide who and when key information about them is made available. It will examine protocols to be establihed with key institutions to support provision of the right information at the right time to best support our children and young people who are care experienced. Initial report of findings will be presented by The Promise Scotland by June 2023

Chapter 14 Supporting The Workforce

To ensure that we create a Scotland where all children feel loved, respected, listened to and heard in decisions that affect them we must develop and invest in the workforce.

Central to this is the requirement for a national strategic planning process to bring greater consistency in the standards of care and support' to strengthen the role of universal services, and the third sector; and to embed intensive family support, targeted therapeutic services, improved transitions to adult care services and whole system approaches to care and support.

The interface with universal services such as health visiting, Allied Health Professional's and public health services is critical. Equally the interface and transition into services for adults is an important consideration in relation to the provision of children's services. Practitioners in adult services often play a key role in GIRFEC practice through early identification of need, contributing to assessment of wellbeing, and as part of the 'team around the child' by providing support to parents/carers. This will be reflected in the emerging work around Getting it Right for everyone adult care operational delivery model.

What the Scottish Government Is Doing To Support Change

We will establish an Advanced Social Work Practice Framework which will set out the structures which support social workers to progress through different career phases and describe a cohesive and supportive series of academic, learning and developmental, and work based opportunities to support the workforce, both now and in the future.

Whilst focusing on social work practice, the development and implementation of the framework and practice standards will be cognisant of the diversity of social work practice alongside the multiagency and interdisciplinary landscape which exists in all practice areas. The framework will support the workforce across a range of practice models to improve outcomes for children, young people and families.

In addition, we will establish a practice framework which will ensure a national approach to the learning and development opportunities for paraprofessionals within the social work workforce including establishing access routes into further education, including Graduate Apprenticeships.

The social work framework will be mindful of the existing professional frameworks and career pathways for universal and targeted health services.

To accompany this we will also develop a common core training framework for the integrated children and family's workforce this will be focus on the core skills values and learning that the workforce will require to deliver family support and rights based practice.

We will continue to review the role of universal and targeted health services, such as health visiting and family nurse partnership, particularly during pregnancy and the earliest years of life, to identify where it could be further strengthened to respond more consistently to the needs of families at the earliest stage. Continuity of support to both identify unmet health needs and provide a continuum of support, regardless of where the child lives, from early childhood to adolescence and across and between services and disciplines.

Workforce Objectives to Delivering

We are committed to workforce planning through the children and families strategic partnerships outcomes framework. This will ensure continuity from legacy and current policies to future national policy initiatives in health, social services and the delivery of the national outcomes delivered by implementation of GIRFEC, UNCRC and The Promise. Central to this is the development of cross-sector messaging; and a multi-disciplinary and a common core training and skills framework for the integrated workforce to be delivered through advanced practice frameworks.

The £500 million to be invested in preventative spend through the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund, set out in Chapter 1, will deliver service re-design and help upskill the workforce, and we will also progress the delivery of a rights and relationship based practice and trauma informed training programme for the integrated children and family's workforce.

Covid-19 Children and Families Collective Leadership Group

The Covid-19 Children and Families Collective Leadership Group (CLG) brings together national and local government and other partners across children and families services, health, education, justice, and the third sector to take collaborative action to support children, young people and families in vulnerable situations.

CLG was initially set up to provide support during the pandemic but is now taking broader action as part of Scotland's renewal and recovery. The Group's key priorities include maintaining momentum on collective action to Keep The Promise and as part of this, CLG sub-groups are taking forward work on the provision of Family Support and Workforce Development.

CLG works closely with the Children's Services Planning Strategic Leads Network to help deliver more effective joined-up collaborations across services and across the country. CLG's work programme is also linked to UNCRC Implementation; the Covid Recovery Strategy and the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan.

Leadership To Deliver Change

The work of the Covid-19 Children and Families Collective Leadership Group includes a specific strand to support Children's Services Workforce Development. It aims to be able to promote and coordinate strong collective action to develop a trauma informed workforce that can deliver the level of change that is required. There is a busy programme of legislative and other changes ahead, and the subgroup is playing a vital role in coordinating the collective responses to these changes. The Promise made it clear we need to do more to reduce inequalities, and the Sub-group is also playing a decisive role in that sense.

