Our work
We develop a range of evidence-informed multimedia learning resources designed for professionals working with children, young people and families; tailored to individual and organisational learning and development needs.
Our annual Delivery Programme is developed in consultation with the national children & families Partnership network in order to ensure our work reflects the needs and priorities of the sector. In 2019-20 our work included new publications, events and online resources covering key topics including:
In addition, we released three open access publications that explore the concept of commissioning and the use of evidence to form effective relationships with providers, local authorities and the voluntary sector:
Learning resources
As part of membership to Research in Practice, Partners have access to a range of learning opportunities and receive regular updates on the latest news and information, including case law, research evidence and policy.
Each year our national programme of learning events support professional networking and development, alongside the sharing of new innovations, to meet organisational needs. Our webinars feature expert speakers presenting evidence on pertinent social care topics, and networking events enable the sharing of ideas across geographical boundaries. In 2019 we made our policy update a singular publication to reflect the growing trend towards joined-up working across Children’s and Adults Services.
Click and drag left or right below to view Partner resources.
News & views
The latest news and information, communicated by a series of thought pieces written by and for professionals across the sector.
Podcasts
Providing flexible and accessible learning for anyone who has an interest in prevalent issues for the sector.
Case Law and Legal Summaries
Monthly updates on the latest case law, highlighting implications for social care practice.
Change Projects
Bringing groups of Research in Practice Partners together to explore pressing challenges and priorities.
Policy Updates
Covering the latest news, updates and policy information to ensure Partners are kept up-to-date with important developments, government reports and consultations.
Recorded Webinars
Online learning sessions that feature an expert speaker presenting evidence on a particular topic.
Research Summaries
Monthly summaries that explore pertinent social care issues and provide an in-depth digest of the latest research evidence.
Tailored Support
A range of programmes and resources, strategy development, evidence scopes and conference contributions to support organisation wide professional development.
Learning from serious case reviews
We worked with the University of East Anglia, Centre for Research on Children and Families and the University of Warwick to develop a set of open access resources from the analysis of serious case reviews (2014-2017) to support the application of learning into practice.
Complexity and challenge: A triennial analysis of serious case reviews 2014-2017 analyses 368 serious case reviews relating to incidents between 1 April 2014 and 31 March 2017. Marion Brandon and Peter Sidebotham introduced the key messages and resources in our Recorded Webinar.
View the resources.
Topics to support practice
A key feature of our new site is the ability to view connected learning resources and events by topic. This means learning can now be structured around key areas of work, such as resilience, supervision, contact and more.
Each topic area includes learning resources, publications, workshops and more to support practice. Browse all topics.
Every year we consult with our Partner network to decide on key topics. This shapes our work to ensure we meet the priorities of our network. In 2019-20 we focused on several key topics.
Click and drag left or right on each topic area to view the resources.
Abuse and violence in the family context
Abuse encompasses a range of controlling and coercive behaviours, used by one person to maintain control over another with whom they have, or have had, an intimate or family relationship. It can refer to physical, sexual, emotional psychological or financial abuse. For example, harassment, stalking, rape, sexual assault, female genital mutilation, forced marriage and honour-based violence
Forced marriage
This briefing aims to build confident social work and family support practice to recognise, prevent and intervene in forced marriage involving children and young people.
Deprivation of liberty
Created in response to case law providing guidance as to when 16 and 17 year olds are considered to be deprived of their liberty, this Practice Guide supports professionals who work with young people.
Developing trauma-informed practices
Five Islington primary schools, working in partnership, implemented a pilot scheme to embed trauma-informed practice in schools. The pilot was a response to rising concern about young people at risk, of and from, violence.
Scaling up the Graded Care Profile 2
In this webinar the NSPCC introduce the Graded Care Profile 2 tool and how it can be embedded in practice to evaluate a family’s strengths and weaknesses.
Gangs and criminal exploitation
Exploitation refers to where an individual or group takes advantage of an imbalance of power to coerce, manipulate or deceive a person in exchange for something. Crime and serious violence amongst children, young people and young adults is an ever-changing web of criminal exploitation that also includes county lines.
Safeguarding and exploitation
Local areas are tasked with addressing multiple forms of exploitation and attending to the causes of abuse. This briefing aims to inform the development of holistic, complex and contextual safeguarding systems.
Safeguarding children and young people from exploitation
This Podcast considers how we can work to enable an effective safeguarding response for children and young people who are, or are at risk of, being exploited.
