Helping children and young people thrive – as they say it can take a village. In this final episode in the ‘Care to chat’ 2024 podcast series we are talking childhood development and sharing practical advice and ideas for supporting children and young people to improve outcomes for them and their families.
In particular a number of resources available on the Northern Ireland Social Care Council’s Learning Zone which aim to support and build knowledge, skills and confidence for those social work professionals and others navigating the early childhood and adolescence development landscape.
Our host hosted by Dr Wendy Austin MBE speaks to experienced social work professional and academic Mary McColgan, Emerita Professor of Social Work at Ulster, and Laura Durkan, Social Work Student who is entering her final year at Belfast Met, who has had experience working with children and young people before she started to study social work.
This timely topic across social work highlights what resources can support social workers in their practice working with children, young people and families.
This episode focusses on some of the resources available to support social work practice in child development and how they can be used in their practice, with a new resource now available. Though aimed at social workers and social work students, so they can understand what normal child and adolescent development looks like, they are also relevant for parents and care givers, schools and teachers, childcare workers and youth workers.
Talking about why these resources are so important Mary McColgan said:
“There is a very important context to the lives of children and young people in today’s age, and for their families as well, and I think you need something that is both accurate and is fit for purpose, and fit for practise, but also not written in a way that causes the user to feel that they don’t have association with that information.”
Are you interested in child development?
Whether you are a social worker, social work student, a professional working in education, youth and community work, early years/childcare, health and social care or a parent/care giver, or a young person yourself, you can access a number of resources about this on the Social Care Council’s Learning Zone:
– Understanding Child Development 0-6 Years.
– Understanding Young People: 7-12 Years.
– Understanding Adolescent Development and Issues: 13-18 Years.
– Understanding Child and Young People’s Development – Policy and Legislation.
For more information:
Download, subscribe and listen to the latest Social Care Council ‘Care to chat?’ podcast episode today here, or by searching ‘Care to chat’ in your podcast player.
‘Care to chat?’ will return with lots more important conversations in social care and social work in 2024. Have an idea for a future episode? Contact us on comms@niscc.hscni.net with your suggestions.