Through this work we will progress an integrated whole system approach to workforce planning and workforce development for the children and families workforce, including the adult care workforce that support transitions. The work will align and inform decisions on policy priorities across Children and Families, Early Learning and Childcare, Children's Nursing, Allied Health Professionals, Mental Health and Health and Social Care Directorates. In practice, helping everybody understand their individual and collective contribution towards improving the coherence, alignment and implementation of Scottish Government policy, and as a result, to improve outcomes for children and families by carrying out the following actions:

• fully considering workforce implications of policy developments holistically across the wider system, while developing, deciding on and implementing policies relevant to children, young people and families;
• ensuring any implications of policies for the workforce are explored fully and the costs and impacts on all parts of the system are addressed through appropriate governance and funding routes;
• ensuring specific recommendations on/policies for workforce reflect the multidisciplinary and multi-organisational nature of support provision and consider the wider impacts of any changes proposed;
• building support and buy-in for agreed priorities for investment to strengthen or remodel how support can be provided most effectively to children, young people and families; and
• Highlighting positive impact, as well as driving improvement in areas where not enough progress is being made, the Group will enhance our accountability to Scotland's children, young people and families.

Workforce Regulation To Support The Promise

A review of Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) codes of practice is underway to ensure consistency with the skills and practice requirements of The Promise focused on trauma informed family support etc. The Care inspectorate are also reviewing the inspection and scrutiny framework

• SSSC has committed to work with The Promise Scotland on a myth busting campaign on workforce regulation and standards of practice, which supports the shift towards relationship based practice and the development of ongoing relationships
• The Care Inspectorate have given relationships greater prominence in the new quality improvement frameworks that underpin inspections.
• The Promise Scotland will work with the Care Inspectorate, SSSC and other key stakeholders to create an enabling practice environment which supports and evidences a move towards relationship based practice

Building on national and local initiatives, we will support work to improve the wellbeing of the workforce and consider the impact of the pandemic and recovery, linking to the work of the national wellbeing hub which has allocated funding developed resources and implemented a staff specialist support service.

Key Actions We Will Take

• We will consider establishing a National Social Work Agency to support the workforce and ensure equality of service and support. This is an opportunity to establish a single national lead that has oversight and leads social workers' professional development, education, terms and conditions, workforce planning and improvement.
• We will implement a national values-based recruitment and workforce development framework in place and adhered to by all organisations and professions involved in supporting children and their families
  • review the codes of practice to ensure they are consistent with the principles of rights based practice set out in The Promise.
  • update the common core skills framework for children to ensure it reflects the objectives of The Promise and is relevant and applicable across the integrated workforce centred on a family support model.
  • develop a common core skills framework for the integrated workforce centred on a family support model
  • we will consider how best to put in place the infrastructure needed to support and develop the social work workforce to ensure equality of service.
• We will continue to review the role of universal and targeted health services, such as health visiting and family nurse partnership,particularly during pregnancy and the earliest years of life, to identify where it could be further strengthened to respond more consistently to the needs of families at the earliest stage
• We will work across Government to align and inform decisions on policy priorities across Children and Families, Early Learning and Childcare, Children's Nursing, Allied Health Professionals,Mental Health and Health and Social Care

Chapter 15 Trauma-Informed Care

In line with commitments to children's rights and GIRFEC, we are committed to preventing adverse and traumatic childhood experiences as far as possible, and providing support to mitigate the negative impacts. As part of this, we are committed to developing trauma-informed workforces and services and have provided over £4 million funding for the National Trauma Training Programme to date.

Being 'trauma-informed' means being able to recognise when someone may be affected by adversity and trauma, and collaboratively adjusting ways of working to respond in ways that supports recovery, does no harm and recognises and supports people's resilience.

