Our Professionals’ Course – Building Accountability
Course dates: The Professionals’ course will begin 27th September 2023 and will finish 31st July 2024. Please see the full list of dates at the end of this page. We take a break in December.
Course format: All our courses take place online, via Zoom, on a Wednesday evening, led in person by our CEO Belinda Schwehr. There will be one session every 2-3 weeks, and each session will last 2-2.5hrs. Each session will consist of a 1.5 hour lecture, followed by a break-out session and then a whole group Q&A for questions raised in the Zoom Chat or the break-outs. Sessions end between 9pm and 9.30pm, depending on the pace and number of questions.
Each session is recorded, enabling you to access the recording again at a later time (and for a period of up to 3 months at the end of your course). Each session also comes with detailed slide presentations for you to review, as well as a set of curated reading material in readiness for the next topic.
Who’s it for? Formal statutory Advocates, self-directed support brokers and consultants, managed account providers, housing officers, and homelessness voluntary sector and council staff, social work professionals and management, NHS and ICB professionals, CMHT and hospital aftercare professionals, personal injury damages case managers and legal and other professionals working in, or aspiring to, a career in social work or Health Service management or the advice sector.
Please note, if you are a council applying for multiple places on this course, we will take a maximum of 6 bookings from one council, and the staff will be spread across multiple Zoom breakout rooms.
Course content: We will study 18 topics arising from the Care Act – please see the full list of topics at the end of this page – using past and current case law, and delving into case studies and reading links. We will also be looking at how accountability can work in practice, given the two different legal frameworks of health and social care, whilst those bodies are busy trying to integrate in a meaningful way.
Does it count for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) points? Yes, depending on what scheme you are registered with (i.e. Social Work England). We do provide certificates on application, if you have had reasonable attendance or we can see you’ve accessed the recorded materials.
What does this course cost? £400 (no VAT applicable). We are not offering hardship/funded places on the Professionals’ course, but we will consider requests for payment instalments on a case by case basis. No refunds are offered for anyone who decides it’s not for them – you get the recordings, so you don’t lose out.
What technical requirements do I need to join the course and access the recordings and material?
– Computer/Laptop with Windows 10 or above, or an Apple Mac.
– Internet connection preferably 10Mbps or above.
– Zoom software (a basic ‘free’ account is fine).
What are the entry criteria for taking part in the course? Although you don’t need to have any formal legal qualifications to undertake the course, entry to this course is competitive (due to the limited numbers we can accept and manage in break-out groups). You can attend for just the lectures but honestly, the reading speeds up your learning, and helps everyone else in the break-outs. You will not be helped, outside of whatever is feasible via your Learning Circle, nor examined, formally, but you will be encouraged, enthused and motivated – and we hope there will be many ‘lightbulb’ moments.
Whatever your formal level of education, you will benefit from the following traits, knowledge and experience, however, and we’d like to hear from you in your application about your:
- Legal Framework Awareness: Having a basic idea about how law ‘works’ in this sector and understanding some of the differences between the Administrative Court and the Court of Protection versus the ordinary civil courts.
- Familiarity with Key Legislation: Acquaintance with the adults’ social care landscape, encompassing at least some understanding of the Care Act and the essence of the Mental Capacity Act.
- Curiosity and Research Skills and Acumen: An inquisitive mindset, coupled with internet research proficiency
- Realism: Understanding that the reality of adult social care law and people’s legal rights and the public sector’s obligations may be different from the rhetoric.
- Legal Acumen: An ability to think in a logical way and laterally, across subject-matter based on rules and principles and comparisons.
- Case Analysis Skills (for aspiring CASCAIDr Caseworkers and those who want to work in the legal advice sector): The ability to distinguish between fact and opinion and between subjective perception, professional judgement, managerial discretion. Aptitude in extracting pertinent details from emotionally charged narratives, and concisely encapsulating the crux of a legal dilemma.
- Concern for Social Justice and faith in Public Law: Belief in public law as a force for social justice, aligning with conventional social work tenets such as accountability, non-discrimination, anti-oppression and fairness.
I want to join! What do I need to do now?
– Please send a cv and a covering letter (an email is fine) to pamelahoyer@cascaidr.org.uk covering the above criteria as best you can.
– In your covering letter, please explain your existing general legal knowledge, awareness of public law and knowledge and familiarity with the Care Act, in particular. Please tell us your working or family responsibilities circumstances and why you are confident you’ll be able to keep up with the reading and studying commitment. Even though we provide recordings, and we know everyone has difficult lives, we don’t want drop-out from session participation.
– Please let us know whether, should your application be successful, who will be paying the fee, and whether you wish to be considered for an instalment plan.
– We will acknowledge receipt of your application within 7 days and we will let you know whether your application has been successful ASAP, but no later than Friday 18th August 2023. If successful, we will then send you details as to how to make payment and other relevant information.
Dates and Topics covered in the Professionals’ Course
**Please note dates are subject to change, although changes are rare**
| Date | Session number | Session title |
| 27 Sep 202 | 1 | How social care entitlement and enforcement ‘works’ in this country: public law and human rights and distinguishing public law principles from what goes on in the Court of Protection, safeguarding, contract, negligence, criminal and regulatory law in this sector |
| 18 Oct 2023 | 2 | Advocacy, Involvement, Participation, Confidentiality and Information sharing |
| 1 Nov 2023 | 3 | Assessment |
| 15 Nov 2023 | 4 | Eligibility |
| 6 Dec 2023 | 5 | Care Planning and choice |
| 20 Dec 2023 | 6 | Carers’ Rights |
| 10 Jan 2024 | 7 | The Mental Capacity Aspect of the Care Act |
| 31 Jan 2024 | 8 | Reviews and Revisions and Cuts in particular – legal and illegal ones |
| 14 Feb 2024 | 9 | Ordinary Residence, and Continuing Ordinary Residence (and continuity) |
| 6 Mar 2024 | 10 | Direct Payments and Personal health budgets |
| 27 Mar 2024 | 11 | Commissioning, joint funding, delegation and fees issues from a provider’s perspective |
| 10 Apr 2024 | 12 | Continuing NHS Health Care |
| 1 May 2024 | 13 | S117 Mental Health Aftercare |
| 22 May 2024 | 14 | Housing, supported living and social care in general |
| 12 Jun 2024 | 15 | Children and Young People |
| 26 Jun 2024 | 16 | Charging and Disability Related Expenditure |
| 17 Jul 2024 | 17 | Complaints and other remedies such as the Monitoring Officer and using the Ombudsman effectively |
| 31 Jul 2024 | 18 | Legal Aid and getting the client to judicial review and permission to proceed |