An Essay: An evaluation of how workplace practice is influenced and directed by a specific social policy.

Social policy is “the theoretical pursuit of norms about how we think society ‘ought’ to behave” (Alcock et al. 2008) in action it consists of plans and interventions put in place by the government and social services to improve the wellbeing of society.

There are five main areas influenced by social policies derived to improve services for the classic welfare state namely, education, housing, social security, health and social work.

Social policy is intimately concerned with how to address and ameliorate social problems and with the analysis of the success or failure of policies designed to improve welfare and wellbeing (Alcock et all. 2008:2-3)

Historically social policy can be seen as far back as 1388 when “attempts were made to fix wages and to limit the mobility of labour which may cause wages to rise” (Alcock, 2008:9) a more methodical system of poor relief was introduced in Victorian times, the Elizabethan Poor Law Acts of 1598 and 1601 to house and provide work for the poor under the direction of local parishes.

Following this the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 set the foundations for social policy and the modern welfare state today by changing the way that poor law was dealt with, it was streamlined into universal laws and principles that towards the end of the 18th century prompted formation of the English government.

The states role is consolidated in an attempt to redefine the Poor Law on the basis of universal laws and principles; it is here then that we can discern the foundations of the modern ‘welfare state’…although not the first instance of the involvement of the state in the welfare of its citizens, represents a fundamental turning point. (Alcock et al. 2008:8-9)

Existing local authorities took on the responsibility of managing and enforcing these acts as there was no one else whom could oversee the control of the welfare system which was becoming increasingly the responsibility of the government, “English local government developed around the Poor Law… Existing authorities accrued increasing responsibility by default; there was no-one else there to take it” (Spicker, 2012)

Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth century social policy has continued to evolve, taking responsibility for the provisions and control of education, housing, social security, health and social work which are what make up the modern welfare state. There have been three different models of social policy provision as stated at the University of Hull by Young (2013:8), Conservatism which supported an authoritative government with little involvement in welfare, believing that “assistance should be temporary and conditional” this is a more historical view as seen in Victorian times, Socialism, which supported equality and using policy by means of distributing equality and Liberalism which has a “strong belief in the rights of the individual, and commitment to welfare as a means of promoting equality of opportunity” although it also believed that individual should take responsibility to also helping themselves.

Social policy has become more complex in recent years due to media influences which play a role in shaping social policy today however this is not necessarily a disadvantage as although society can be nurtured to feel a certain way by the media, the media can also portray the needs of society to better shape policies for the public “Press coverage of the Bulger case…prompted shifts in criminal justice policy” (Franklin, 2001:3)

As there are an increasing number of policies being made and implemented monitoring is needed to ensure that they are effective both in controlling the welfare state and utilising capital. This is done by agencies outside of government to give a non-bias review using various resources.

The main researcher that now influences social policy are what works centres, they are used by the government as independent research facilities to analyse and inform of what strategies and policies are working well, what can be done for improvement and also to report when something is not working well with suggestions on what can be changed to improve outcomes for service users.

The What Works Network, a key action in the Civil Service reform plan, will consist of two existing centres of excellence – the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the Educational Endowment Foundation – plus four new independent institutions responsible for gathering, assessing and sharing the most robust evidence to inform policy and service delivery. (gov.uk, 2013)

Using independent centres to report on successfulness of policies will give a better overall picture as they collate information from a wide range of sources including professionals, service users and all agencies involved. They will also be more cost effective for the government as they conduct and report research in a utilizing way which does not impact or drain time from government employees and in turn will reduce overall spend.

The centres, independent of government, will collate published evidence on the effectiveness of interventions, assess these using a common ‘currency’, publish clear synthesis reports and share findings in an accessible way with practitioners and commissioners and policy makers’ (HM Government, 2013:1)

The findings of what works centres help to inform and shape government policies along with think tanks which are independent public policy research institutes, their predictions and findings are published generally through the media in newspapers such as the guardian, they aim to influence public and political opinion which in turn helps to shape policy.

This essay will evaluate how workplace practice is influenced and directed by social policy, it will look at the government policy, increasing options and improving provisions for children with special educational needs (SEN) published on March 2013.

The policy was put in place as evidence showed that children with special educational needs were not sufficiently and consistently having their needs met, “children and young people identified as having special educational needs (SEN) can struggle to get the support they need to do well” (Gov.uk Policy)

The policy aims are to ensure that children with special educational needs have the same opportunities as other children by giving them quick diagnosis of disability, easy access to services required to support them through their childhood and smooth transitions into adulthood through various funded programmes which will be explored later within this essay.