All workers, in the context of their own role and work remit, have a unique and essential trauma-informed role to play in responding to children, young people, parents and carers who are affected by trauma. This does not mean that everyone needs to be a trauma expert, but it is important that workers recognise that every interaction with someone affected by trauma, is an opportunity to support their recovery.

Trauma-informed organisations assume that people have had traumatic experiences, and that as a result people may find it difficult to feel safe within services and to develop trusting relationships with service providers. Consequently, trauma-informed services are structured, organised and delivered in ways that promote safety and trust and aim to prevent re- traumatisation.

The National Trauma Training Programme

Since 2018, the Scottish Government has invested over £4 million in a National Trauma Training Programme, including £1.6 million of funding distributed to all local authorities in 2021/22 to work with community planning partners to further progress trauma-informed services, systems and workforces.

The overarching vision of the National Trauma Training Programme is:

"A trauma-informed workforce and services across Scotland, capable of recognising where people are affected by trauma and adversity, that is able to respond in ways that prevent further harm and support recovery, and can address inequalities and improve life chances."

The ambition is to ensure that services and care are delivered in ways that:

• are informed by people with lived experience
• recognise the prevalence and impact of adverse and traumatic experiences
• recognise the importance of wellbeing for the workforce and carers
• respond in ways that prevent further harm
• support recovery
• address inequalities and improve life chances

National Trauma Training Programme

Working with COSLA we have a joint ambition for developing trauma-informed workforces and services across Scotland. This commitment is supported by the National Trauma Training

Programme, which provides accessible, evidence- based trauma training resourcesand support for implementation. This Programme is key to ensuring that children, young people and families are supported effectively by workforces and services that recognise the impact of adverse and traumatic experiences, and provide support which is centred around relationships and causes no further harm.

In 2017 NHS Education for Scotland (NES) published the Knowledge and Skills Framework for Psychological Trauma informed by people with lived experience of trauma. This Framework sets out four levels of knowledge and skills required across the Scottish workforce. As a minimum, all members of the workforce need to be at the level of trauma 'informed', but depending on the nature of different roles and organisations, members of the workforce may also need trauma 'skilled', 'enhanced' or 'specialist' knowledge and skills.

Practice Levels of the Transforming Psychological Trauma Knowledge& Skills Framework (NES)

NES have developed, and continue to develop, evidence-based online training resources to help increase awareness, knowledge and capability among all sectors of the workforce to understand the impact of trauma and embed trauma-informed practice and responses. These are available for free and are accessible to everyone in the Scottish workforce. In 2019, NES also published a Trauma Training Plan which details how to identify high- quality training that will meet the needs set out in the Psychological Trauma Knowledge and Skills Framework.

Involving people with lived experience of trauma is central to the implementation of trauma-informed approaches. We are currently funding a number of partner organisations to work with people with lived experience of trauma to co-create trauma-informed tools and resources to support local authorities and partners to safely create power sharing experiences with people with lived experience of trauma.

Trauma Informed Practice Level

Knowledge and skills required for all members of the Scottish Workforce.

Trauma Skilled Practice Level

Knowledge and skills required for workers with direct and frequent contact with people who may be affected by trauma.

Trauma Enhanced Practice Level

Knowledge and skills for staff with regular and intense contact with people affected by trauma and who have a specific remit to respond by providing support, advocacy or specific psychological interventions to protocol, and/or staff with responsibility for directly managing care and/or services for those affected by trauma.

Trauma Specialist Practice Level

Knowledge and skills for staff who have a remit to provide evidence-based interventions and treatment for those affected by trauma with complex needs.

Support for Implementation and Sharing Learning

Support for trauma training and implementation, across all sectors of the workforce, is provided by a team of Transforming Psychological Trauma Implementation Co-Ordinators (TPTICs) based in every Health Board in Scotland. In 2021, a network of 'Trauma Champions' was also established, this includes senior leaders from across local authorities, health boards, and key community planning partners who work collaboratively to influence change across local areas. The Trauma Champions network is supported by the Improvement Service, with tailored advice and support for Champions and local areas and facilitated learning between local areas.