County lines, criminal exploitation and cuckooing part one
Consider the definitions of criminal exploitation and county lines in the context of what the issues look like in Greater Manchester.
County lines, criminal exploitation and cuckooing part two
This Podcast continues the conversation about Greater Manchester’s approach to tackling criminal exploitation and cuckooing.
Exploitation of boys and young men
This Recorded Webinar looks at the risks and experiences of exploitation of boys and young men, highlighting the importance of holistic engagement.
County lines and criminal exploitation
County lines is the name given to a business model used by organised crime groups to transport and sell drugs, using exploited children and young people.
Working with young people and gangs
Knife crime and serious youth violence is increasing and an ever-changing web of criminal exploitation, including county lines, is increasingly being recognised across the country.
Pre-birth assessment and patterns of attachment
Assessment is the process that identifies what children and families want and need to achieve in order to maintain or improve their wellbeing. This may have different focuses, dependent on the type of situation or need being experienced. Attachment theory supports our understanding of how attachment patterns evolve through past relationships and their impact on behaviour.
Pre-birth assessment
This briefing aims to encourage a review of local practices, procedures and protocols in relation to pre-birth assessment and to support change and development in policies and practices where this is necessary.
Pregnancy Interview
Explore how the Pregnancy Interview may be integrated into local pre-birth assessment practice in this recorded webinar.
Parental non-engagement in child protection
This briefing proposes that an understanding of how some parents’ experiences of adversity and trauma in their own childhood can help to understand why they may find service engagement difficult.
Attachment theory in practice
This webinar looks at current thinking on attachment theory and how it can be mobilised by practitioners to understand and support relationships between children and their parents
Working with recurrent care experiened birth mothers
Social workers, lawyers and judges have long been aware that some women return to court as respondents in care proceedings after having already experienced the removal of one or more children in previous proceedings.
Why pre-birth assesment?
Intervention in pregnancy, or immediately following birth where there are safeguarding concerns, is one of the most challenging areas of social work practice and is fraught with moral, legal and ethical practice issues.
Residential care and decision-making with brothers and sisters in care proceedings
When we refer to the term ‘child in care’ we mean children and young people who have been in the care of a local authority for more than 24 hours. They may be cared for within a residential setting or by foster carers. Key to this topic is the quality and stability of the placement, robust planning for the time of leaving care and supporting educational attainment.
Reimagining residential children's homes
This think piece provides a broad overview of residential children’s homes and a picture of national trends.
Commissioning children's homes
This think piece sets out why the children’s homes market place (as it is commonly referred to) is unsustainable in its current form.
Brothers and sisters in public law proceedings briefing
This briefing considers the law and the role of social workers in the assessment of, and decision-making about, brothers and sisters involved in public law proceedings.
Brothers and sisters in public law proceedings webinar
This webinar draws on research on siblings, contact and the law, and is designed to support evidence-informed social work practice in the family court.
Assessing and supporting family and friends care
The aim of this resource is to assist practitioners when assessing the strengths and weaknesses of prospective placements with family and friends.
Working with brothers and sisters in public law proceedings
For people unfamiliar with the care system, it can be surprising to learn that children can be permanently separated from their brothers and sisters, whether through adoption or other types of placement.
Positive outcomes for children in care
Care experienced people may be dealing with the legacy of pre-care experiences, missed schooling, placement changes and other disruptions.
Self-harm, mental health and wellbeing in children and young people
Self-harm occurs when someone causes immediate damage to their own body. It can take many forms but the most common are self-cutting and self-poisoning (overdose). This is commonly a means of dealing with intense or overpowering feelings and emotions.
Understanding self-harm
This briefing aims to increase understanding of self-harm – what it is, why it happens, what it means, and how to respond to and support children, young people and their families.
Responding to self-harm among children and adolescents
This resource complements the understanding self-harm among children and adolescents: Frontline Briefing and is designed to support practitioners in their everyday practice to use research evidence.
How can we support children and young people who self harm?
What is meant by self-harm, what are the signs and risk factors associated with it, and how can we respond to and support children, young people and their families?
Positive mental health and wellbeing
This resource aims to help those working with children and young people to develop the skills needed to identify mental health need and recognise areas of strength and resilience.
Supporting adults and the social care sector
Alongside our work to support children, young people and families we have developed a range of evidence-informed learning resources designed for people working with adults and carers.
We've also worked collaboratively with individual organisations as well as local national partnerships to support the wider social care sector.