Early learning and childcare – National induction resource

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The Scottish Government have published the ‘National Induction Resource for ELC’  A comprehensive tool to support robust induction for new starts in ELC as we progress with 1140 hours expansion. 

Download the resource from https://hub.careinspectorate.com/media/3528/early-learning-and-childcare-national-induction-resource.pdf

Looking back at Volunteers’ Week Scotland

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Scottish Volunteers’ Week took place last week, from the 1st to the 7th of June. It was a chance for organisations across Scotland to celebrate the fantastic contribution that volunteers make to society. 

At CALA, we have been lucky to have had some wonderful volunteers over the years – people who give up their free time because they want to make a difference.

Pictured above are Aga (left), Shona (right), two of our Family Support volunteers, along with Sadie (middle), CALA’s Family Support Manager.

We also took time last week to say thank you to our fantastic Board of Directors who give up their time to support and guide CALA and we are so grateful for their energy, expertise and enthusiasm.

It wasn’t just CALA that took time last week to celebrate volunteers – organisations across Scotland were getting involved and helping to spread the message that volunteering is a worthwhile, rewarding, and fun thing to do. 

Here are some highlights from Twitter: 

If you’re interested in volunteering at Care and Learning Alliance, please contact our Inverness office on 01463 222569. 

SSSC Guidance – Raising concerns in the workplace

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The Care Inspectorate has released a new guidance document, containing information on what to do if you have a workplace concern. The paragraphs are taken from the introduction of the guidance: 

“Working in social services means you care for some of our most vulnerable citizens. Your position on the front line whether you are an employee, social worker, manager or supervisor means you are most likely to see poor practice when it happens.”

“Sometimes you see things that are wrong (which can vary from poor treatment, financial issues to employment conditions or the way a service is run) but you may not report it until it happens again. Or you may not be sure if it is wrong because you are new into a job. The important thing is to trust your judgment. If you see something you feel is wrong report it to your manager as soon as possible. Your colleagues may also have concerns, but if nobody speaks up its unlikely the situation will improve. You need to act to protect those in your care.”

Download the guidance from the SSSC website by clicking here. 

Best Start Grant

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Best Start Grant is three cash payments that you can apply for if you’re a parent or a carer.

You can get these payments:

  • if you have a child who’s the right age for a payment
  • whether you’re in work or not, as long as you’re on certain payments or tax credits

Find out if you’re eligible by visiting the Best Start Grant page of the Scot Gov website. 

Or download a fact sheet by clicking here [PDF].

The Bookbug App

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Scottish Book Trust have released a Bookbug app, allowing parents and practitioners to access songs, rhymes and new words on their phone. The following description comes from the Bookbug website: 

“Download our free Bookbug app to share songs and rhymes on the go, look up new words or make up your own songs and rhymes to our new instrumental versions! Apps can be great for supporting children’s learning and encouraging play and creativity. Bookbug’s Songs and Rhymes app is one more way to fit songs and rhymes into your day and it’s here to support you as you play and sing with your wee one.”
 
“Explore the app together and create your own personalised playlists. You can also use the app to find your nearest Bookbug Session!”
 
Download the app by searching “Bookbug” on either the Apple App Store or the Android Play Store. 

Meet CALAs Childminding Coordinators

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Did you know that Care and Learning Alliance has two dedicated Childminding Coordinators? When you sign up for CALA childminding membership, you will receive support from either Norma or Donna, both of whom have years of childminding experience. When it comes to childminding, they’ve ‘been there and done that’, and are eager to share what they’ve learned. 

It has never been a better time to sign up as a CALA childminding member. To get started, visit: https://www.careandlearningalliance.co.uk/membership/

Child Protection Bulletin – Issue 5

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The fifth edition of the Child Protection Bulletin is now available to download. It features information on:

  • What to do if you have a child protection concern
  • Adverse Childhood Experiences
  • Child Sexual Exploitation
  • Useful websites and telephone numbers
  • And much more.

Click here to download the bulletin.

Announcing the latest FREE course on the CALA E-Learning Zone: ‘What makes a good chronology?’

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We are pleased to announce the launch of the latest free e-learning module ‘What makes a good chronology?’

