Staff Supervision and Support

1. Who this Procedure Applies to

This procedure applies to all permanent, temporary, seconded, ancillary and agency staff working in the home (including the home's manager).

2. Who Supervises

'Supervisors' are usually those in line management at the next level; thus care staff will usually be supervised by team leaders and, in turn, team leaders will be supervised by home's managers.

3. Frequency and Purpose of Staff Supervision

The registered person should develop a workplace plan for the home which contains information on the process and timescales for supervision of practice.

All staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. Supervision should be focused on best practice, stretch, growth, ambition, performance, reflection, progression, wishes feelings and outcomes of young people and their families. Methods utilised consist of case discussions, observations, reflective group and 1:1 and personal supervisions. These are quality assured by the service manager on a quarterly basis.

At times supervisors may need to support staff to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to reflect upon how their own feelings and behaviour may be affected by the behaviour of the children they care for.

Supervision of staff practice should also ensure that staff are fully engaged in the safeguarding culture of the home and understand what they would need to do if they found other staff misusing or abusing their position to the detriment of the safety of a child.

4. Convening

The supervisor is responsible for convening supervision sessions. The meetings must usually be held in private although it may on occasions be appropriate to invite another manager.

5. Recording

5.1 Supervision Records

The Home's manager must keep a written Supervision Record covering the following:

• The date, start and finish times of supervisions;
• Responses to, and methods of working with children;
• Work with any child for whom the staff member is Key Worker or has responsibility for;
• Any matters/concerns relating to lone working; see Lone Working Procedure, the staff; member's role, including their accountability, in fulfilling the home's Statement of Purpose;
• The staff member's work in fulfilling the individual Plans for children;
• Any concerns in relation to emotional health and well-being;
• Continuous development and training;
• Feedback on performance;
• Guidance on current and new tasks, including the setting and maintenance of standards; and
• Personal issues which may impinge on the member of staff's ability to carry out their duties effectively.

During supervision, participants should take the opportunity to review previous objectives, agreements, plans and expectations, discuss any matters of concern or interest then agree and record what needs to be achieved/done before the next supervision.

The supervisor and supervisee may also agree to use an agenda and/or checklist for the purposes of structuring supervision sessions.

Supervision must be recorded effectively. A written record must be kept detailing the time, date and length of each supervision held for each member of staff including the manager. It is good practice for both the person giving the supervision and the staff member to have a copy of the record. When supervision notes have been recorded, the supervisee has the opportunity to make comments and sign to confirm accuracy.

5.2 Appraisals

All staff must have their performance and fitness to carry out their role formally appraised at least once annually. This appraisal should take into account, where reasonable and practical, the views of other professionals who have worked with the staff member over the year and children in the Home’s care. As part of the performance management process, poor performance should be addressed by a timely plan to bring about improvement.

5.3 Changing the Record

If the staff member believes that information contained in the Supervision Record is inaccurate, incorrect or misleading about a matter of fact, s/he may ask for it to be corrected or changed.

Records must be changed where an opinion/assumption has been expressed on the basis of inaccurate or incorrect information.

The supervisor should make any agreed changes. If there is disagreement between the supervisor and the supervisee, the next line manager should be contacted and will make a decision.