Currently, multi-agency working within this area is not always consistent making it difficult for young people and their families to access and fully benefit from services. It is proposed in the government policy that teachers, health workers and social care workers work together to meet the needs of a particular young person.

There will be a single assessment process which the child and their parents will be included in, the child’s educational, health and care needs will be assessed and an overall plan put together to be used by all people involved and save any confusion. The government policy proposes to “replace SEN statements and learning difficulty assessments with an education, health and care plan for children and young people with SEN aged 0 – 25 years. (gov.uk. 2013)

As stated in the minister of state for children and families letter to the chair of the education select committee this plan will support not only through school years but into adulthood giving young people with SEN options with regards to further education, employment and independent living “This will set out in one place the education, health and care services they will receive for their support and create a new focus on outcomes, including future employment and independent living” (Teather, 2013)

Parents will also be given the option to decide along with the young person what services they feel are best for their family as oppose to the local authority making decisions on their behalf. History shows that individuals with special educational needs were not always benefitting from services chosen by the local authority, by giving choice to parents and young people over what they would like access to it is empowering people to better achieve and feel equal.

professionals making decisions for families about which services they think will best meet a child’s requirements and has used a restrictive and sometimes inadequate assessment process (kids.org, 2012)

In order to control and make payment for services they would like to access a personal budget is allocated and paid either directly to parents or someone in charge of their child’s care, this is a positive change to empower and promote choice although parents can also chose to have access to services controlled and chosen by the local authority as previously practiced.

A personal budget is used to purchase the services and support required by a disabled child to meet their specific requirements and to live a more independent life. (kids.org, 2012)

The policy was produced due to green paper (SEN) parents, teachers, charities and local authorities contributed to finding ways to support and fund children and families with special educational needs better.

The green paper “support and aspiration a new approach to special educational needs and disability” (gov.uk, 2013) was published in march 2011, testing of proposals then took place in a number of local areas allowing for a report on it’s effectiveness to be published in May 2012 which gave a critique and outlined changes and further steps to be taken for improvement.

Following the green paper a children and families bill was introduced in February 2013 to propose changes to the law.

changes to the law are required for the green paper reforms. The bill sets out the duties for all agencies involved in providing services for children and young people with SEN (gov.uk policy)

This proposed that all children should have the resources to succeed no matter what their background. In terms of children with special educational needs this outlined the provisions discussed above in regards to personal budgets, single assessments and emphasis on choice for children from birth to 25 years of age.

The Bill will extend the SEN system from birth to 25, giving children, young people and their parents greater control and choice in decisions and ensuring needs are properly met. (Department for Education, 2013)

A draft regulations and draft guidance code of practice was also published in March 2013 to inform services how the law will work in practice, this is what will influence and direct workplace practice.

The improving outcomes for children with special educational needs policy will affect workplace practice as professionals will have to work closely together and share information, this will mean that more time will need to be allocated by all agencies involved in a child’s welfare for meetings and updating care plans.

Training on updating care plans correctly so that all agencies can understand provisions and needs will need to be conducted to staff that have the responsibility for record keeping and training on reporting important information to the correct person will need to be given to all other staff. Training will take time and have a cost implication for each agency but is crucial in fulfilling the requirements of the policy and maximising its success in improving outcomes for children and young people with SEN.

Schools will be required to admit all pupils that have a preference to attend if it is stated on their care plan regardless of their special educational needs, this applies to free and independent schools, academies, maintained and non-maintained specialist schools, colleges and approved independent specialist schools. “These providers will have a duty to admit a child or young person whose EHCP names that provider” (Department for Education, 2013:13) this will mean that some schools will have to employ specialist assistants to help meet the needs of children with learning difficulties, namely learning mentors and special needs teaching assistants although funding on a number of pupils enrolled with SEN basis will be given to help with the cost of this “a place-plus approach to high needs funding will ensure that all providers, mainstream and specialist, will be funded on an equivalent basis” (Department for Education, 2012:16)

In order for all schools to be able to provide quality teaching to meet the needs of children with special educational needs high quality teachers and extra staff in the form of teaching assistants will need to be employed to help relieve pressure from teachers within the classroom. Assistant’s support pupils who need extra help with learning, manage challenging behaviour, provide emotional and hygiene support and help teachers with preparation and record keeping. They are particularly vital when a class has a student or students with special needs as regular one to one time cannot be given by teachers without compromising the quality of teaching for the rest of the class and training needs to be provided to make sure they are competent in their support role.