The Improvement Service, in partnership with NES, hosted three collaborative learning workshops for Champions in 2021 with a further four planned in 2022. These support champions to share learning, good practice, and discuss challenges and opportunities. In addition, the Improvement Service have established an online community of practice for professionals across Scotland to connect and share learning on trauma- informed approaches.

In 2020/21, the Improvement Service, NES and the Scottish Government launched a series of learning events to explore how adopting a trauma-informed approach can support key community planning priorities and support professionals to identify tangible steps to help ensure this approach is embedded in policy and practice moving forward. This included sharing the findings from a learning event focused on supporting improved outcomes for children and families. The Improvement Service are also developing a series of 'companion documents'to support professionals working on a range of issues to embed trauma- informed approaches, including domestic abuse and alcohol and substance use.

The trauma-informed practice toolkit publication continues to be shared to support all sectors of the workforce in planning and developing trauma-informed services. In addition, learning is continuing from the local authority delivery trials funded in 2019 to test out different approaches to rolling out trauma training in three the local areas (Argyle & Bute, Glasgow, and Midlothian). An interim evaluationwas published in March 2021 and a further evaluation report will be commissioned in 2022/23.

Workforce and Sector Specific Workstreams

Building on the progress of the National Trauma Training Programme to date, a number of Programme workstreams are currently underway with specific sectors and workforces, to support implementation of trauma-informed approaches and develop learning for driving future progress. Two key workstreams for implementation of The Promise are:

1) Training and support on trauma-informed and skilled practice for people contributing to the lives of care experienced babies,children and young people. Based on the Transforming Psychological Trauma: Knowledge and Skills Framework, a new training module has been included in the NES'Developing your trauma skilled practice' e-module, focussing on children and young people. Building on this, NES are currently piloting a blended learning programme at the trauma skilled level which is specifically focussed on the needs of the workforce who are involved in the lives of babies, children and young people with care experience.

2) Programme of implementation support to develop trauma-informed social work services.

A plan has been developed for a programme of implementation support to develop trauma- informed social work services and an Expert Advisory Group has been formed to lead this work. This Group includes practitioners working in social work services across Scotland and individuals and organisations representing people with lived experience of trauma, and social work services. The Scottish Government, in collaboration with the Expert Advisory Group, will further develop the plan and work in partnership with key stakeholders to:

• Ensure necessary trauma knowledge and skills are core to social work education.
• Develop a consistent approach to support consolidation of the trauma skilled practice of Newly Qualified Social Workers in their supported year.
• Establish an implementation team to deliver a cohesive programme of workforce support for organisational change, for all of the social work workforce including operational middle and front line social work leaders
• Provide workforce support through ongoing implementation support, consultancy and coaching with a focus on power sharing and co-design with people with lived experience to develop trauma-informed policies, procedures, systems and environments.
• Ensure a suitable range of developmental and relationship-based trainings are available, (including Enhanced Trauma practice trainings for those working with children and young people and their families).
• Ensure trainings and implementation support that focuses on trauma and its impacts, reflective practice supervisions and worker wellbeing.
• Ensure there are suitable train the trainers programmes for trainings relevant to children's social care workers and the social work profession

Additional workstreams being undertaken as part of the National Trauma Training Programme include:

• In 2022/23, we will be supporting two trauma- informed maternity services pathfinder projects based in NHS Grampian and NHS Forth Valley. These pathfinder projects willprovide tailored training, improvement planning and implementation support for trauma- informed practice, working alongside experts by experience and experts by profession. A national learning report will be published on completion of these pathfinders. This work builds on the refresh of existing NES maternity trauma training resources (including the 'One out of Four' learning resource about the impacts of sexual trauma) and the NES research report about the support needed to help maternity services to be trauma-informed.
• Continued work to integrate the National Trauma Training Programme training resources into Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) practitioners training modules and into Education Scotland training and resources for the education sector on relationship- based and nurture approaches (including the Compassionate and Connected Classroom resources).
• A pathfinder delivery trial, running over 2022/23, to help embed trauma-informed practice in substance use services in two health board areas (NHS Dumfries & Galloway and Orkney) and share learning for wider implementation. This will also provide support for implementation of the new MedicationAssisted Treatment (MAT) standards to enable the consistent delivery of safe, accessible, high- quality drug treatment across Scotland.
• Development of a Knowledge and Skills Framework for a trauma-informed justice workforce for people coming into contact with victims and witnesses, as part of the work for the Scottish Government's Victims and Witnesses Taskforce, as set out further in Chapter 6.