Get started by visiting the CALA E-Learning Zone and adding ‘What makes a good chronology?’ to your basket. 

This short, interactive module developed in partnership with the Highland Child Protection Committee (with multi-agency input), is designed for anyone who may have cause to write ‘chronologies’ (recording of events or dates in the order of their occurrence) eg. ELC practitioners and agencies including Social Work, Health, Education, Police, Adult Services.

This module aims to support greater understanding what a chronology is, the purpose, types of chronologies, key points to record and highlights the importance of getting this right so that they are effective and fit for purpose.

Watch our promotional video by selecting the image below: 

Instructions for accessing the course: 

It couldn’t be simpler to access this new free course, but if you’ve never used our e-learning website before, here’s how it’s done: 

  1. Go to https://calaelearning.co.uk/our-courses/
  2. Select ‘add to cart’ next to the Chronologies module. 
  3. If you already have an account, enter your username and password. Otherwise press the ‘I don’t have an account’ button.
  4. If asked to enter a coupon, just press next.
  5. On the next screen, you are asked for some basic details about yourself.
  6. Finally, press the ‘complete order’ button. 
  7. That’s it! You should now have access to the free course. 

If you have any difficulty, please do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected]

We hope you enjoy the course, made in partnership with the Highland Child Protection Committee. 

The staff and children at Junior World reflect on this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week theme

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In recognition of Mental Health Week, the children of Junior World were discussing this year’s theme of ‘Body Image’. They used the opportunity to reflect and think about how they feel about their own bodies and expressed their thoughts and ideas creatively through drawings.

“I’m happy with my image although if someone is watching I am a bit shy”

“When I look in the mirror, I am very happy with the way I look”

“I am fast, skilled, athletic and sporty”

“I really love my hair and my smile”

Words Up – Early Key Messages Monitoring Tool

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The following update comes from the Highland Literacy blog: 

Following engagement with the Words Up Early (Level 1) Key Messages Training there has been guidance developed by education practitioners and speech and language therapists to support practitioners to embed the Words Up Early Key messages in their practice. This guidance has been shared recently with practitioners in their second and third year of the Emerging Literacy networks.

The Words Up Early Key Messages Guidance Notes March 2019 provide an overview of how ELC practitioners and teachers can embed the Words Up Early key messages in their practice and the Words Up One Early Monitoring Tool March 2019 can be used to support ongoing self-evaluation and reflection on the progress that is being made.

CLICK HERE: Words Up Early Key Messages Guidance Notes March 2019
CLICK HERE: Words Up One Early Monitoring Tool March 2019

Subscribe to the Highland Literacy Blog by clicking here and entering your email address in the sidebar. 

Upcoming Training – Gender Equal Play

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This upcoming training is an opportunity to support your implementation of key aspects of the
Care Inspectorate guidance, ‘Gender Equal Play, 2018’.

Dates and locations:

Inverness, Kintail House – Tuesday 4th June
Wick, Pultney Centre – Wednesday 5th June
Elgin, Elgin Academy – Monday 10th June
Fort William, West Highland College – Wednesday 12th June

All sessions are 6.30 – 9 pm

This is a FREE Training available to all CALA Members and practitioners working in CALA managed settings. Subject to availability non-members welcome at a cost of £12.50 per person payable at the time of booking. All bookings can be made online at:

https://careandlearning.typeform.com/to/PbXwvw

Enquiries/telephone bookings to Rebecca on 01349 866749 or email: [email protected]

The Child Protection Toolkit

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The Highland Child Protection Committee’s ‘Child Protection Toolkit‘ is an invaluable resource for third sector organisations and community groups in Highland.

Some of the topics covered in the toolkit include:

  • Recruitment of Staff and Volunteers
  • Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Act 2007
  • Transporting children and young people
  • Photographing, videoing and filming
  • Dealing with a Child Protection Situation
  • A sample Child Protection Policy

There are two versions of the toolkit available to download:

Download the CP Toolkit for Third Sector Organisations.

Download the CP Toolkit for Community Groups.

If your workplace is involved in the care of children, it is highly recommended you download the toolkit, and keep it on your computer to act as a reference for child protection matters.