The training and development of school support staff is an essential component of the government’s Schools Workforce Reform for England which aims to raise pupil achievement and wellbeing through the training of teaching assistants as Higher Level Teaching Assistants (Burgess and Shelton Mayes, 2009)

The increase in the number of teaching assistants employed by schools nationwide can already been seen in state schools. “Department for Education's annual workforce survey shows 6% rise in teaching assistants” (Adams & Burn-Murdoch, 2013) specialist schools have always had a high number of assistants but the increase in state schools allows for choice of school by people with SEN as set out in the policy to be facilitated.

Under the new policy and legislation, involvement of parents and children with special educational needs in decision making is paramount meaning that professionals need to include them every step of the way. In a school context, teachers will need to have regular meetings with parents and children to discuss the child’s needs and any problems that they may have come across. Previous to legislation teachers could inform parents and children of what they thought was best and intended to do with regards education and care but this is no longer seen as beneficial for the child as crucial information from parents may be missed and inappropriate action taken. Deciding on next steps after an incident, obstacle or milestone is now a two way operation where teachers will need to take input from parents and children into account when deciding how to move forward to get the best out of the child’s education.

Schools and colleges should also take steps to ensure that parents and young people are actively supported in contributing to assessment, planning and review processes. (Department for Education, 2013:2.1)

Any changes to a child’s care or relevant developments / ailments must also always be updated in the child’s care plan so that other agencies are aware saving the need for parents and children to repeat themselves or information being omitted which may be important in other areas of a child’s care. As mentioned earlier this may be time consuming but crucial so when managing their time people responsible for this need to allow for it, if this means delegation of some tasks or a restructure by management so that it becomes the responsibility of one member of staff then that will be required to meet the requirements of the policy.

The move towards supporting people with SEN into adulthood will also affect workplace practice as schools will need to do more preparation of a pupil for post 16 education or help finding employment, however, as this is a service already offered by schools to its non-SEN pupils it can be easily facilitated by offering the same preparation although extra support may be given to the pupil on a one to one basis to make sure they fully understand their options. Extra support could be provided by teaching assistants for pupils to make the transition in the same way as other students if they chose or if they would like more specialist support provisions need to be made by schools to allow for this.

The smooth transition into adulthood policy aim could be met by having information available to parents and pupils of local connexions services, employment agencies that deal directly with people with special needs or funded programmes such as the Government Supported Internships currently being trailed for roll out in September 2013.

The supported internships trial, backed by £3 million from the Department for Education, will provide a structured learning programme at an employer, like a restaurant, library or clothes retailer, that is tailored to the individual needs of the young person. It will equip them with the skills they need for the job, backed by expert job coaches to support interns and employers, and give them a chance to study for relevant qualifications (Gov.uk, 2012)

By giving parents and pupils choice for further education or employment opportunities, schools are fulfilling the requirements of the policy and personal budgets will allow parents and young adults to access services if they are not already funded.

From the evaluation within this essay it is clear to see that workplace practice is influenced and directed by specific social policy, from the policy increasing options and improving provisions for children with special educational needs (SEN) agencies, the main focus within this essay being schools have had to make changes outlined above to meet the requirements of the policy, subsequent green paper and the children and families bill.

Without changes being made by schools to support children with special educational needs by making provisions to treat them the same as others, assisting with quick and consistent diagnosis, continual plan updates and parental and pupil involvement allowing for choice, the policy would not be facilitated and better outcomes for children with special educational needs would not be achieved, however it is clear to see that provisions have been put in place to ensure that policy aims are met and reports by what works centres will hopefully show this when a review is done.

As discussed an increase in teaching assistants within schools can already be seen which is proof that specific policy influences workplace practice as teaching assistants are a requirement to support children with special educational needs.

From the research conducted it can be seen that a lot of changes have to be put in place to support a policy, however the changes can not only improve outcomes for service users but also make the agency work better overall such as having single assessments to produce an educational, health and care plan, this will save time and be cost effective for agencies as information is shared reducing the need for repeat assessments.

To conclude social policy is important in shaping our welfare system, it can be seen centuries ago by means of dealing with the poor and has evolved over time to make the whole welfare system increasingly the responsibility of the state, there is a need for continued review and updates to policies to improve agencies ways of working, cost effectiveness and outcomes for service users which in turn will improve the modern welfare system as a whole.

