Critical Reviewing Skills and Achieving Value for Money : Social Workers & Care Managers (1/2 day)

Too often, reviews are merely a process of questions and answers, a checklist that a
social worker completes with the provider. As a result, these reviews lead to years of no identified change and missed opportunities for service users to develop and reach their potential. Instead, they are a function to meet review targets, minimise the number of times that the team needs to seek approval for funding increases and to avoid challenges by the family.

We talk extensively about “Strength Based Provision” and “Value for Money”, yet many reviews only consider strength based options if they are linked to savings, with any changes often being successfully challenged due to a lack of transparency. There’s also a lack of understanding in how to identify Value for Money, with officers failing to consider evidence but instead being led by the provider , or with decisions being driven by cost targets.

To complete effective, transparent reviews that can properly identify outcomes, with the potential to make longer term, transparent and evidence based savings, social workers and care managers must be empowered to complete critical, evidence based reviews.

This 1/2 day course challenges current practice and provides front line review staff with an opportunity to consider their role in the overall commissioning process, building on the current process to complete outcome focussed, quantifiable and transparent reviews.