Facilitators can be team managers, advanced practitioners, workforce development leads or other suitable persons. As the facilitator, you will receive the log in details for the SWOTT website. There are two levels of access: one for facilitators (you); and one for participants (social workers or other practitioners who are taking part). You should share the log in details for ‘social workers’ only as the facilitator log in provides access to guidance notes for facilitators that participants should not have access to.

You can choose the toolkit to be completed by your team or group (a group might be, for example, that years’ intake of ASYE social workers), or consult with your team to agree one. Alternatively, it might be an organisational learning need and then there will be a wider directive for all teams to complete a specific toolkit/s. Some toolkits are specific to children and families social work, and some are written for adult social care. Many are non-specific and contain examples and case studies relevant to both.

Each toolkit is themed, research-informed and comprised of two learning activities:

1. Learning 1 (L1): an online module that should be completed on an individual basis (offering new knowledge and preliminary thinking);
2. Learning 2 (L2): a complex case study (a tool for understanding and application of new knowledge) to be completed in group supervision (a space for reflection).

Share the log in details with your team setting the time period by which social workers should complete the online learning (L1). Completion of L1 will take 60-90 minutes. This means that the time demand is not too great and it can be fitted into the working day, or it can be completed in chunks if preferred. 

At the same time, we advise that you (the facilitator) set a date for the peer reflective discussion or group supervision or another learning event (L2). The peer reflection should take a minimum of 1 hour. Each toolkit has a Facilitator Guidance document that has some questions and prompts to enable critical discussion. These are designed for you to use so that you do not need to spend lots of time preparing for L2.

Each SWOTT toolkit integrates two opportunities for CPD reflections; on L1 and L2. You should build in time at the end of L2 to enable all participants to write their reflections and update their CPD portfolio. In actuality, you, as the facilitator, have a further opportunity for evidencing CPD activity by reflecting on the process of facilitating the completion of the toolkit by their team. You could reflect upon the following:

• The barriers and facilitators to team engagement with CPD activity;
• Group dynamics and functioning;
• Skills used and skills needed to facilitate group discussion.

Good luck and we hope that your team enjoys completing the SWOTT toolkit of your choosing.

Please login to veiw the toolkits!