References

Adams, R. Burn-Murdoch, J. (2013) State schools employ one teaching assistant for every two teachers. The Guardian. [online] Available: http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2013/may/01/state-schools-teaching-assistants [Accessed 15.06.2013]

Alcock, C. Daly, G. Griggs, E. (2008) Introducing Social Policy (2nd edn.) Pearson Education Limited: Essex.

Burgess, H. and Shelton Mayes, A. (2009). An exploration of higher level teaching assistants’ perceptions of their training and development in the context of school workforce reform. Support for Learning.
24(1), p2. Available: http://oro.open.ac.uk/13179/2/ [Accessed 13.06.13]

Department for Education. (2013) Children and Families Bill 2013 [online] Available: http://www.education.gov.uk/a00221161/children-families-bill [Accessed 11.06.2013]

Department for Education. (2013) Evidence Pack. Special Educational Needs Children and Families Bill 2013 [online] Available: http://media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/pdf/s/sen%20evidence%20pack.pdf [Accessed 12.06.2013]

Department for Education. (2013) Indicative Draft: The (0-25) Special Educational Needs Code of Practice [online] Available: http://media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/pdf/s/sen%20code%20of%20practice%20indicative%20draft%20for%20committee.pdf [Accessed 12.06.2013]

Department for Education, (2012) School Funding Reform: Arrangements for 2013-14 [online] Available: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/180949/school_funding_reform_-_final_2013-14_arrangements.pdf [Accessed 15.05.2013]

Franklin, B. (2001) Social Policy, the Media and Misrepresentation. [ebook] Routledge: London. Available: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=DTzriLW9anAC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false [Accessed 11.06.13]

gov.uk. (2013) New world leading evidence centres to drive better decisions across £200 billion of public services. Press release. [online] Available: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-world-leading-evidence-centres-to-drive-better-decisions-across-200bn-of-public-services [Accessed 11.06.13]

gov.uk. (2012) Helping young people with special needs into work through new supported internships [online] Available: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/helping-young-people-with-special-needs-into-work-through-new-supported-internships [Accessed 16.06.13]

HM Government. (2013) What Works: evidence centres for social policy. Cabinet Office: London.

Kids.org (2012) Working with disabled children, young people and their families. What are personal budgets. [online] Available: http://www.kids.org.uk/information/100347/106207/106214/106215/what_are_personal_budgets/ [Accessed 11.06.13]

Spicker, P. (2012) An introduction to social policy, The Robert Gordon University. [online] Available: http://www2.rgu.ac.uk/publicpolicy/introduction/about.htm [Accessed 11.06.13]

Teather, S. (2013) Special Educational Needs Provisions. Available: http://media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/pdf/s/sarah%20teather%20letter%20to%20education%20select%20committee.PDF [Accessed 15.06.2013]

Young, H. (2013) Social Policy in relation to Children Young People and Families. Semester three week one. University of Hull.

Bibliography

Alcock, C. Daly, G. Griggs, E. (2008) Introducing Social Policy (2nd edn.) Pearson Education Limited: Essex.

Burgess, H. and Shelton Mayes, A. (2009). An exploration of higher level teaching assistants’ perceptions of their training and development in the context of school workforce reform. Support for Learning.
24(1), p2–6.

Department for Education. (2013) Children and Families Bill 2013

Department for Education. (2013) Evidence Pack. Special Educational Needs Children and Families Bill 2013

Department for Education. (2013) Indicative Draft: The (0-25) Special Educational Needs Code of Practice

Department for Education, (2012) School Funding Reform: Arrangements for 2013-14

Franklin, B. (2001) Social Policy, the Media and Misrepresentation. [ebook] Routledge: London.

gov.uk. (2013) New world leading evidence centres to drive better decisions across £200 billion of public services. Press release.

gov.uk. (2012) Helping young people with special needs into work through new supported internships

HM Government. (2013) What Works: evidence centres for social policy. Cabinet Office: London.

Kids.org (2012) Working with disabled children, young people and their families.

Spicker, P. (2012) An introduction to social policy, The Robert Gordon University.

Teather, S. (2013) Special Educational Needs Provisions

The Guardian (2013) State schools employ one teaching assistant for every two teachers.

Young, H. (2013) Social Policy in relation to Children Young People and Families. Semester three week one. University of Hull.