The Project aims to provide equal opportunities for students who are disabled or who may have additional learning needs. We follow the guidelines set out in the Equality Act 2010. We understand and recognise that each student has individual needs which require our support. The Disability Champion can provide additional support for students who may have managed mental health issues: she can arrange for reasonable adjustments to be put in place to support the student during his or her placement.

All students have access to a suite of IT equipment to support their data input skills. Students with additional learning needs such as dyslexia are supported throughout their placement with adjustments which include the use of personal IT equipment.

The SWEET Project has experience of managing students on part-time courses or whose placements are undertaken on a part-time basis. Placement days are agreed at the outset and serious consideration is given to employment demands.

We have supported many students who have taken a leave of absence from their studies and we are used to supporting students who, for various reasons, find themselves out of sync with placement timetables.

All students on placement at The SWEET Project receive a structured induction which includes:

Also included are: training in safe practice including child protection and adult safeguarding; working with hard-to-reach families and service users; direct work with children; the SWEET Project’s policy and procedures.

Students will consolidate what they have learnt in induction and will be given access to their cases. They will begin to assess the families’ individual needs via case referral, case recordings, case file and case management. Only when the student has a full understanding of a family is permission given to contact that family.

Consultation has taken place with the families with whom we work to ascertain their views about the fact that our student population is constantly changing. They are happy to to accept that their allocated workers will change from time to time on the understanding that the Case Manager remains the same. This flexibility enables fresh insight to be brought to each case on a regular basis.

We offer students a comprehensive timetable of in-house and external training including the Birmingham Local Safeguarding Board’s training opportunities and Birmingham Children’s Services shadowing opportunities. We can also offer a variety of workshops.

Student supervision is undertaken in many different formats on a regular basis including:

• One-to-one supervision with Practice Educators;
• Group Supervision;
• Action Learning Sets;
• Workshops;
• Peer supervision;
• Professional Wellbeing;
• Open Door Policy.

Case management discussions take place every Monday morning between 9.30 a.m. and 12.30 p.m. and on Wednesday mornings between 10.30 a.m. and 1.30 p.m.. There is also an open door policy which gives students access to advice, support and guidance as and when required.

A member of staff is allocated to each case and will provide the necessary case management. Every case may be shared with two students. If the case is complex or if the family has a large number of children, additional students may be allocated.

When a case is first allocated, the member of staff at SWEET with oversight of the individual or family concerned will discuss the management of the case with the students before their initial visit.