In order to help inform future plans there is a need to better understand existing professional education and continuous professional learning (CPL), and current provision of supervision, reflective practice and coaching, across the workforce. These issues will be explored as part of the programme of work on trauma-informed social work services (see above), as well as additional workstreams to:

• Map current professional education routes and CPL opportunities for staff working within key sectors of the children and families workforce. In 2022 we will commission research to map current professional education routes and continuous professional learning opportunities for staff working within key sectors of the children and families workforce, including a review of the extent to which learning about the impact of psychological trauma and trauma-informed practice is included, and where there are gaps.
• Map existing provision of supervision, reflective practice and coaching across key sectors of the children and families workforce. By the end of 2022 we will commission an independent contractor to explore what models are currently used in different professions, what is involved, what skills levels are required, and where there are gaps.

Developing Learning and Next Steps

Two additional workstreams are also currently underway to further help with collating and sharing good practice:

• Collating the learning and emerging evidence from sector/workforce specific projects funded through the National Trauma Training Programme (detailed above) to inform continued knowledge sharing and future development of the Programme.
• Developing a Quality Indicators Framework for trauma-informed services, systems and workforces by end 2022, to support consistent implementation of good practice, gauge progress, and identify areas for improvement.

During 2022/23 we will take stock of the progress to date and develop plans for the future direction of the programme. This will involve learning from the current training, implementation support, research, and sector/ workforce specific workstreams, and engaging with a wide-range of people (including experts by experience and profession) to develop the next phase of the Programme. This work is being undertaken as part of our commitment to develop a national strategy on psychological trauma and adversity (including adverse childhood experiences) over the course of 2022/23.

As part of this work we will explore the best routes for driving progress on developing trauma-informed workforce and services across Scotland, whilst maintaining fidelity to the evidence-base and good practice established in the NES Knowledge and Skills Framework forPsychological Trauma.This is crucial given the fundamental importance of ensuring improved outcomes for children, young people and families by supporting recovery and avoiding re- traumatisation. In addition to the training needs, the next phase of the Programme will have an increased focus on supporting implementation and embedding trauma-informed practice within organisations and services, since training alone is not sufficient.

By April 2023, we will publish a long-term delivery plan setting out the training and implementation support the Scottish Government and partners will continue to provide to help embed and sustain trauma-informed workforces, services and care.

This will include a priority focus on trauma training and support for adoptive parents, kinship, foster and supported carers.

Key Actions We Will Take

• We will, by the end of 2022, roll out a trauma skilled learning programme focused on the needs of workforce involved in the lives of babies, children and young people with care experience.
• From 2022 onwards we will roll out a national programme of implementation support to develop trauma-informed social work services across Scotland. This will focus on trauma enhanced social work practices and involve providing ongoing support for organisational change to social work service providers, including:
  • a broad range of trainings and coaching support,
  • reflective practice supervision, systems and approaches, and
  • leadership support.
• During 2022/23 we will share learning and guidance to inform future progress on developing trauma-informed workforce and services, including:
  • A Quality Indicators Framework for trauma-informed services, systems and workforce.
  • Mapping of professional education and Continuous Professional Learning (CPL) opportunities within the children and families workforce.
  • Mapping of existing provision of supervision, reflective practice and coaching within the children and families workforce.
  • Learning from pathfinders supporting trauma-informed maternity services and trauma- informed substance use services.
  • Publication of a Knowledge and Skills Framework for trauma-informed justice services for people coming into contact with victims and witnesses.
• We will, by April 2023, publish a long-term delivery plan for further work to embed and sustain trauma-informed workforces,services and care.This will include a priority focus on trauma training and support for adoptive parents, kinship, foster and supported carers.