Flexible Childcare Services Scotland (FCSS), the only charity in Scotland to champion flexible childcare provision, is working with Robert Gordon’s University (RGU) to give social work students direct work experience with children and families across Aberdeenshire.
Two social work students started their placements in September providing children and families using FCSS services in Aberdeenshire with targeted, individualistic support that’s tailored to their specific needs.
According to the students,
“Our first month on placement has already proven to be invaluable for both our learning and professional development. We have been involved in many aspects of the service and have enjoyed building relationships with children and staff. We hope to come out of this placement as more experienced practitioners, having built on the knowledge gained throughout our degree so far, as well as having contributed to the future service delivery of FCSS Aberdeenshire.”
The students will receive hands on experience of working with children with Additional Support Needs, gaining a direct understanding of the social work referral process and building relationships with children and families so that they can create effective individual care plans for children using the services.
Maureen Rennie, Flexible Childcare Services Manager Aberdeenshire, believes this will a great support to children and families using the service but also to the students on placement,
“We are extremely excited to start this partnership with RGU, it will provide numerous benefits to the students, to our services and to the children and families we support. The social work students will gain hands on experience of working with lots of children with a range of additional support needs, this includes children with physical and sensory impairments, learning disabilities and autism, and those who have life-limiting and life-threatening conditions. They will be able to provide tailored care plans for these children, giving parents and carers greater confidence in their child’s care. Their support will also mean that we have greater capacity to support the children in our care. It’s a win all round!”
This is a new partnership between Flexible Service Scotland (FCSS) and RGU and the placements with provide a unique experience for students to support children and families holistically as well as providing them with the skills they will need once they are qualified.
Janine Bolger, Head of Social Work at RGU said,
“On behalf of RGU I would want to say how pleased we are to have two students on placement with FCSS and involved in very relevant work with families and with a multidisciplinary focus. The learning opportunities being afforded to our students are very exciting and will prepare them well for practice. We look forward to continuing our partnership with FCSS.”
